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COVID-Driven Unemployment in Morocco

Employees work on a Moroccan ventilator at a factory in Casablanca following an outbreak of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19), in Casablanca, Morocco April 10, 2020. REUTERS/Youssef Boudlal
Employees work on a Moroccan ventilator at a factory in Casablanca following an outbreak of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19), in Casablanca, Morocco April 10, 2020. REUTERS/Youssef Boudlal
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COVID-Driven Unemployment in Morocco

Employees work on a Moroccan ventilator at a factory in Casablanca following an outbreak of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19), in Casablanca, Morocco April 10, 2020. REUTERS/Youssef Boudlal
Employees work on a Moroccan ventilator at a factory in Casablanca following an outbreak of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19), in Casablanca, Morocco April 10, 2020. REUTERS/Youssef Boudlal

The Moroccan Minister of Economy, Finance, and Administration Reform, Mohamed Benchaaboun, said Monday that the implementation of the 2020 finance bill has shown a MAD13.8 billion (USD1.38 billion) decline in revenues by the end of August, compared to the same period in 2019.

The minister estimated that the year 2021 would see a drop of MAD20 to MAD25 billion (USD2 to USD2.5 billion) in tax revenues compared to 2019.

He noted that the novel coronavirus pandemic increased the unemployment rate, expecting it to reach 13 percent in 2020 compared to 9.2 percent in 2019.

This is a result of forecasts that the gross domestic product will drop by 5 percent, and 227,000 jobs will be lost in the non-farm sector in addition to 78,000 jobs in the farm sector.

Further, Morocco had lost 589,000 jobs between the second two quarters of 2019 and 2020.

During the second quarter of 2020, the unemployment rate hiked by 4.2 percent reaching 15,6 percent in urban environments. Youths of ages ranging from 24 to 34 saw the highest rate of unemployment up to 22.6 percent.

In rural areas, unemployment rose to 7.2 percent.

The minister revealed that the financial bill would focus on social sectors, while creating 1,500 job opportunities in the health sector and 2,000 in the education sector.

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Gold Prices Dip as Markets Brace for 'Hawkish' Fed Tone

UK gold bars and gold Sovereign coins are displayed at Baird & Co in Hatton Garden in London, Britain, October 8, 2025. REUTERS/Hiba Kola
UK gold bars and gold Sovereign coins are displayed at Baird & Co in Hatton Garden in London, Britain, October 8, 2025. REUTERS/Hiba Kola
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Gold Prices Dip as Markets Brace for 'Hawkish' Fed Tone

UK gold bars and gold Sovereign coins are displayed at Baird & Co in Hatton Garden in London, Britain, October 8, 2025. REUTERS/Hiba Kola
UK gold bars and gold Sovereign coins are displayed at Baird & Co in Hatton Garden in London, Britain, October 8, 2025. REUTERS/Hiba Kola

Gold edged down on Tuesday as investors, having mostly priced in a Federal Reserve rate cut, looked ahead for clues that the US central bank might opt for a gentler-than-expected easing cycle when its two-day policy meeting begins later in the day.

Spot gold was down 0.3% to $4,174.91 per ounce, as of 0609 GMT. US gold futures for December delivery slipped 0.4% to $4,202.70 per ounce.

Investors are largely repositioning ahead of the Federal Reserve's policy meeting, OANDA senior market analyst Kelvin Wong said.

"Earlier in the month, Jerome Powell signalled hawkish rate-cut guidance during his press conference. So investors in the US Treasury market are adjusting their positions."

The benchmark US 10-year Treasury yields held near a 2-1/2-month peak hit on Monday, Reuters reported.

Analysts widely expect a "hawkish cut" this week accompanied by guidance and forecasts that signal a high threshold for further easing into next year.

Last week, data showed the US Personal Consumption Expenditures (PCE) Price Index, the Fed's preferred inflation gauge, landed in line with expectations, while consumer sentiment improved in December.

Private payrolls for November recorded their sharpest drop in more than 2-1/2 years, but jobless claims fell to a three-year low for the week ended November 28.

Markets now assign an 89% probability of a quarter-point cut at the Fed's December 9–10 meeting, according to CME's FedWatch Tool.

Lower interest rates tend to favor non-yielding assets such as gold.

Meanwhile, silver fell 0.6% to $57.76 per ounce. The white metal hit a record high of $59.32 on Friday.

