LONDON (Standard&Poor's CreditWire) March 29, 1999--Standard&Poor's today assigned its double-'B' long-term rating to the Kingdom of Morocco's proposed five-year Euro (Eur) 138.7 million bond. Agence Francaise de Developpement (triple-'A'/Stable/--) will guarantee 100% of the principal and 50% of the interest. Given the partial guarantee on interest payments, the bond is rated no higher than the Kingdom of Morocco's issuer credit rating (foreign currency: double-'B'/Stable/'B'; local currency: triple-'B'/Stable/'A-3'). The Kingdom of Morocco's ratings are constrained by: -- A high public sector and external debt burden. At an estimated 95% of GDP and 119% of exports, total public sector debt and net public sector external debt, respectively, although decreasing, still significantly exceed single-'B' and double-'B' medians. -- An
