IMF says that without reforms, Lebanon faces ballooning inflation and public debt
1 year, 9 months ago

IMF says that without reforms, Lebanon faces ballooning inflation and public debt

The Independent  

For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy Without reforms, Lebanon will continue to see triple-digit inflation, and public debt in the small, crisis-ridden country could reach nearly 550% of GDP by 2027, the International Monetary Fund warned in a report Thursday. Since the country fell into an economic crisis in 2019, the country’s “GDP has declined by about 40 percent, the has lost 98 percent of its value, inflation is at triple-digits, and the central bank has lost two thirds of its foreign currency reserves,” the IMF report noted. Ernesto Ramirez Rigo, the head of the IMF mission to Lebanon, warned that if the country’s leaders do not undertake reforms, and instead allow the “disorderly adjustment” of the country’s economy to continue, Lebanon will be left “dependent on the handouts from the international community." In principle, he said, “there is no deadline” for Lebanon to complete the reforms needed to clinch a bailout program, but delays could come “at a tremendous cost" to the country.

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History of this topic

Lebanon Aims For First President Since 2022 in Wake of War
2 months, 3 weeks ago

Lebanon Aims For First President Since 2022 in Wake of War

Live Mint  

-- Lebanese lawmakers will attempt to elect a first president in more than two years this week, with army commander Joseph Aoun one of the two main candidates to lead a country battered by months of war and years of economic crisis. Aoun, who has the backing of the US, partly because of the Lebanese military’s crucial position in maintaining …

Poverty in Lebanon more than tripled in past decade: World Bank
10 months, 1 week ago

Poverty in Lebanon more than tripled in past decade: World Bank

Al Jazeera  

Poverty in Lebanon has more than tripled over the past 10 years, with the overall proportion of the country’s population living below the poverty line soaring to 44 percent, according to the World Bank. The bank’s report, released on Thursday, was conducted in five of the country’s eight governorates, showing that poverty rose from 12 percent in 2012 to 44 …

Debt, fiscal challenges facing low-income countries worry IMF
11 months, 2 weeks ago

Debt, fiscal challenges facing low-income countries worry IMF

The Hindu  

Shareholders of the International Monetary Fund agreed on the importance of addressing challenges faced by low-income countries, many of which are facing unsustainable debt burdens, IMF Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva said on April 19. Impact of high debt levels on low-income countries Ms. Georgieva, in a meeting of the Global Sovereign Debt Roundtable hosted by the IMF and the World …

IMF to increase Egypt's bailout loan to $8 billion
1 year ago

IMF to increase Egypt's bailout loan to $8 billion

Firstpost  

The Egyptian economy has been hit hard by years of government austerity, the coronavirus pandemic, the fallout from Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, and most recently, the Israel-Hamas war in Gaza. The deal was reached after Egypt and the IMF agreed on a reform plan, which includes measures such as floating the local currency, reducing public investment, and fostering private …

Pakistan, IMF reach staff-level deal to release $1.1bn from bailout package
1 year ago

Pakistan, IMF reach staff-level deal to release $1.1bn from bailout package

Al Jazeera  

The funds are the final tranche of a $3bn programme agreed upon last year to avert a default, as Islamabad seeks another long-term bailout. “The IMF team has reached a staff-level agreement with the Pakistani authorities on the second and final review of Pakistan’s stabilisation programme,” the IMF said in a statement on Wednesday. The IMF said Pakistan’s “economic and …

World Bank projects that Israel-Hamas war could push Lebanon back into recession
1 year, 3 months ago

World Bank projects that Israel-Hamas war could push Lebanon back into recession

Associated Press  

BEIRUT — The ripple effects of the war in Gaza are likely to knock Lebanon’s fragile economy, which had begun making a tepid recovery after years of crisis, back into recession, the World Bank said in a report released Thursday. Before the outbreak of the ongoing Israel-Hamas war on Oct. 7, the World Bank had projected that Lebanon’s economy would …

IMF sees economic growth in the Mideast improving next year. But the Israel-Hamas war poses risks
1 year, 5 months ago

IMF sees economic growth in the Mideast improving next year. But the Israel-Hamas war poses risks

Associated Press  

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates — Middle East economies are gradually recovering as external shocks from the war in Ukraine and global inflation fade, the International Monetary Fund said Thursday, but the escalating war between Israel and the Hamas militant group could dampen the outlook. The IMF expects economic growth to slow to 2% this year in the Middle East and …

IMF sees economic growth in the Mideast improving next year. But the Israel-Hamas war poses risks
1 year, 5 months ago

IMF sees economic growth in the Mideast improving next year. But the Israel-Hamas war poses risks

The Independent  

For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. The IMF expects economic growth to slow to 2% …

IMF warns Lebanon that the country is still facing enormous challenges, years after a meltdown began
1 year, 6 months ago

IMF warns Lebanon that the country is still facing enormous challenges, years after a meltdown began

Associated Press  

BEIRUT — Four years after Lebanon’s historic meltdown began, the small nation is still facing “enormous economic challenges,” with a collapsed banking sector, eroding public services, deteriorating infrastructure and worsening poverty, the International Monetary Fund warned Friday. In a statement issued at the end of a four-day visit by an IMF delegation to the crisis-hit country, the international agency welcomed …

Four years into crisis, Lebanon’s leaders hope tourism boom will help bypass reforms in IMF bailout
1 year, 7 months ago

Four years into crisis, Lebanon’s leaders hope tourism boom will help bypass reforms in IMF bailout

Associated Press  

BEIRUT — Four years into its historic economic meltdown, Lebanon’s political elites, masters at survival, are pushing for a recovery that would sidestep tough reforms demanded by the International Monetary Fund. Economic experts and former officials involved in designing Lebanon’s original IMF-approved recovery plan in 2020 say the political leadership and associates in the banking sector are deliberately implementing a …

IMF says that without reforms, Lebanon faces ballooning inflation and public debt
1 year, 9 months ago

IMF says that without reforms, Lebanon faces ballooning inflation and public debt

Associated Press  

BEIRUT — Without reforms, Lebanon will continue to see triple-digit inflation, and public debt in the small, crisis-ridden country could reach nearly 550% of GDP by 2027, the International Monetary Fund warned in a report Thursday. Since the country fell into an economic crisis in 2019, the country’s “GDP has declined by about 40 percent, the has lost 98 percent …

IMF board approves $3 billion bailout for Ghana amid economic crisis
1 year, 10 months ago

IMF board approves $3 billion bailout for Ghana amid economic crisis

Associated Press  

LONDON — The International Monetary Fund’s executive board has approved a long-awaited $3 billion bailout for Ghana in hopes of combating the country’s economic crisis. “The combination of large external shocks and preexisting fiscal and debt vulnerabilities precipitated a deep economic and financial crisis in Ghana,” IMF Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva said in a statement. Georgieva said the Bank of …

Lebanese pound hits new low as political deadlock persists
2 years, 2 months ago

Lebanese pound hits new low as political deadlock persists

Associated Press  

BEIRUT — The value of the Lebanese pound hit a new low on Thursday, trading at 50,000 to the dollar, as the country’s deeply divided Parliament failed to elect a president for the eleventh time. The pound’s plunge comes days after a European judicial delegation from France, Germany, and Luxembourg came to Beirut to interrogate embattled Central Bank governor, Riad …

Lebanese pound hits all-time low as deadlock persists
2 years, 2 months ago

Lebanese pound hits all-time low as deadlock persists

The Independent  

For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy The value of the Lebanese …

IMF agrees to give Ghana $3 billion debt bailout
2 years, 3 months ago

IMF agrees to give Ghana $3 billion debt bailout

Associated Press  

ACCRA, Ghana — The International Monetary Fund has agreed to give Ghana $3 billion to try to get the West African nation’s debt under control, restore financial stability and help people most at risk from rising prices and other economic problems. At a press conference Tuesday, Finance Minister Ken Ofori-Atta said Ghana was “committed to the program and will work …

Lebanese banks battered by meltdown struggle to survive
2 years, 3 months ago

Lebanese banks battered by meltdown struggle to survive

Associated Press  

BEIRUT — Lebanon’s once burgeoning banking sector has been hard hit by the country’s historic economic meltdown. Most of those depositors have now lost access to their savings after the country’s lenders for years made risky investments by buying Lebanese treasury bills despite widespread corruption and overspending by the country’s political class. A proposed government economic recovery plan released in …

Lebanon on the brink: Is there hope for change?
2 years, 4 months ago

Lebanon on the brink: Is there hope for change?

Al Jazeera  

On Thursday, November 10 at 19:30 GMT: For the first time, Lebanon is without both a president and a fully-functioning government. This unprecedented power vacuum complicates efforts to tackle Lebanon’s financial crisis, which has impoverished 80 percent of its population and is now in its fourth year. There was brief hope for change in May, as the pro-Hezbollah political bloc …

Lebanon approves some banking law changes demanded by IMF
2 years, 5 months ago

Lebanon approves some banking law changes demanded by IMF

Associated Press  

BEIRUT — Lebanon’s parliament late Tuesday approved some amendments to a banking secrecy law that has been a key demand of the International Monetary Fund before it agrees to a bailout program amid the country’s economic meltdown. Despite the changes, legal advocacy groups say the alterations to the law will likely not be enough to please the IMF because it …

IMF criticizes Lebanese government over slow reforms
2 years, 6 months ago

IMF criticizes Lebanese government over slow reforms

Associated Press  

BEIRUT — The International Monetary Fund on Wednesday said the Lebanese government’s slowness to implement desperately-needed reforms was exacerbating the country’s economic meltdown, even as officials met to discuss an urgent and long-delayed bailout. “Despite the urgency for action to address Lebanon’s deep economic and social crisis, progress in implementing the reforms agreed under the April SLA remains very slow,” …

Lebanon aims to adopt long-delayed IMF reforms in October
2 years, 6 months ago

Lebanon aims to adopt long-delayed IMF reforms in October

Associated Press  

BEIRUT — Crisis-hit Lebanon hopes to adopt key reforms demanded by the International Monetary Fund for a long-delayed but urgently needed bailout before the end of next month if there is “political will”, Lebanon’s caretaker economy minister said Tuesday. “The IMF is still very committed to help the Lebanese government move forward with the prior actions agenda,” Salam said adding …

Explained | Lebanon’s economic meltdown and why people are robbing banks for their own money
2 years, 6 months ago

Explained | Lebanon’s economic meltdown and why people are robbing banks for their own money

The Hindu  

The story so far: On Friday, September 16, five incidents of bank robbery attempts, not the first of their kind, were reported in Lebanon. The World Bank has described Lebanon’s crisis as one of the “top 10, possibly top three most severe economic collapses worldwide since the 1850s”. Debt accumulation under the sectarian elite administration Post-civil war Lebanon adopted a …

People are ‘robbing’ banks in Lebanon – to take their own money
2 years, 6 months ago

People are ‘robbing’ banks in Lebanon – to take their own money

Al Jazeera  

Lebanon is suffering from a worsening economic crisis since 2019, plunging three-quarters of its population below poverty. Bank heists in Lebanon have become a growing trend – but these armed “robbers” storming into banks are not stealing anyone else’s money. The local currency, the Lebanese pound, has depreciated by more than 90 percent against the United States dollar on the …

Lebanon’s Parliament votes to spend World Bank loan on wheat
2 years, 8 months ago

Lebanon’s Parliament votes to spend World Bank loan on wheat

Associated Press  

BEIRUT — Lebanese lawmakers on Tuesday voted to use a $150 million World Bank loan to pay for wheat imports into the cash-strapped country. Caretaker Economy Minister Amin Salam told The Associated Press in an interview in April that the World Bank loan would stabilize bread prices for at least six months, effectively buying the Lebanese authorities more time to …

Fitch Ratings warns of elections’ impact on Lebanese economy
2 years, 10 months ago

Fitch Ratings warns of elections’ impact on Lebanese economy

Associated Press  

BEIRUT — A leading international credit ratings agency warned Friday that the results of this month’s parliamentary elections in Lebanon make it difficult for any coalition to have a governing majority, potentially complicating implementation of reforms. Riad Salameh’s announcement appears to be another attempt to temporarily ease markets amid chaos related to the sharp drop of the pound, which has …

Lebanon reaches tentative deal with IMF on economic policies
2 years, 11 months ago

Lebanon reaches tentative deal with IMF on economic policies

Associated Press  

BEIRUT — Lebanon and the International Monetary Fund on Thursday reached a tentative agreement for comprehensive economic policies that could eventually pave the way for some relief for the crisis-hit country, after Beirut implements wide-ranging reforms. The IMF said in a statement that Lebanese authorities and the IMF team that has been in Lebanon since March 28 reached “a staff-level …

Lebanon reaches agreement with IMF on economic reforms
2 years, 11 months ago

Lebanon reaches agreement with IMF on economic reforms

Al Jazeera  

Beirut, Lebanon – Lebanon and the International Monetary Fund have reached a staff-level agreement on an economic reform plan for the crisis-hit country that could potentially unlock around $3bn of funding over several years. “The authorities recognise the urgent need to initiate a multi-pronged reform program to tackle these challenges, bring back confidence and put the economy back on a …