"Right now, silver is more of a higher-beta play among precious metals," Wong said, adding that low inventories, strong industrial demand, and expectations of Fed rate cuts are driving its momentum, pushing it into risk-on mode and outperforming gold.

Platinum lost 0.2% to $1,638.35, while palladium shed 0.4% to $1,459.78.

Business

Türkiye Cenbank Net Reserves Rose $5.5 billion Last Week, Bankers Say

Türkiye's Central Bank headquarters is seen in Ankara, Türkiye in this January 24, 2014 file photo. REUTERS/Umit Bektas
Türkiye's Central Bank headquarters is seen in Ankara, Türkiye in this January 24, 2014 file photo. REUTERS/Umit Bektas
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Türkiye Cenbank Net Reserves Rose $5.5 billion Last Week, Bankers Say

Türkiye's Central Bank headquarters is seen in Ankara, Türkiye in this January 24, 2014 file photo. REUTERS/Umit Bektas
Türkiye's Central Bank headquarters is seen in Ankara, Türkiye in this January 24, 2014 file photo. REUTERS/Umit Bektas

The Turkish Central Bank's net reserves increased by around $5.5 billion last week, due to foreign currency buying and rising gold prices, according to bankers.

Calculations by four bankers showed that net reserves rose to almost $78 billion in the week ending December 5, with net reserves excluding swaps rising some $4.5 billion to $62.5 billion, Reuters reported.

The bankers said the central bank bought more than $3 billion last week, with more than $1 billion of the increase due to the gold price change.

The bank's total gross reserves increased by $3.3 billion to $186.5 billion last week, the bankers said.

Their calculations were based on the central bank's preliminary data, with official data to be released on Thursday.

Business

Non-Oil Activities Account for Half of Saudi Economic Growth Momentum

Photo of the Saudi capital (SPA) 
Photo of the Saudi capital (SPA) 
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Non-Oil Activities Account for Half of Saudi Economic Growth Momentum

Photo of the Saudi capital (SPA) 
Photo of the Saudi capital (SPA) 

The Saudi economy posted real growth of 4.8% in the third quarter of 2025 compared with the same period of the previous year, reflecting the Kingdom’s sustained economic momentum. Non-oil activities were the primary engine of expansion, while seasonally adjusted real GDP rose 1.4% from the second quarter of 2025.

According to the final data released by the General Authority for Statistics (GASTAT), the annual growth figure came in slightly below the flash estimate published last October, which had projected a 5% increase. Even so, it remains the strongest quarterly performance recorded in 2025.

Non-oil activities delivered the largest contribution to overall annual growth, adding 2.4 percentage points, or 50% of the total 4.8% expansion. This outpaced the contribution from oil activities, which added 2.0 percentage points. The Authority revised its estimate for non-oil growth downward to 4.3% (from 4.5% in the flash estimate), while slightly raising its estimate for oil-sector growth to 8.3% (from 8.2%) for the previous quarter.

This improvement coincided with the gradual ramp-up in oil production following the expiration of voluntary cuts by the OPEC+ alliance at the end of August. Saudi Arabia increased its output by approximately 547,000 barrels per day starting in September, followed by an additional 137,000 barrels per day from November onward.

Both government activities and net taxes on products made modest positive contributions of 0.2 percentage points each.

On a quarterly, seasonally adjusted basis, oil and non-oil activities contributed 0.8 and 0.3 percentage points, respectively.

All economic sectors recorded positive annual growth. Oil refining emerged as the fastest-growing activity in the third quarter, rising 11.9% year-on-year and 3.9% quarter-on-quarter. It was followed by crude oil and natural gas activities, which grew 7.3% annually and 3.2% quarterly. Electricity, gas, and water services also posted gains of 6.4% year-on-year and 1.0% quarter-on-quarter.

From the expenditure perspective, performance varied between annual and quarterly comparisons. Final private consumption increased 2.6% year-on-year, but slipped 0.6% from the previous quarter. Conversely, final government consumption declined 3.1% annually, while increasing 1.4% quarter-on-quarter.

Gross fixed capital formation fell 0.7% year-on-year, but rebounded strongly on a quarterly basis with a 6.2% increase, indicating a pickup in investment spending during the third quarter.

Regarding foreign trade, the overall performance was buoyed by a significant surge in exports, which climbed 18.4% year-on-year and 7.5% quarter-on-quarter, reflecting strong external demand for Saudi products. Imports rose 4.3% annually, but edged down 1.2% on a quarterly basis.