Economy
Currency Flotation to Benefit Morocco’s Real Estate Market—JLL
By Modupe Gbadeyanka
A new report by JLL has thrown its weights behind the floatation of currency by the Moroccan Central Bank (Bank Al-Maghrib), saying it would benefit the nation’s real estate industry.
Recall that earlier this year, Bank Al-Maghrib introduced the gradual floatation of the Moroccan Dirham, providing more flexibility to real estate investors and paving the way for a more buoyant real estate market in the year ahead.
According to JLL’s Morocco 2018 report, the bank widened the official band within which the dirham may fluctuate to 5 per cent, with a maximum daily move of 2.5 per cent above or below the official rate.
As part of a broader monetary reform, this move is intended to bolster the competitiveness of Morocco’s economy and will potentially position the country as a regional economic hub, and the gateway to Africa.
The Moroccan economy is expected to record real growth of 4 per cent in 2018, primarily driven by increased domestic consumption and public investment, highlights the report. The economy has attracted increased levels of FDI yearly since 2005 (with the exception of 2015) with real estate attracting around half of the total FDI.
The significant increase in FDI aligns with the Moroccan government’s Vision 2020 outlining Morocco’s goals of becoming one of the world’s 20 leading tourist destinations by 2020.
Almost 40 per cent of foreign investment is from the GCC region, with a significant proportion of this total being invested in the real estate sector.
“The reforms introduced by the Moroccan government, will have a ripple effect on the real estate sector, as investors across all sectors now have the opportunity to be more flexible in their decision making,” said Craig Plumb, Head of Research, JLL MENA.
“If the currency softens against the Dollar and the Euro, this will effectively make Moroccan property cheaper for investors from markets denominated in these currencies and attract further FDI into the real estate sector across Morocco and most specifically into Casablanca,” he added.
Another factor likely to result in additional investment into the real estate sector is the launch of REIT’s that will reduce the level of investment required to own real estate and therefore expand the market to a wider range of investors.
Although there are no listed REITs on the Moroccan stock exchange as of yet, the merger of VLV and Petra in 2017 resulted in the creation of a new commercial real estate platform comprising of 27 assets (with a total GLA of more than 215,000 sq m) across 15 cities in Morocco.
Grit real estate income group (previously known as Mara Delta) has also announced plans to list its Moroccan assets separately as a REIT (with Anfa Place being a prime asset in its portfolio).
“REITs will boost the demand for investment in the office market. Casablanca is Morocco’s main commercial centre and has a significantly bigger office market than the capital Rabat. With many national and international companies located in the city there is a growing need for modern office space in Casablanca,” said Craig Plumb.
The retail market in Casablanca is largely dependent on street retail, however, organised retail malls are becoming increasingly preferred, reflected in the high footfall levels across major centres such as Morocco Mall and Anfa Place Shopping centre. “The continued move towards retail malls will create future opportunities for both developers and investors,” said Plumb.
Casablanca’s hospitality market is largely dependent on business travellers and has relatively limited hotels in the luxury segment. Occupancy rates recovered in 2017 from 62% in 2016 to 66% in 2017, owing to the performance of the 4-start hotel segment catering to conferences and exhibitions across the city.
“With the government’s vision 2020 of converting Morocco into one of the world’s hottest tourist destinations by 2020, occupancy rates seem to be growing positively. We look forward to seeing strong results in the hospitality market this year as performance shows an upward trajectory,” he added.
Being the gateway location between Europe and Africa, Morocco has attracted a number of major international manufacturers such as Renault Nissan investing in the key industrial areas. The government launched an industrial acceleration program in 2014, which is designed to generate half a million jobs in the industrial sector that will in turn significantly increase Morocco’s GDP as well as providing further opportunities for real estate developers and investors.
Economy
Petrol Supply up 55.4% as Daily Consumption Reaches 52.1 million Litres
By Adedapo Adesanya
The supply of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS), also known as petrol, increased by 55.4 per cent on a month-on-month basis to 71.5 million litres per day in November 2025 from 46 million litres per day in October.
This was contained in the November 2025 fact sheet of the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA) on Monday.
The data showed that the nation’s consumption also increased by 44.5 per cent or 37.4 million litres to 52.1 million litres per day in November 2025, against 28.9 million litres in October.
The significant increase in petrol supply last month was on account of the imports by the Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) Limited into the Nigerian market from both the domestic and the international market.
Domestic refineries supplied in the period stood at 17.1 million litres per day, while the average daily consumption of PMS for the month was 52.9 million litres per day.
The NMDPRA noted that no production activities were recorded in all the state-owned refineries, which included Port Harcourt, Warri, and Kaduna refineries, in the period, as the refineries remained shut down.
According to the report, the imports were aimed at building inventory and further guaranteeing supply during the peak demand period.
Other reasons for the increase, according to the NMDPRA, were due to “low supply recorded in September and October 2025, below the national demand threshold; the need for boosting national stock level to meet the peak demand period of end of year festivities, and twelve vessels programmed to discharge into October, which spilled into November.”
