Business Credit a “Reasonable Risk” in Morocco: Coface Risk Assessment

Rabat- Coface has again given Morocco the rating “A4” for credit risk of businesses defaulting, making it among the highest-ranking countries in Africa.

Coface (Compagnie Française d’Assurance pour le Commerce Extérieur), a French insurance company for foreign trade, published its country risk and sector risk assessment map for the second quarter of 2018 last week.

The assessment comprises 160 countries around the world and is drawn up on the basis of macroeconomic, financial, and political data.  Morocco has again received the “A4” rating, which corresponds to a “reasonable” risk. Alongside Morocco, only Kenya, Botswana, and Mauritius received such a high ranking in Africa.

In the MENA region, Morocco joins the United Arab Emirates and Qatar with the same risk ranking. Israel ranked first, with A2, followed by Kuwait ranking A3.

Oman was the only country in the MENA region whose rating improved, from C (high risk) to B (fairly high risk). The development is explained by the country’s growth, thanks to a rise in the oil and gas sector and continued moderate growth in other sectors, according to Coface.

Coface downgraded Argentina (C), Turkey (C), Sri Lanka (C) and India (B) as well due to their dynamic internal demand favoring imports, political tensions, and the deterioration of their trade balance.

Coface is considered to be a trustworthy reference in credit insurance, risk management, and the global economy. It operates globally, offering companies solutions to protect them against the risk of financial default of their clients. The company’s services and solutions protect and help companies to make credit decisions to improve their ability to sell on both their domestic and export markets.

Coface estimates the average credit risk in a country’s businesses. The assessment map is an invaluable tool, giving an indication of a country’s potential influence on businesses’ financial commitments.  Coface’s analyses use an eight-level ranking order of risk from A1 (very low) to E (extreme).