Economy

Alfa Clarifies Service Outage, Announces Compensation for Subscribers
Alfa Clarifies Service Outage, Announces Compensation for Subscribers

Alfa, the mobile operator, explained the reasons behind Wednesday’s disruption of several of its services. In a statement, the company attributed the outage to a technical issue that occurred while updating an outdated router used for data transmission. Alfa apologized to its subscribers and reassured them that its network is undergoing ...

France says EU working toward 'rapid' easing of Syria sanctions
France says EU working toward 'rapid' easing of Syria sanctions

France's Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot said Thursday that the European Union was working toward swiftly easing Syria sanctions as Paris hosted a conference on the transition in the war-torn country after president Bashar al-Assad's fall. Islamist-led rebels toppled Assad in December after a lightning offensive. The new authorities, headed by ...

Real Estate in Lebanon: Between New Hopes and Persistent Challenges
Real Estate in Lebanon: Between New Hopes and Persistent Challenges

In an interview with This is Beirut, Ahmad el-Khatib, managing partner of Century 21 Lebanon, an international real estate brokerage agency, shares his vision of the Lebanese real estate market. “As real estate brokers, we are at the heart of the market and directly feel its fluctuations, whether positive or negative. Our daily interactions ...

Facing Egg Shortage, Americans Bring Chickens Home to Roost
ReportFacing Egg Shortage, Americans Bring Chickens Home to Roost

A Houston poultry supply company is selling chickens like there is no tomorrow, as sky-high prices for eggs prompt some Americans to produce their own at home. A recent US outbreak of bird flu since early 2024 is exacting a heavy toll on poultry farms. More than 21 million egg-laying hens have been "depopulated" this year so far, after 13.2 ...

Scientists warn of climate threat to chocolate
Scientists warn of climate threat to chocolate

Climate change drove weeks of crop-withering temperatures last year in the West African countries that underpin the world's chocolate supply, hitting harvests and likely further stoking record prices, researchers said Wednesday. Farmers in the region -- which account for some 70 percent of global cacao production -- have struggled with heat, ...

BDH Re-Elects Antoine Habib
BDH Re-Elects Antoine Habib

Banque de l’Habitat (BDH) re-elected Antoine Habib as chairman and appointed a new Board of Directors during its ordinary general assembly on Wednesday, During the meeting, Habib outlined key achievements, including an increase in loan values to support low and middle-income Lebanese citizens. He highlighted a $165 million loan from the Arab ...

US stocks fall as inflation unexpectedly heats up
US stocks fall as inflation unexpectedly heats up

US stock markets tumbled on Wednesday as an inflation reading came in hotter than expected, fanning fears that the Federal Reserve will keep interest rates higher for longer. Following days of attention on US President Donald Trump's tariff moves, traders were focusing on the January consumer inflation data, which is set to play a role in the ...

Saudi Arabia to invest $5 bn in AI data centre
Saudi Arabia to invest $5 bn in AI data centre

A Saudi company will invest $5 billion to build an artificial intelligence data centre in the futuristic city of NEOM, state media reported. The agreement, signed between DataVolt and NEOM, would fund the creation of a fully sustainable AI data centre with a 1.5 gigawatt capacity, the official SPA news agency said. The project will be located in ...

Global Stocks Wobble, Gold Shines as Tariff Uncertainty Looms
Global Stocks Wobble, Gold Shines as Tariff Uncertainty Looms

United States stock markets wobbled, and gold reached fresh highs on Tuesday as traders kept a nervous eye on US President Donald Trump’s next tariff decisions, worried about inflation and interest rates. European markets rose, with both Frankfurt and London again setting records, while Asian equity markets struggled for direction. Trump has ...

US Foreign Aid Halt to Have Major Hit on Poorest Countries: Report
US Foreign Aid Halt to Have Major Hit on Poorest Countries: Report

A suspension of US foreign aid and possible dismantling of the US Agency for International Development (USAID) will have a major impact on some of the world's poorest countries, the Washington-based Center for Global Development (CGD) warned Tuesday. For more than 20 economies, a year-long pause on US aid could mean a loss of over one percent ...

Real Estate Prices: How Have They Changed Over Time?
Real Estate Prices: How Have They Changed Over Time?

Lebanon’s real estate market is currently defined by a mismatch between sellers’ and buyers’ expectations. While sellers are banking on a price increase, driven by hopes of an economic recovery following the election of a president after more than two and a half years of political deadlock, buyers continue to perceive a stagnant market. A ...

Trump Signs Executive Orders for Steel, Aluminum Tariffs to Start March 12
Trump Signs Executive Orders for Steel, Aluminum Tariffs to Start March 12

  US President Donald Trump signed executive orders to impose 25 percent tariffs on steel and aluminum imports from March 12, ramping up a long-promised trade war despite warnings from Europe and China. "Today I'm simplifying our tariffs on steel and aluminum," Trump said Monday in the Oval Office. "It's 25 percent without exceptions or ...