This Is Beirut 2023-12-13 22:41 - Reading : less than a minute
One of the leading US rating agencies, Moody's, says "Lebanon's rating remains C," while changing the outlook to "stable," according to Reuters. In its report, Moody's explains that "Lebanon's stable outlook reflects its expectation that the rating will remain C for the foreseeable future." It believes, however, that "the continuing political ...
This Is Beirut 2023-12-13 21:11 - Reading : 2 minute(s)
The Parliamentary Finance and Budget Committee, led by MP Ibrahim Kanaan, met on Thursday to continue reviewing the 2024 fiscal year budget proposal. This budget, approved by the Council of Ministers on September 12, was discussed in the presence of the Caretaker Minister of Finance, Youssef Khalil, and the Minister of Interior, Bassam Mawlawi. ...
This Is Beirut 2023-12-13 20:25 - Reading : 1 minute(s)
Electricité du Liban (EDL) has implemented preventive measures until the anticipated delivery of the allocated diesel cargo for December 2023, aiming to prevent a potential blackout. In an official statement, the public supplier outlined the necessity of these measures to extend the energy production period, ensuring an uninterrupted power ...
Liliane Mokbel 2023-12-13 20:21 - Reading : 3 minute(s)
New 100,000 Lebanese pound banknotes have been in circulation since December 1, 2023. There's no need to panic, as this is a purely technical measure. However, what about the 500,000 and 1,000,000 Lebanese pound banknotes? Irrespective of the purpose behind printing higher-value banknotes than those currently in circulation, such a measure ...
This Is Beirut 2023-12-13 19:52 - Reading : less than a minute
The employees of the telephone operator Touch have organized a sit-in in front of the company’s building in Bachoura. The initiative was the result of a call by the syndicate of Alfa and Touch employees to protest against “arbitrary decisions” taken by the President of the Board of Directors at Touch. The president of the syndicate, Nabil ...
Nicolas Sbeih 2023-12-13 19:44 - Reading : 4 minute(s)
Nadine Labaki, in her eponymous film, found the answer while we are still struggling. Suppose, which is possible, that the situation does not improve for a while, with a gradual disappearance of the state and its services, a government handicapped without a president, and a Hezbollah that is malfunctioning and proliferating. What should be done ...
This Is Beirut 2023-12-12 16:35 - Reading : 1 minute(s)
Caretaker Energy Minister Walid Fayad met with Iraqi Deputy Prime Minister for Energy Affairs and Minister of Oil Hayan Abdul Ghani Al-Swad on the sidelines of the 12th Arab Energy Conference in Doha. The latter announced Iraq's readiness to sign a contract for the supply of crude oil to Lebanon in early 2024. This step will increase the ...
Johnny Kortbawi 2023-12-12 13:33 - Reading : 4 minute(s)
Any household provider or anyone overseeing day-to-day expenses can fully comprehend that addressing the financial deficit requires either reducing expenditures or increasing revenues. Unfortunately, the Lebanese government, overshadowed by some of its members’ arrogance and defiance, erroneously believes that the budget that was drafted can be ...
This Is Beirut 2023-12-08 19:25 - Reading : 3 minute(s)
Eleven Lebanese banks have initiated legal action by asking the Ministry of Finance to compel the government to repay its debts to the Central Bank (BDL). The purpose of this action is to enable the banks to fulfill their commitments to depositors. One of the lawyers representing the group of eleven banks, barrister Elie Chamoun, explained the ...
This Is Beirut 2023-12-07 22:02 - Reading : less than a minute
Gas station owners took the decision to stop accepting credit card payments starting Thursday, in response to a decision issued by the Ministry of Finance to collect taxes and fees in cash, in Lebanese pounds. In this context, the representative of fuel distributors in Lebanon, Fadi Abou Chakra, apologized to citizens, assuring that he had been ...
This Is Beirut 2023-12-07 15:30 - Reading : 1 minute(s)
Caretaker Finance Minister Youssef el-Khalil asserted on Thursday that the budget draft for the 2024 fiscal year, currently under discussion in the parliamentary Finance and Budget Committee, “remains central to the path of correction and reform, despite the surrounding uproar.” MPs and Lebanese business organizations do not share this view. ...
2023-12-07 12:24 - Reading : 3 minute(s)
While initial projections for the year-end holidays looked promising, stakeholders in the tourism and restaurant industries are currently expecting a somewhat muted festive season. The recent escalation of the conflict between Hamas and Israel, with its repercussions in southern Lebanon, has considerably disrupted the situation. Nevertheless, ...