Lebanese PM expects progress in talks with IMF over meltdown
3 years ago

Lebanese PM expects progress in talks with IMF over meltdown

Associated Press  

BEIRUT — Talks between the Lebanese government and the International Monetary Fund over an economic recovery plan should make progress in the next two weeks, Prime Minister Najib Mikati said Saturday. Speaking to reporters in Qatar, where he is attending the Doha Forum, Mikati said an IMF delegation will resume talks with the government in Beirut on Tuesday over the …

Lebanese government approves budget amid economic meltdown
3 years, 1 month ago

Lebanese government approves budget amid economic meltdown

Associated Press  

BEIRUT — Lebanon’s government approved Thursday the state budget for the current year, with a 17% deficit, the prime minister said. Prime Minister Najib Mikati told reporters after a Cabinet meeting Thursday that the budget projects spending of 47 trillion Lebanese pounds, while revenues stand at 39 trillion pounds, with a deficit of about 17%. In what appears to be …

Lebanon: US dollar savers fear they’ll foot crisis bill
3 years, 2 months ago

Lebanon: US dollar savers fear they’ll foot crisis bill

Al Jazeera  

Lebanese with savings trapped in US dollar accounts fear banks will be bailed out at their expense. Beirut, Lebanon – Members of professional syndicates and anti-establishment political parties gathered outside the Beirut headquarters of Lebanon’s commercial banks’ lobby last month to take a stand against a policy that has haunted savers in the country since it plunged into a financial …

World Bank: Lebanon’s meltdown threatens social peace
3 years, 2 months ago

World Bank: Lebanon’s meltdown threatens social peace

Associated Press  

BEIRUT — Lebanon’s economy contracted by more than 58%, the World Bank said Tuesday, warning in a report that the small country’s financial meltdown poses a threat to long-term stability and social peace. “The scale and scope of Lebanon’s deliberate depression are leading to the disintegration of key pillars of Lebanon’s post-civil war political economy,” said the report, titled, “The …

Lebanon: Hezbollah, Amal to end boycott of cabinet sessions
3 years, 2 months ago

Lebanon: Hezbollah, Amal to end boycott of cabinet sessions

Al Jazeera  

The groups say the decision was driven by a desire to have the 2022 budget approved and discuss an economic recovery plan. Powerful Lebanese groups Hezbollah and Amal have said they would end a boycott of cabinet sessions, opening the way for ministers to meet after a three-month gap that has seen the economy and currency collapse further. The groups, …

Lebanese premier expects draft deal with IMF within weeks
3 years, 3 months ago

Lebanese premier expects draft deal with IMF within weeks

Associated Press  

BEIRUT — Lebanon’s prime minister said Tuesday that his government’s talks with the International Monetary Fund are inching closer to a “final formula” for a draft on an agreement before the end of February. Salameh, 71, once praised as the guardian of Lebanon’s financial stability, has drawn scrutiny and much criticism since the small country’s economic meltdown began two years …

President Aoun: Lebanon needs ‘six to seven years’ to exit crisis
3 years, 3 months ago

President Aoun: Lebanon needs ‘six to seven years’ to exit crisis

Al Jazeera  

Lebanese leader says the country needs six to seven years to recover amid its deepest crisis since the 1975-1990 civil war. Lebanon needs “six to seven years” to emerge from the crisis it is currently in, the country’s president has said. Mike Azar, an expert on the Lebanese financial system, said Guterres had expressed similar views at another closed-door gathering …

UN chief warns Lebanon Cabinet paralysis may dampen support
3 years, 3 months ago

UN chief warns Lebanon Cabinet paralysis may dampen support

Associated Press  

BEIRUT — The U.N. chief warned Tuesday that the international community is unlikely to come forth with much-needed support for Lebanon amid its persistent government paralysis and as the country struggles through a “very dramatic” crisis. Guterres said several initiatives were in the works to help Lebanon deal with the crisis, including holding an international conference, but that the government’s …

Lebanon’s PM says preliminary talks with IMF moving forward
3 years, 4 months ago

Lebanon’s PM says preliminary talks with IMF moving forward

Associated Press  

BEIRUT — Lebanon’s prime minister said Monday that preliminary talks with the International Monetary Fund are moving forward as the small nation works to pull itself out of one of the world’s worst economic crises in more than a century. Najib Mikati said during an economic conference in Beirut that an amended financial recovery plan by asset management firm Lazard, …

