The value of cleared checks decreased by 1.54% during the first three months of the year, illustrating lower consumption and spending. In fact, the number of checks cleared by Banque du Liban amounted to 3.04M worth $16.89B in Q1 2016, compared to a similar total of 3.04M checks valued at $17.15B registered a year earlier.
The total value of checks in foreign currencies triggered the fall of the total value of cleared checks, as that of checks denominated in foreign currencies declined by 3.98% y-o-y to $12.03B compared to $12.53B in Q1 2015. In contrast, the value of checks denominated in Lebanese Pounds increased by a yearly 5.10% to reach $4.86B. In turn, the dollarization rate of checks retreated from 73.06% in Q1 2015 to 71.25% this year. As for returned checks, they constituted 2.45% of total value of checks.
In the month of March alone, the value of cleared checks declined by 5.27% y-o-y in 2015 to $5.59B. The value of checks denominated in foreign currencies (representing 71.22% of the total) went down by an annual 7.89%. On the other hand, value of checks in LBP increased by 1.89% to $1.61B.
Value of Cleared Checks in Q1 ($M)
Source: ABL