Lending in 2014, a Reflection of the Overall Economy

Since 2011, Lebanon has witnessed slower GDP growth as key sectors of construction, real estate and tourism suffered the ripples of the neighboring Syrian war and of the local political gridlock. The government saw its budget deficit widen, rendering it unable to intervene and spur growth, the Keynesian way. The private sector outlook was also dampened as shown by the BLOM Lebanon Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI), which remained below the 50 points mark separating economic expansion from economic recession for 23 months out of 25 months during which data collection took place.

The slowdown in the growth rate of loans granted in the financial sector is mirroring the slowdown of the overall economy. Since loans granted in the financial sector represent over 100% of GDP, their importance is undisputable. The following lines detail the evolution of these loans by sector during 2014, the fourth tough year on Lebanon’s economy…

 To read the full report, click on the link below:

Lending in 2014, a Reflection of the Overall Economy

 

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *