Lebanon world’s second in gold reserve per capita. Along with foreign currencies provides full coverage for the lira

Lebanon is the second country in the world in gold reserves per capita with 69.3 grams for each citizen.

Switzerland tops the world's list with 136.3 grams per capita.

The value of gold reserves at the Central Bank (BDL) stood at $11.9 billion at the end of last March. Gold together with BDL's foreign assets cover the money supply in lira and provide a strong support to the national currency,

Lebanon ranked 18th in terms of gold holdings among 96 countries, according to data...

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Private sector credit unchanged last year.

Outstanding credit provided by the financial sector to the private sector increased by 1.3 percent in 2018 to stand at $69.5 billion at the end of the year, according to the Central Bank's 'Quarterly Bulletin' for the fourth quarter of 2018.

Loans by commercial banks to the private sector witnessed a decline in the first quarter of 2019 as their appetite for lending remains constrained amid tcurrent low growth environment, Bank Audi said in its 'Lebanon Economic Report' for the first qua...

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AUBMC launches New Medical Center Expansion.

The American University of Beirut Medical Center recently laid the foundation stone for the New Medical Center Expansion (NMCE) this week. Construction is expected to start in fall 2020 to be completed by fall 2025.

The NMCE building will include 12 floors above ground, and ten underground levels. It will be constructed in place of the current parking lot, extending from Maamari Street towards Clemenceau Street, and connecting to the existing Medical Center buildings.

The NMCE wil...

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New banks fees on cash withdrawals. A measure to boost digital transformation

Banks have recently set restrictions on cash withdrawals and the collection of checks in Lebanese Lira.

The new commission rates range between 0.2 and 0.4 percent on each withdrawal, and the commission on checks in Lebanese Lira is between LL1,000 to LL1,500.

The commission is imposed on cash withdrawals that are above $5,000. These measures are part of the banks' strategies to boost the number of customers using digital banking services.

"We are removing commissions on d...

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Solidere posts losses for second year in a row.

Solidere's audited financial statements for 2018 show a loss of $116 million, the same amount the company lost in 2017.

Total revenues dropped two percent to $66 million last year, while revenues from land sales increased to $1.2 million compared to $94,500 in 2017. Property rent revenues decreased five percent, falling to $57 million.

Solidere has succeeded in decreasing its general and administrative expenses by 12 percent. Expenses fell to $31 million, according to the statement...

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Ministry of Telecom announces new roaming service. Wonet to offer data and phone calls abroad at the same tariffs as local rates

The Ministry of Telecommunication (MoT) has assigned the Switzerland-based company Wonet, to provide a new Value Added Service (VAS) for Roaming.

At $25 per month, Wonet's service will allow Alfa and Touch users to use the Internet abroad, consume data, receive and make phone calls at tariffs to local rates.

Wonet is a mobile application that is activated through a chip that can be purchased, using the subscriber's existing phone number.

The service will be activa...

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Eurobond prices improve as Cabinet approves draft budget. Interbank rate drops, stock price index sees first rise in eight weeks

The cost of insuring exposure to Lebanon's sovereign debt fell on Tuesday while prices of dollar-denominated Eurobonds improved after the Cabinet's approval of the 2019 draft budget.

Five-year credit default swaps (CDS) dropped 23 basis points (bps) to 847 bps compared with their closing price on Monday, according to Reuters.

The Eurobond issue maturing in November of this year rose more than 0.7 cents in the dollar, while the March 2020 issue gained 0.6 cents.

The impac...

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The Madame Coco brand to enter the market in June. Four outlets in Beirut, Tripoli, and Zahle

National Retailers Group (NRG), the franchise operator of LC Waikiki and Devred 1902, has obtained a master franchisee license for the Turkish brand Madame Coco.

Madame Coco is a home textile and decoration brand that is manufactured in Turkey as well as other European countries.

A new company will be established to manage the new brand, said Nabil Gebrael, Chairman of NRG.

Four Madame Coco outlets will open in June. Two standalones will open in Zahle and Tripoli, and the...

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Pub cluster and resort opened in Jbeil.

Vigor City, a pub cluster and resort, opened late this month in Mastita, Jbeil.

The project is built on a 7,000 square meter plot of land. Pierre Lahoud, owner and operator of the project, invested around $2 million. Lahoud has rented the land and built-up area from Wissam Baroudi for ten years.

Vigor City includes a resort during the day, comprising a swimming pool and restaurant.

Vigor City also comprises 12 pubs including Vice, Newtrl, Loren, Steel, Orvis, Be you, Ra...

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Intellectual Property archive will be digitized. Automation of workflow processes at the Ministry of Economy and Trade

The Ministry of Economy and Trade (MoET) has launched a $522,000 project to computerize workflow processes at its General Directorate and to electronically archive paper documents at its Office of Intellectual Property.

