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| 198th.
issue - Week ended July 3, 2007
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Risk
Analysis
What to do with Guantanamo’s Algerian Prisoners?
There are 26 Algerian prisoners in the American detention
center of Guantanamo Bay, and foreign minister Mourad Medelci
hinted recently they will be extradited to Algeria in some
near future. Algerian sources say Clint Williamson, the
American ambassador-at-large on war crimes issues has reportedly
discussed the future of those detainees with the Algerian
authorities with the potential of extraditing them under
specific conditions centered on their treatment and monitoring
upon their return. However, Algeria has apparently rejected
the American conditions and negotiations are still underway.
[read
here]
AGRICULTURE
Morocco
to Import a Million Tons of Cereal Following Poor Harvest
and Rising Grain Prices
Morocco
is reducing the custom tax imposed on the entry of soft wheat.
This move followed a similar one that took effect in mid-June
2007, essentially to lower the prices of wheat, which still
remain high for most Moroccan households. However, the latest
tax reduction is not likely to make a dent in the current
high prices. [read
here]
FINANCE/BANKING
Maghreb
Banking Sector Review
Moroccan
banks are the most active in the Maghreb, buoyed by the most
progressive banking environment in the region. And more recently,
they have been increasingly outward looking, attempting to
create opportunities outside of their home territory. In Tunisia
meanwhile, five years after the first privatization of a state
bank with the sale of UIB to France's Société Générale, the
banking sector is still facing difficulties in improving its
situation, while in Algeria, we are witnessing the very beginning
of a diverse offering of banking products but more needs to
be done on the regulatory front. The following is an assessment
of the state of the banking sector in the Maghreb
ECONOMY
AND TRADE
Current
State of the Investment Climate in Algeria and Morocco
Morocco has initiated since the 1990s "an important program"
to reform its financial system, but its desired outcome has
yet to be fully reached. In particular, the country has not
yet captured sufficient savings, particularly those savings
that carry long maturity periods. This lack of savings is
not helpful for companies seeking to raise money outside of
the traditional but costly banking system. Meanwhile, the
fact that 80% of foreign investment in neighboring Algeria
comes from Arab sources should be alarming and must worry
those trusted to create sustainable growth. Not that Arab
investments are not welcomed, in the contrary, but because
Algeria is actually missing enormous foreign investment opportunities
from other sources. These analyses address the current investment
climate in both countries.
[read
here]
INDUSTRIES
/ MARKETS
Travel
Agents in Tunisia Angry at Air France for Commission Reduction,
Travelers to Pay More
Since
January 2007, most travel agents around the world lost a substantial
source of income as carriers decided to scrap their commission
payments to them. There are exceptions though, and Tunisian
travel agents continue to receive commissions for the sale
of tickets. However, those payments are scheduled to decrease
according to the travel agents association (Fédération Tunisienne
des agences de voyages) following an agreement with state
carrier Tunisair. [read
here]
INDUSTRIES
/ MARKETS
Temporary
Break in Moroccan Real Estate Pricing Frenzy
The bubble may not burst yet but the real estate craze that
Morocco has been witnessing shows signs of stabilization,
most likely on the temporary basis. There is a consensus as
everyone in the real estate sector, from developers to bankers,
recognizes that prices have gone through the roof, so to speak.
So much so that potential buyers have decided they can no
longer afford to purchase a home and prefer to adopt a wait-and-see
attitude. Mortgage lenders have been among the first ones
to warn that the prices of new housing units have been alarmingly
exceeding the real value of those units. Driven by unscrupulous
developers and their speculative investors, prices reached
unprecedented levels that are such a mismatch to the current
wage levels in Morocco. And while prices have not decreased
yet, they have stabilized to begin to worry the main players
in the industry. [read
here]
INDUSTRIES
/ MARKETS
Algerian
Industrial Gas Maker Sold to German Group in a Transaction
Criticized by Labor Unions
The
German industrial company the Linde Group has acquired the
majority of the shares (66%) of the state-owned Algerian industrial
and medical gases company ENGI (Entreprise Nationale de Gaz
Industriels), therefore finalizing the privatization of one
of Algeria’s major industrial companies. At a reported 27
million euros, the sale of ENGI, which has 10 production sites
and employs about 700 people, generating sales of some 32
million euros in 2006, did not please labor unions, who qualified
the price tag as too much of a bargain. [read
here]
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Mauritania
Seeks to Criminalize Slavery
CORPORATE
AFFAIRS
U.S.
Private Equity Firm Buys Libyan Stake in Tamoil
Atos
Origin Opens Service Center in Casablanca, Appoints New Leader
for North Africa Region
POLITICS/DIPLOMACY
What
to do with Guantanamo’s Algerian Prisoners?
ECONOMY
AND TRADE
INVESTMENT CLIMATE
IN ALGERIA AND MOROCCO
Morocco:
Domestic Savings Insufficient to Cover Morocco’s Investment Needs
Algerie:
State of Foreign Investment in Algeria: Arab Investors Lead the
Way
Investing
in Algeria: Tough Investment Climate in Need of New Strategy
Libya
Courts Japanese Investors at Eve of Issuing Exploration Tender
As
Household Spending Rises in Morocco, So is the Middle Class
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