Home » LEBANON BRIEF » Publication October 2016
According to the data published by the Lebanese Cadastre Registry, during the first three quarters of this year, the real estate activity marginally improved. The total number of real estate transactions ... read more
Bank BEMO’s net profits marginally rose by 0.61% year-on-year by the third quarter of 2016, to $10.40M. In details, the bank’s net interest income and net fee and commission increased by 8.24% and 9.92% ... read more
Bank of Beirut’s financial statements displayed an 8.43% yearly rise in net profits to $149.65M end of September 2016. In fact, net interest income and net fees and commission income grew by 11.74% and ... read more
The consolidated financial statements of Byblos Bank revealed a small 0.51% year-on-year (y-o-y) increase in profits to $113.08M in the third quarter of 2016 (Q3 2016). This was due to the fall in net ... read more
During the third quarter (Q3) of 2016, Bank Audi’s net profits surged 15.18% year-on-year, to $350.34M. In details, the bank’s net interest income increased 6.80% annually, to $759.70M, while net fee and ... read more
According to the 2016 World Economic Forum’s Global Gender Gap Index Report, Lebanon ranked 135th out of 144 countries. With this rank, Lebanon earned a score of 0.598, where 0 represents complete gender ... read more
On October 18th, HOLCIM’s board of directors held an extraordinary general meeting to discuss the execution of the capital decrease process that was approved in December 14, 2010. The following changes ... read more
According to the Ministry of Finance, personnel costs dropped by a yearly 5% to $3.40B in January 2016. In details, the fall in personnel costs was justified by a 10% year-on-year plunge in their salaries, ... read more
The latest data issued by the Orders of Engineers in Beirut and the North revealed that the number of permits rose by 14.71% year-on-year (y-o-y) to 12,879 by the third quarter of 2016, compared to 11,227 ... read more
According to the Central Administration of Statistics (CAS), average consumer prices dropped by 1.71% y-o-y by September 2016 as reflected by the average Consumer Price Index (CPI) which decreased from ... read more
BBAC issued 5,000,000 new preferred shares series “C”, worth $50M. The shares, whose issue price is $10 per share, will be sold in units, where each unit represents 100 shares. Moreover, the shares ... read more
Due to the occurrence of Adha Holidays during the month of September, Beirut’s hotel occupancy rate increased to 70%, the highest level seen since the beginning of the year. Still, the average rate per ... read more
According to the Association of Banks in Lebanon (ABL), Lebanon’s value of cleared checks dropped by 6.76% year-on-year (y-o-y), where the number of checks cleared by Banque du Liban reached 9.20M worth ... read more
Lebanon’s gross public debt registered a yearly growth of 7.50%, to reach $74.04B by August 2016. In details, debt in local currency, LBP, grasping around 60.72% of the total gross public debt, witnessed ... read more
According to Lebanon’s commercial banks’ balance sheet, total assets rose 5.26% year-to-date (y-t-d) and 7.79% y-o-y, to stand at $195.77B by August 2016. As a result of the BDL swap with the local banks, ... read more
Port of Beirut (PoB) recorded a 1.64% yearly rise in its revenues to reach $180.43M, a five year high during the first three quarters of the year. By September, total container activity including ... read more
During Byblos Bank’s extraordinary general assembly on the 30th of September, the board of directors of the bank approved the acquisition of the assets, rights, liabilities, and commitments of Banque ... read more
The lower number of GCC tourists coming to Lebanon led to a 10% y-o-y fall in tourist spending by the third quarter (Q3) of 2016, according to Global Blue. However, on a quarterly basis, the occurrence of ... read more
According to the Association of Lebanese Car Importers, despite the increasing promotional and advertising campaigns, the number of newly registered cars fell 12% from August 2016 to September 2016. Also, ... read more
As revealed by the Lebanese Customs, trade activity at Lebanon’s main customs offices progressed during the first 8 months of the year. Total imports’ value rose by a yearly 8.52% to $12.79B by August ... read more
As the latest figures released by the Orders of Engineers in Beirut and the North revealed, the number of permits rose by 15.03% year-on-year (y-o-y) to 11,289 by August 2016, compared to 9,814 during the ... read more
According to the Lebanese Customs, Lebanon’s trade deficit widened by 9.66% from $9.80B by August 2015 to $10.74B by August 2016. Exports increased by a yearly 3.10% to $2.05B, while imports added 8.55% ... read more
The Rafic Hariri International Airport activity rose during the first 3 quarters (Q3) of 2016, where the total number of passengers increased by a yearly 8.28% to 6M. this is the highest level attained in ... read more
In a previous extraordinary general assembly meeting held by BoB on May 26, 2016, the bank decided on increasing its capital from LBP 109,387,674,000 ($72.56B) to LBP 115,218,674,000 ($76.43B), ... read more