The automation part of the project will cost $440,000 while the archiving will cost $82,000.

The project will be executed in collaboration with the Office of the Minister of State for Administrative Reform (OMSAR).

The funding will come from part of the proc...

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Tripoli poor areas suffer from 50 percent unemployment. Chronic illnesses are the most commonly reported health condition

Unemployment rates range from 55 to 60 percent in some Tripoli neighborhoods, according to the UN-Habitat and UNICEF Neighborhoods study of 2018. The areas under study are Jabal Mohsen, El-Qobbeh, and Tabbaneh.

The poverty rate reached 20 percent in Jabal Mohsen, 13 percent in El Qobbeh, and 14 percent in Tabbaneh.

According to the UNICEF, the poverty rate is a wealth index that includes households that have or do not have the following items: a fixed phone, radio, television, re...

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New tariffs on imported products. 20 categories to become subject to a ten percent tariff

The Cabinet has decided to impose a ten percent tariff on 20 imported products that are considered as dumped products and which are entering the country in large amounts at prices lower than the local production cost.

These products include flour, dairy products, detergents, furniture, leather shoes, bulgur (berghol), electrical machinery, aluminum profiles, clothes, wafers and biscuits, carrosserie, metal pipes, confectionary and gums, marble and granite tiles, among others.

The...

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Bakalian Flour Mills open a baking training center.

Bakalian Flour Mills in Karantina has recently opened Bakalian BakeLab, a professional baking training center to further educate professional bakers.

"The market lacks centers that teach the art and science of baking. Professionals were obliged to travel abroad to get these skills, but now BakeLab can provide them these skills," said Patricia Bakalian, CEO.

BakeLab will offer workshops, masterclasses and baking consultancy services to baking professionals, chefs and restaurateurs...

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Banks to stop numbered accounts. Move aims to maintain ties with correspondents

The Association of Banks (ABL) said its board of directors has decided to recommend that member banks stop opening new numbered bank accounts for their customers and to close existing ones as soon as possible.

The identity of the holder of a numbered account is kept anonymous by using a number instead of the holder's name in the statement of account and in transaction histories. Only a few select bank employees know the customer's name.

The decision, which follows a visit to the Un...

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Expenditure of $17.1 billion expected in 2019 draft budget. Additional customs duty and hotel room occupancy fees expected

The draft law for the 2019 budget projects a total expenditure of $17.1 billion.

The expenditure consists of $15.5 billion for the general budget and $1.6 billion for the auxiliary budgets.

The auxiliary budgets include the budgets of the Directorate of the National Lottery and the General Directorate of Cereals and Sugar Beets as well as the telecoms budget.

Tax on interest income has been raised to ten percent from seven percent. Interest and revenues derived from treasury...

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Plan for $7.3 billion in treasury bonds at one percent. Deficit-to-GDP projected at 8.3 percent in 2019 draft budget

The Ministry of Finance plans to issue nearly LL11,000 billion ($7.3 billion) in treasury bonds denominated in lira at an interest rate of one percent.

The issue will be carried out in coordination with the Central Bank (BDL) and the commercial banks after the ratification of the budget, according to Minister of Finance Ali Hassan Khalil. This will help reduce 2019's debt servicing costs by LL1,000 billion ($663 million), he said.

Khalil said that the projected fiscal deficit in th...

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FAO to launch Farm Business School.

The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) will launch the Farm Business School (FBS) in June, in cooperation with the Ministry of Agriculture (MoA) in multiple locations around the country.

The school and curriculum has been developed by FAO to help small farmers learn how to make their farming enterprises and overall operations profitable.

"FAO Lebanon has developed the program customized according to the market needs," said Dany Lichaa El-Khoury, Project...

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Half of consumption is locally produced goods. Ministry of Industry sees expansion potential of manufacturing sector

Industrial production was estimated at $13 billion in 2017, according to a study 'Expanding in the Local Market' recently published by the Ministry of Industry (MoI). It is the extrapolated result of a survey of a sample of 1,975 manufacturers out of a total of 5,000 industrial firms.

The total consumption of all goods, excluding energy and jewelry, is calculated as $24 billion. This number is the sum of industrial production, $13 billion in real imports (excluding mineral products, pearl...

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E-payments up by record 20 percent. Rising interest rates on loans makes cards a form of lending

Electronic payments registered record growth of a 20 percent in 2018, compared to the previous year, according to Visa.

Part of this growth is attributed to the increase in the number of payment cards in circulation, which registered a six percent growth last year, compared to the preceding year, according to the Central Bank. More residents and non-residents are using payment cards at local terminals.

The growth in payment cards is attributed to the banks' targeted efforts to rea...

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Hisham Itani, other investors buy 73 percent of Crédit National. The bank is increasing its capital by $30 million

Hisham Itani and other investors have acquired 73 percent of Banque de Crédit National (BCN).