On gas, the average daily gas supply climbed to 4.684 billion standard cubic feet per day in November 2025, from the 3.94 bscf/d average processing level recorded in October.
The Nigeria LNG Trains 1-6 also maintained a stable processing output of 3.5 bscf/d in November 2025, but utilisation improved slightly to 73.7 per cent compared with 71.68 per cent in October.
The increase, according to the report, was driven by higher plant utilisation across processing hubs and steady export volumes from the Nigeria LNG plant in Bonny.
“As of November 2025, Nigeria’s major gas processing facilities recorded improved output and utilisation levels, with the Nigeria LNG Trains 1-6 processing 3.50 billion standard cubic feet per day at a utilisation rate of 73.70 per cent.
“Gbaran Ubie Gas Plant processed 1.250 bscf per day, operating at 71.21 per cent utilisation, while the MPNU Bonny River Terminal recorded a throughput of 0.690 bscf per day during the period. Processing activities at the Escravos Gas Plant stood at 0.680 bscf per day, representing a 62 per cent utilisation rate, whereas the Soku Gas Plant emerged as the top performer, processing 0.600 bscf per day at 96.84 per cent utilisation,” it stated.
Economy
Secure Electronic Technology Suspends Share Reconstruction as Investors Pull Out
By Aduragbemi Omiyale
The proposed share reconstruction of a local gaming firm, Secure Electronic Technology (SET), has been suspended.
The Lagos-based company decided to shelve the exercise after negotiations with potential investors crumbled like a house of cards.
Secure Electronic Technology was earlier in talks with some foreign investors interested in the organisation.
Plans were underway to restructure the shares of the company, which are listed on the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) Limited.
However, things did not go as planned as the potential investors pulled out, leaving the board to consider others ways to move the firm forward.
Confirming this development, the company secretary, Ms Irene Attoe, in a statement, said the board would explore other means to keep the company running to deliver value to shareholders.
“This is to notify the NGX and the investing public that a meeting of the board of SET held on Tuesday, December 16, 2025, as scheduled, to consider the status of the proposed share reconstruction and recapitalisation as approved by the members at the Extraordinary General Meeting (EGM) held on April 16, 2025.
“After due deliberations, the board wishes to announce that the proposed share reconstruction will not take place as anticipated due to the inability of the parties to reach a convergence on the best and mutually viable terms.
“Thus, following an impasse in the negotiations, and the investors’ withdrawal from the transaction, the board has, in the interest of all members, decided to accept these outcomes and move ahead in the overall interest of the business.
“The board is committed to driving the strategic objectives of SEC and to seeking viable opportunities for sustainable growth of the company,” the disclosure stated.
Business Post reports that the share price of SET crashed by 3.85 per cent on Tuesday on Customs Street on Tuesday to 75 Kobo. Its 52-week high remains N1.33 and its one-year low is 45 Kobo. Today, investors transacted 39,331,958 units.
Economy
Clea to Streamline Cross-Border Payments for African Importers
By Adedapo Adesanya
Clea, a blockchain-powered platform that allows African importers to pay international suppliers in USD while settling locally, has officially launched.
During its pilot phase, Clea processed more than $4 million in cross-border transactions, demonstrating strong early demand from businesses navigating the complexities of global trade.
Clea addresses persistent challenges that African importers have long struggled with, including limited FX access, unpredictable exchange rates, high bank charges, fraudulent intermediaries, and payment delays that slow or halt shipments. The continent also faces a trade-finance gap estimated at over $120 billion annually, limiting importers’ ability to access the FX and financial infrastructure needed for timely international payments by offering fast, transparent, and direct USD settlements, completed without intermediaries or banking bottlenecks.
Founded by Mr Sheriff Adedokun, Mr Iyiola Osuagwu, and Mr Sidney Egwuatu, Clea was created from the team’s own experiences dealing with unreliable international payments. The platform currently serves Nigerian importers trading with suppliers in the United States, China, and the UAE, with plans to expand into additional trade corridors.
The platform will allow local payments in Naira with instant access to Dollars as well as instant, same-day, or next-day settlement options and transparent, traceable transactions that reduce fraud risk.
Speaking on the launch, Mr Adedokun said, “Importers face unnecessary stress when payments are delayed or rejected. Clea eliminates that uncertainty by offering reliable, secure, and traceable payments completed in the importer’s own name, strengthening supplier confidence from day one.”
Mr Osuagwu, co-founder & CTO, added, “Our goal is to make global trade feel as seamless as a local transfer. By connecting local currencies to global transactions through blockchain technology, we are removing long-standing barriers that have limited African importers for years.”
According to a statement shared with Business Post, Clea is already working with shipping operators who refer merchants to the platform and is also engaging trade associations and logistics networks in key import hubs. The company remains fully bootstrapped but is open to strategic investors aligned with its mission to build a trusted global payment network for African businesses.
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