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The COVID-19 pandemic and the August 2020 coup d'etat have disrupted more than half a decade of strong economic performance, during which growth averaged 5 percent.1 Growth is projected to decline from 5 percent to -2 percent in 2020 both on account of the pandemic (reflecting a slowdown in external demand, travel, and FDI, as well as the impact of uncertainty and reduced mobility on domestic demand) and of post-coup disruptions in trade, transport, economic and financial flows following the sanctions imposed by the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS). Inflation accelerated slightly in recent months but is expected to remain below 2 percent, while the current account deficit is projected to narrow due to higher gold prices (main export) and lower oil prices (main import). Risks around the outlook are exceptionally high in light of the uncertainty surrounding the political transition, the impact of the sanctions on trade and overall activity, and continued deterioration in the security situation. Weak social safety nets amid high informality, food insecurity and a fragile healthcare system exacerbate challenges.

COVID-19 Pandemic, 2020-.

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As in many other countries in the world, the pandemic has exerted a heavy toll on Morocco's population. Its economy has also been hit by a severe drought that affected agriculture output. The authorities' prompt response has helped contain the social and economic damage from the shocks but could not avoid a severe contraction of GDP. The loss of tax revenues deteriorated the fiscal position, while the fall in tourism receipts widened the current account deficit. However, greater access to external borrowing, including the full drawing of the IMF Precautionary and Liquidity Line (PLL) arrangement, has helped maintain international reserves at adequate levels so far in 2020. A gradual economic recovery is expected to begin in 2021, assuming the impact of the drought and the health crisis wane next year. The recent rise in COVID-19 cases, both in Morocco and its main trading partners, suggests that this outlook remains subject to significant downside risks.

COVID-19 Pandemic, 2020-.

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COVID-19 pandemic: The Financial Sector Assessment Program (FSAP) work was conducted prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, so this Technical Note (TN) does not assess the impact of the crisis or the recent crisis-related policy measures. Nonetheless, given the FSAP's focus on vulnerabilities and policy frameworks, the findings and recommendations of the TN remain pertinent. While Denmark's institutional arrangements are uncommon, the authorities have undertaken several macroprudential measures since the last FSAP. The Minister for Industry, Business and Financial Affairs (MIBFA) has decision-making power over most macroprudential tools in Denmark, which is rare in international practice. However, the Systemic Risk Council (SRC), which includes members from the Danmarks Nationalbank (DN) and Danish Financial Supervisory Authority (DFSA) plays an advisory role and has powers to give recommendations with a comply or explain mechanism. In recent years, the authorities have taken wide-ranging macroprudential policy actions in response to growing systemic vulnerabilities, which have seemed to slow down some of the riskier trends. More recently, in response to the Covid-19 crisis, countercyclical capital buffer (CCyB) has been fully released.

COVID-19 Pandemic, 2020-.

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The Financial Sector Assessment Program (FSAP) work was conducted prior to the COVID-19 pandemic. This report, however, includes stability analysis and stress tests under updated illustrative scenarios to quantify the possible implications of the COVID-19 shock on bank solvency. An unusually high degree of caution must be exercised in interpreting the stress tests results and their implications or validity at the current juncture, due to heightened uncertainty around post COVID central projections and downside risks. Financial vulnerabilities were elevated on the eve of the COVID-19 pandemic. Key financial vulnerabilities included high household leverage amid high real estate valuations following a long period of loose financial conditions. There were also signs of risk taking in some sectors, such as commercial real estate (CRE), and in addition, there were downside risks to bank profitability amid the low-interest-rate environment.

COVID-19 Pandemic, 2020-.

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The COVID-19 pandemic is having a severe human, economic, and social impact on Mauritania. The economy is estimated to have contracted by about 2 percent in 2020 and the crisis generated large financing needs. The authorities responded swiftly to mitigate the impact of the pandemic while international partners provided grants, loans, and debt service suspension. This, compounded by higher commodity exports (iron ore and gold) and some delays in emergency spending, resulted in unexpected fiscal surpluses and an accumulation of international reserves, which may now be used to support the recovery in 2021-22. The outlook remains highly uncertain and dependent on volatile commodity markets, with sizable downside risks in case new waves of the pandemic spill over into Mauritania.

COVID-19 Pandemic, 2020-