CAIRO: The Arab Monetary Fund (AMF) has granted Morocco a loan of 1.637 billion dirhams (about 190 million USD) to shore up its balance of payments, support trade with Arab countries and to support the macro-economic strategies undertaken in the Kingdom. In this regard, two agreements were signed here Monday by Moroccan Minister of Economy and Finance Nizar Baraka and Director-General of the FMA and Chairman of its Board of Directors, Jassem El Manai. The first agreement is for a loan of 1 billion dirhams from the AMF to shore up Morocco's balance of payments, while the second is for a guarantee line of 637.5 million dirhams to finance foreign trade with Arab countries. Through this loan, “the Arab Monetary Fund supports the government's strategy aimed at containing the deficit of the balance of payments and strengthening the level of foreign exchange reserves, while supporting the competitiveness of our exports to Arab countries,” Baraka said after the signing ceremony. Jassem El Manai hailed the distinguished relations between the AMF and Morocco, expressing the Fund's determination to support the various structural and institutional reforms initiated in the Kingdom.