The bank is in the process of increasing its capital by $30 million to a total of $45.6 million. The capital hike will be injected by the new shareholders and still requires the approval of the Central Bank. BCN is also considering carrying out another capital increase soon. The amount has not yet been decided.

At the end of 2017, BCN's total assets and shareholder equity stood at...

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Beirut hotel room value grew 40 percent last year. Net operating profit increased by four percentage points

The value of Beirut hotel rooms grew 38 percent last year, compared to 2017, according to the Hotel Valuation Index Middle East conducted by HVS, the global hotel consulting firm.

This growth is due to an improvement in Revenues per Available Room (RevPAR), and a four-percentage-point increase in the net operating profit margin, according to HVS, which reports on the annual percentage changes of typical four and five star hotels.

Beirut hotel rooms were valued at $190,000 last ye...

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Serum factory to open in Rayak.

Serum and Solutions, a newly established company, will open a factory for the production of serums in Rayak at the end of 2019.

The factory is owned by Mohamad Abdallah, Chairman of Rayak Hospital.

The company has invested more than $15 million, including $2 million to buy the land. The total built-up area of the factory is 10,000 square meters (m2), built on a 31,000 m2 plot of land.

Serum and Solutions will produce and distribute prepared intravenous (IV) therapy soluti...

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Private sector investment ongoing despite doomsayers. GDP growth is expected to improve in 2019

The private sector continues to invest in the economy despite the negative mood in the country, according to 'The numbers contradict doomsayers', an article published in the May issue of Lebanon Opportunities.

Data gathered by InfoPro Research show that nearly $3.1 billion were invested by the private sector over the last three years. The number does not include real estate investments or small and micro enterprises.

"This is the right time for making deals at a bargain, investors...

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Electric and wiring accessories factory opened in Zahle.

Lebanese and Italian investors have partnered to open Meta Lebanon, a factory for electric and wiring accessories in Zahleh's industrial zone. It began operating in the first week of May.

Meta Lebanon is a partnership between Italian company Ave Spa (51 percent), and Lebanese A&G Holding. A&G Holding includes several partners that were agents for Ave Spa in the country, such as Maalouf for General Electricity, Yasser Husseini & Co, Technopower, and others.

Investment in the 2,70...

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External bank transfers and forex pricing resume. Beirut Stock Exchange halts trading due to Central Bank employee strike

The Central Bank (BDL) will carry out transactions pertaining to incoming external transfers to the private and public sectors during the ongoing strike of its employees.

This decision resulted from an agreement reached between Governor of BDL Riad Salameh and the union of BDL's employees.

Both parties have decided that BDL will resume foreign exchange operations as well as official pricing of the exchange value of the lira against the U.S. dollar and other foreign currencies.
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Bank Audi to buy Egyptian operations of Greek bank.

Bank Audi-Egypt, a fully-owned subsidiary of the Bank Audi group, has reached a final agreement with the National Bank of Greece (NBG) to acquire the banking operations of its Egyptian branch, according to statements by the two lenders.

NBG said its Egyptian operations consist of 17 branches, nearly 250 employees, and total assets of €110 million ($123 million). The acquisition includes Egyptian-risk loans, deposits, and securities.

Closing of the deal requires the final regulator...

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Industrial park to open in Mkalles in 2020. Fully equipped facilities for rent and sale

Construction of 'Hub56 Beirut' industrial park in Mkalles Industrial Zone has begun. The project will be completed in 2020.

Project owner Elie Gharios has invested $20 million in the 35,000 square meters (m2) industrial zone.

Hayek Contracting and Engineering is the project's contractor, C&A Engineers are the architects, and Scale Contractors are the electro-mechanical engineers.

Hub56 Beirut will comprise three buildings with warehouses, offices, workshops, and unloadin...

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Organic winery planning production of 250,000 bottles. Vineyard is near Baalbek and winery in Ain Dara

Agri Soil, a recently established company, has launched Château Trois Collines, a winery based in Ain Dara.

The company has acquired a 100 hectare (one million square meters) land plot at a 1,600 meters altitude in Ain Bourday, near Baalbek. "We have planted 40 percent of the land with grapes so far," said Ziad Ammar, CEO of Agri Soil.

Château Trois Collines produces organic grapes and wines. Its vines and wines are certified organic by Istituto Mediterraneo di Certif...

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Hop-On Hop-Off tourist buses launched. Stops at 15 touristic destinations

Hop-On Hop-Off buses will begin operating in Beirut on May 4, taking passengers on a tour of some of the city's most significant destinations.

Savi, founded by Viviane Nasr, has signed a franchise agreement with Hop-On Hop-Off buses from City Sightseeing, the world's operator of the open top bus tour.

Three buses will run daily from 9:00 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. "Each tour provides the chance to explore the main sights and attractions of Beirut within a few hours," Nasr said. The tour&#...

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