I.- FUNDAMENTACIÓN DEL PROYECTO
I.3 METODOLOGÍA
I.4.1 DIAGNÓSTICO SITUACIONAL
Box 30063,
Capital City, Lilongwe 3, Malawi Convention Drive
City Centre, Lilongwe, Malawi Tel: +265-1-770.600
Fax: +265-1-772752/265, 774289 E-mail: [email protected] Website: www.rbm.mw
Mauritania
Dakar Nouakchott
Sélibaby Kaédi Rosso Aleg
Atâr Nouâdhibou
Fdérik
Mopti El Aaiún
MAURITANIA
SENEGAL
MALI WESTERN
SAHARA
MOROCCO
ALGERIA ATLANTIC OCEAN
2009 at a glance
Population (mn) 3.3
Population growth (annual %) 2.3
Official language Arabic
Currency Mauritanian Ouguiya
(MRO)
GDP (Current US$ bn) 3.1
GDP growth (annual %) 1.8
GDP per capita (Current US$) 952.2
Total Debt (US$ bn) 1.9
Total Debt/GDP (%) 61.7
CPI (annual %) 4.2
Exports of Goods and services (% of GDP) 44.9 Gross Official Reserves (in US$ bn) N/A Gross Official Reserves (in months of imports) N/A
MRO / 1USD (Year end) 263.00
Source: AfDB, Bloomberg
Sovereign rating as at March 24, 2010 Long-term Local Currency Foreign Currency
Not rated by either Fitch, Moody’s or S&P Source: Bloomberg
Summary
» Government securities yield curve has longest tenor of 50 weeks.
» Financial market is dominated by commercial banks.
» Treasury bill auctions are held every week
» No secondary market trading activity
98 Mauritania
Monetary Policy and Money Market
Established in 1973, the Banque Centrale de Mauritanie (BCM) is in charge of the monetary policy of the Islamic Republic of Mauritania with the main objective of price stability. The BCM ensures the stability of the Mauritanian financial system and supports the implementation of the economic policy defined by the Government.
In January 2007, the BCM went through an important reform aimed at strengthening its independence, with greater autonomy in the formulation and implementa-tion of the monetary policy through the creaimplementa-tion of the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC). The MPC meets once a month to examine monetary and economic developments and takes necessary actions which are compiled and published in a periodic newsletter. The main instruments are open market and Repo transactions, and minimum reserve requirements for banks.
In 2008, the BCM categorized inflation as an operational strategic target and set up a strategic plan that aims to upgrade its information infrastructure and enhance the institution’s analytical capabilities, in order to better define inflation target and monitor price levels.
The main instruments in the Mauritanian money market are Treasury bills “bons de trésor à court terme” (BTC), certificate of deposit (CDs), commercial papers (CPs), Cen-tral Bank bills (CBBs) and Repos. The interbank market benchmark rates are the Central Bank prime rate and the weighted average treasury bills rate (WATBR). In 20091, the WATBR fluctuated between 8% and 12%, with the majority of the decline occurring during the second half of the year.
1 Source : BCM website
Fixed Income Market
Government Securities
BTCs are issued through a weekly auction by the national Treasury in coordination with the BCM to help regulate money supply in the interbank market and to meet the Government’s short-term liquidity needs. The Treasury can also issue Treasury bonds, known as “bons du trésor annual” (BTA), and “Titres de Créances Négociables” (TCN) to fulfil the funding needs of the Government, as well as for debt management purposes.
The Government of Mauritania issues Treasury bills through a weekly auction on Mondays, for 4-, 13-, 26and 50-week tenors. BTC are issued at a discount for a multiple of 1 million MRO. In 2009, the amount of BTC issued per auction was between MRO 5 and 10 billion, with a slight increase in the fourth quarter of the year. As the issuing agent of the Government, the national Treasury can also issue Treasury bonds (BTA) for a maturity of more than 1 year.
The opposite graph shows the fluctuation of the WATBR in 2009.
The Central Bank of Mauritania issues bills with tenor of less than one year to regulate the interbank money supply.
Evolution of the weighted average treasury bills rates in 2009
Source : BCM
Non-Government Securities
There have been no corporate issuances in the Maurita-nian debt market.
Intermediaries
Commercial banks are the main intermediaries of the Mauritanian debt market. They have access mainly to the primary market for their own book or for those of their clients.
8%Jan 09 Mar 09 May 09 Jul 09 Sep 09 Nov 09 Jan 10 Mar 10 10%
12%
99 Mauritania
Investors
The banking sector is the major investor in Mauritania, accounting for the majority of BTC’s holdings in 2009.
Foreign investors have access to the primary market;
however, their participation is currently very marginal.
250 Dec 2004 Dec 2005 Dec 2006 Dec 2007 Dec 2008 Dec 2009 275
270
260
255 265
Primary Market
Commercial banks are the main players of the primary market.
Secondary Market
Established in 2007, the secondary market is not yet active.
Foreign Exchange Market
The Mauritanian Ouguiya (MRO) is a managed floating currency. Since May 2004, the MRO fluctuated between MRO 268.6 and MRO 250.6 per 1 USD.
Mauritania has a free exchange regime. In practice, the transfer of capital is handled by banks. Since the sector is liberalized, banks do not need authorization from the BCM to transfer funds offshore.
The opposite graph provides historical levels of the MRO against the USD.
MRO per Unit of USD (Year End)
Source: BCM and Bloomberg
Derivatives Market
There is no derivatives market in Mauritania.
Regulation and Taxation
Regulation
The BCM is the main regulatory body of the financial market. It supervises the banking sector, which com-prises 12 commercial banks, 8 insurance companies and 80 microfinance institutions, including 51 credit unions
“Caisses Populaires locales d’Epargne et de Crédit” (CAPEC).
Taxation
Both foreign and local investors are treated equally in ac-cordance with the tax laws currently in effect. Interest on Treasury bills is subject to personal and corporate taxes.
100 Mauritania
Clearing and Settlement
The BCM is the clearing and settlement house, as well as the central depository for securities.