The BoP recorded a large surplus of $1.79B in August alone and thus turned the BoP of the year into positive territories with a surplus of $366.2M compared to a deficit of $1.65B by August 2015 and $1.42B ... read more
The balance sheet of the Lebanese Central Bank (BdL) observed a growth in total assets that reached $104.09B in September 2016, recording a 0.37% increase from August’s 2016 level, and a 13.60% rise from ... read more
According to the data published by the Lebanese Cadastre Registry, during the first eight months of this year, the real estate activity maintained a positive performance. The total number of real estate ... read more
A version of this article appeared in the print edition of The Daily Star on October 12, 2016, on page 4. As the “Back to School” season began almost a month ago, shedding the light on the education scene ... read more
Economic indicators are giving conflicting signals on the Lebanese economic activity. However it seems that this is not exclusively a Lebanese phenomenon, as US indicators are also giving conflicting ... read more
The Lebanese bourse maintained its positive performance as the long wait for a president approaches its end. Hence, the BLOM Stock Index (BSI) registered a 1.75% weekly rise to 1,226.59 points, its highest ... read more
During the week ending 27th of October, Lebanese Eurobonds showed a slight improvement, as the BLOM Bond Index (BBI) added a marginal 0.20% over the week to 102.70 points. Hence, the BBI was able to ... read more
Lebanese Forex Market Demand for the dollar on the Lebanese forex market steadied over the past week, where the value of the Lebanese pound against the dollar maintained a mid-price of $/LP 1,514.25 within ... read more
During the week ending October 6, Broad Money M3 fell by a weekly LP 557B ($370M) to reach LP 193,954B ($129B). As such, M3 recorded a 5.40% annual increase and a 3.94% rise since the start of the year. ... read more
21/10/2016 14/10/2016 % Change BLOM Stock Index* 1,205.48 1,164.01 3.56% Average Traded Volume 538,336 33,698 1497.53% Average Traded Value ... read more
Lebanese Forex Market Demand for the dollar on the Lebanese forex market improved over the past week, where the value of the Lebanese pound against the dollar rose from a mid-price of $/LP 1,514 ... read more
20/10/2016 13/10/2016 Change Year to Date BLOM Bond Index (BBI)* 102.49 102.54 -0.05% -1.55% Weighted Yield** 6.53% 6.52% 0.16% 6% Weighted Spread*** 554 551 0.54% 29% 13/10/2016 13/10/2016 ... read more
The Lebanese Eurobonds Market fell this week as portrayed by the 0.65% drop in the BLOM Bond Index (BBI) to 102.54 points. The JP Morgan Emerging Markets’ Bond Index was also down by 0.48% over the week to ... read more
Lebanese Forex Market Demand for the dollar on the Lebanese forex market fell over the past week, where the value of the Lebanese pound against the dollar dropped from a mid-price of $/LP 1,514.25 within ... read more
14/10/2016 07/10/2016 % Change BLOM Stock Index* 1,164.01 1,163.61 0.03% Average Traded Volume 33,698 1,793,580 -98.12% Average Traded Value ... read more
During the week ending September 29, Broad Money M3 grew by a weekly LP 670B ($445M) to reach LP 194,511B ($129B). As such, M3 recorded a 5.71% annual increase and a 4.24% rise since the start of the year. ... read more
06/10/2016 29/09/2016 Change Year to Date BLOM Bond Index (BBI)* 103.21 103.31 -0.10% -0.86% Weighted Yield** 6.40% 6.36% 0.63% 4% Weighted Spread*** 539 550 -2.00% 25% 29/09/2016 29/09/2016 Weekly ... read more
07/10/2016 30/09/2016 % Change BLOM Stock Index* 1,163.61 1,155.75 0.68% Average Traded Volume 1,793,580 245,089 631.81% Average Traded Value ... read more
During the week ending September 22, Broad Money M3 grew by LP 206B ($136M) from September 15 to reach LP 193,841B ($129B). As such, M3 recorded a 5.46% annual increase and a 3.88% rise since the start of ... read more
Lebanese Forex Market Demand for the dollar on the Lebanese forex market was stable over the past month, where the value of the Lebanese pound against the dollar steadied at $/LBP 1,514-1,514.50 with a ... read more
Business conditions continued to deteriorate during the month of September this year, however the rate of contraction was little changed from the previous month. In fact, the Purchasing Managers’ Index ... read more
“Renewables overtake coal as world’s largest source of power capacity” reads a recent Financial Times (FT) article. Installations of wind and solar energy have hit record-highs in the world and, ... read more
Despite the tough economic and political challenges that Lebanon has been passing through, the Beta group was able to post positive returns in the first half of 2016. The Beta group of banks, Lebanese ... read more
A version of this article appeared in the print edition of The Daily Star on October 12, 2016, on page 4. As the “Back to School” season began almost a month ago, shedding the light on the education scene ... read more
Lebanon’s natural diverse landscape, history and its cosmopolitan aspect have made it one of the “must visit” countries in the world. In winter, tourists enjoy the ski season on the country’s slopes. While ... read more