2024-02-08 10:34 - Reading : 3 minute(s)
The strikes by civil servants have persisted for over two years, detrimentally impacting the Lebanese economy and undermining state revenues. While civil servants advocating for salary increases rightfully seek to enhance their purchasing power, their actions have also resulted in the closure of public administrations. These closures hinder the ...
Riad Obégi 2024-02-08 09:00 - Reading : 4 minute(s)
This document does not claim to be exhaustive, rather it aims to give a few ideas that might help in finding solutions to Lebanon’s current crisis. 1 – Diagnosis: Lebanon’s GDP has fallen from 55 billion dollars to around 20 billion. Whole economic sectors have been damaged. State debt has been reduced by over 50 billion dollars due to ...
Nicolas Sbeih 2024-02-08 07:30 - Reading : 5 minute(s)
It is customary at the beginning of the year to take stock of fortunes and misfortunes in the international economic press. We won't drown you in numbers or provoke gloomy desolation so as not to add to your worries. But in essence, over the past few years, there have been many more billionaires who have become much richer than before. The ...
This Is Beirut 2024-02-07 15:04 - Reading : less than a minute
Lebanon recorded the second-highest inflation rate in the world, rising from 70% to 192% over the course of 2023, according to a study conducted by Russia's Novosti agency, based on data from the national statistical services of 193 UN member states. Argentina tops the list of countries with the highest inflation rate in 2023 (211%), followed by ...
This Is Beirut 2024-02-06 19:30 - Reading : 2 minute(s)
The Purchasing Managers Index (PMI), published by BlomInvest, rose to 49.4 points in January, compared to 48.4 in December. This suggests a moderate increase in business activity, less than what was observed at the end of 2023. Commenting on the figure, Fadi Osseiran, Managing Director of BLOM Business Bank, stated, “The Purchasing Managers ...
This Is Beirut 2024-02-06 18:13 - Reading : less than a minute
Year-on-year traffic at Beirut International Airport (BIA) declined by 8.49% in January, according to figures released by BIA. A total of 450,989 passengers, arrivals and departures combined, recorded an 8.49% decrease compared to January 2023. The number of arrivals in Lebanon dropped by 5.17%, totaling 201,269 passengers. Departures from ...
This Is Beirut 2024-02-06 15:42 - Reading : 1 minute(s)
Électricité du Liban (EDL) announced on Tuesday that certain charges have been abolished or reduced, based on decisions taken by its Board of Directors following approval by the relevant ministerial authorities. These amendments will be reflected in electricity bills issued from May 2023 onwards, with printing starting next week, according to a ...
This Is Beirut 2024-02-06 15:40 - Reading : less than a minute
Chairman of the Board of Directors and CEO of Banque de l'Habitat (BDH) Antoine Habib informed caretaker Minister of Finance Youssef Khalil that the disbursement of the Arab loan worth 50 million Kuwaiti dinars ($165 million) to BDH would begin on March 31, 2024. This date corresponds to the start of the fiscal year in the Gulf countries. The ...
Maurice Matta 2024-02-06 09:00 - Reading : 4 minute(s)
As expected, Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri signed the draft law for the 2024 budget and transferred it to the Caretaker Prime Minister. All eyes are now on the final budget draft, which will most probably be published in the official gazette this week. According to certain information, the Lebanese Forces bloc formed a smaller parliamentary ...
Liliane Mokbel 2024-02-05 20:58 - Reading : 2 minute(s)
The Central Bank's (BDL) first deputy governor Wassim Mansouri issued on Saturday Circular 166 on exceptional measures for the gradual repayment of bank deposits made in foreign currency after the date of 10/31/2019. Mansouri specified that Circular 166 was adopted after he had obtained the opinion of the Association of Banks in Lebanon (ABL), ...
This Is Beirut 2024-02-05 17:29 - Reading : 1 minute(s)
In a letter sent to employees on Monday, the union of cell phone operators Alfa and Touch announced "a complete work stoppage starting this afternoon." It demanded that employees' salaries be adjusted and paid in full in fresh dollars and that the collective labor agreement be signed. The union pointed out that negotiations have been going on for ...
This Is Beirut 2024-02-04 20:35 - Reading : 1 minute(s)
President of the Association of Petroleum Importing Companies Maroun Chammas reassured people that "gasoline is available," in response to citizens' fears of gas stations' rationing. However, in an interview on Sunday with local channel MTV, Chammas warned that events in the Red Sea could affect Lebanon, "where we could see an increase in fuel ...