France satisfied with infrastructure program. Skepticism among CEDRE’s donors has risen but they remain ready to help

French President Emmanuel Macron is satisfied with Lebanon's progress on starting an infrastructure investment program, said the office of Prime Minister Saad Hariri, following a phone conversation between the two leaders.

This statement came after Pierre Duquesne, a French envoy representing donors of the CEDRE conference, said that the Lebanese authorities need to speed up reforms, pass the 2020 budget this year, and set the priorities for the 250 infrastructure projects that will be fi...

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State of Economic Emergency declared by political parties. Decisions include cutting deficit and selling part of public companies

Top State officials and political and financial leaders have agreed on the broad lines of a three-year economic emergency plan that aims to reduce the fiscal deficit and speed up the implementation of capital investment projects, according to Prime Minister Saad Hariri.

The leaders have approved a medium-term fiscal framework over the three-year period 2020-2022 that aims to achieve an annual primary budget surplus of at least three percent, four percent, and five percent of GDP over each...

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Retail sales index stable F&B sales increase 34 percent. LFA indicators show big drop in sales of cosmetics, clothing and fashion

Retail sales in 2018 were half a percent lower than their 2017 levels, according to the latest edition of Retail Activity Indicators published by the Lebanese Franchise Association (LFA), in collaboration with the Chamber of Commerce, Industry, and Agriculture in Beirut and Mount Lebanon (CCIA-BML).

The index covers retail sales performance for nine categories of goods and services. It remained around ten percent below its 2012 base year level.

Five categories declined while four r...

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Union of Arab Banks starts mediation, arbitration center. To provide faster services at lower costs than courts

The Beirut-based Mediation and Arbitration Center (MAC) of the Union of Arab Bank (UAB) has begun operations, and will provide services locally, regionally, and globally.

The center will not confine its services to litigations among banks or between banks and other parties, but will accept all requests for resolving litigation issues, said Ghaleb Ghanem, a member of the MAC's higher council for arbitration.

The MAC does not differ at the legal level from the Lebanese Arbitration an...

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Land registry to be linked to notaries public. Funded by €1.2 million French grant`

The Ministry of Finance has launched a project to modernize the General Directorate of Land Registry and Cadastre (GDLRC).

The project consists of linking Cadastral offices to notaries public, to spare citizens the need to register property twice. "For people who will register property at the notary public, it will be as if they did so in our offices," said Georges Maarawi, Director General.

Many individuals register property at the notary public but delay registration at cadastra...

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Real exports grew five percent to $2.3 billion. Drop in exports to most Arab countries

Real exports of industrial and agricultural goods increased five percent last year to $2.3 billion, compared to 2017, according to Customs data.

The real export figures exclude pearls and precious stones, whose total value of exports rose to $648 million in 2018, up from $586 million in 2017. They also exclude mineral products (mostly oil products, mainly re-exported to Syria), which dropped to $31 million from $48 million over the same period.

Most real exports went to Saudi Arabi...

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$2.6 billion in assistance sought to support refugees. There will be no funding in the coming budget

The 2019 Lebanon Crisis Response Plan (LCRP) calls for $2.6 billion for the provision of direct humanitarian assistance and protection of highly vulnerable people in the country.

Around 40 percent of the needs that LCRP covers are for basic assistance, food security and agriculture, according to the LCRP updated 2019 report.

"There will be no funding for the Syrian refugees crisis in the coming budget," said Prime Minister Saad Hariri, on Thursday, when the report was unveiled.
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Farming disaster damage up to $400 million annually. Floods and cold waves top the list of risks

The primary risks impacting agriculture are mainly related to natural hazards, especially floods, cold waves, heavy rain, hot waves, and forest fires, according to a study published by the Ministry of Agriculture (MoA) and the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO).

The study, 'Vulnerability and risk Assessment to Facilitate Planning for Disaster Risk Reduction and Climate Change Adaptation in in Agriculture', was conducted by the National Council for Scientific Research (CNSR). The res...

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Transshipment up at Port of Beirut. Containers for local consumption decreased by three percent

Transshipment at Port of Beirut (PoB) reached 431,000 twenty-foot equivalent units (TEUs) in 2018, up six percent compared to the preceding year, according to statistics released by the port.

"The increase in transshipment activity compensated for weak local consumption," said Elie Zakhour, Chairman of the International Chamber of Navigation (ICN).

Containers for local consumption decreased by three percent to 874,200 TEUs.

"One of the reasons why transshipment improved is r...

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Tax free spending up by seven percent. Trend is back towards leisure

Tax free spending increased by 6.5 percent last year compared to 2017, according to Global Blue's report: 'Globe Shopper Spending Insights YTD – January to December 2018'. The report accounts for VAT refunds at Beirut Rafic Hariri International Airport and other borders.

Tax free spending grew 5.5 percent in 2017 compared to 2016.

"In mid-2017, tourist tax free spending started to increase. This coincided with the end of the military campaign on the Eastern borders. Tourists are m...

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