Lebanon resumes contacts with IMF over bailout program
3 years, 5 months ago

Lebanon resumes contacts with IMF over bailout program

Associated Press  

BEIRUT — Lebanon’s Finance Ministry said Monday it has resumed “interactions” with the International Monetary Fund in an effort to pull the small nation out of its worst economic crisis in its modern history. The ministry said that Lebanon’s government “remains fully committed to engage in a constructive, transparent and equitable debt restructuring process” with all other stakeholders and welcomes …

Lebanon and IMF to restart technical talks on rescue funds
3 years, 5 months ago

Lebanon and IMF to restart technical talks on rescue funds

Al Jazeera  

Beirut, Lebanon – Lebanon and the International Monetary Fund are set to hold technical discussions in the “coming days” to take on the country’s dire economic crisis. “The newly formed government led by Mr Najib Mikati is fully conscious of the urgency of Lebanon’s social and economic situation and of the challenges lying ahead,” it said. Mikati’s cabinet is Lebanon’s …

Lebanese president wants to resume bailout talks with IMF
3 years, 6 months ago

Lebanese president wants to resume bailout talks with IMF

Associated Press  

BEIRUT — Lebanon’s new government held its first meeting Monday with a call by the president to resume talks with the International Monetary Fund to help kick-start its recovery from one of the world’s worst economic crises in more than a century. Information Minister George Kordahi told reporters after the meeting that Prime Minister Najib Mikati plans to hold intense …

Lebanon’s new prime minister says no ‘magic wand’ to fix crisis
3 years, 6 months ago

Lebanon’s new prime minister says no ‘magic wand’ to fix crisis

Al Jazeera  

Lebanon’s new government holds first meeting as prime minister warns there is no time to lose in tackling the country’s economic crisis. Lebanon’s new Prime Minister Najib Mikati, who took office last week promising to revive IMF talks to unlock aid, said on Monday there was no time to lose and no easy path to tackle one of history’s worst …

Lebanon’s new government only ‘a band-aid’, experts say
3 years, 6 months ago

Lebanon’s new government only ‘a band-aid’, experts say

Al Jazeera  

PM Najib Mikati is optimistic about getting Lebanon out of mire, but analysts say economic recovery is not on the horizon any time soon. Political analyst Bachar El-Halabi believes the Mikati government will implement some small-scale “cosmetic” reforms and patchwork solutions to secure votes for Lebanon’s traditional sectarian parties to stifle political opposition. “The newly formed government is expected to, …

What’s next for Lebanon?
3 years, 7 months ago

What’s next for Lebanon?

Al Jazeera  

Lebanon is facing a dire economic crisis exacerbated by political deadlock. That is the dire state in which Lebanon finds itself after more than 18 months of political and economic instability. Lebanon’s international allies say they want to help the economy, but only after a new government is formed. Presenter: Kim Vinnell Guests: Patrick Mardini – Economist at Leadenhall International …

Lebanese leaders exchange barbs as country sinks into crisis
3 years, 10 months ago

Lebanese leaders exchange barbs as country sinks into crisis

Associated Press  

BEIRUT — Lebanon’s president and prime minister-designate traded barbs Wednesday, accusing one another of obstruction, negligence and insolence in a war or words that has for months obstructed the formation of a new government as the country sinks deeper into economic and financial crisis. The power struggle between the premier-designate, Saad Hariri, on one side and President Michel Aoun and …

World Bank: Lebanon’s crisis among world’s worst since 1850s
3 years, 10 months ago

World Bank: Lebanon’s crisis among world’s worst since 1850s

Associated Press  

BEIRUT — Lebanon’s severe economic and financial crisis is likely to rank as one of the worst the world has seen in more than 150 years, the World Bank said in a report released Tuesday. The World Bank said that since late 2019, Lebanon has been facing compounded challenges, including its largest peace-time economic and financial crisis, the spread of …

Lebanon crisis could rank among world’s three worst in 150 years
3 years, 10 months ago

Lebanon crisis could rank among world’s three worst in 150 years

Al Jazeera  

The World Bank said on Tuesday that Lebanon’s economic and financial crisis could rank as one of the three most severe the world has seen since the mid-19th century. Lebanon’s financial and economic crisis could rank as one of the world’s three most severe since the mid-19th century, concludes the latest Lebanon Economic Monitor released by the World Bank on …

World Bank urges Lebanon to ‘help itself so we can help it’
4 years ago

World Bank urges Lebanon to ‘help itself so we can help it’

Al Jazeera  

Lebanon’s annual inflation rate reached a record high and food prices soared by around 400 percent in December, highlighting the dramatic impact on consumers and businesses of the country’s worst financial crisis in decades. Lebanon must be willing to implement some real changes in order to get international funding assistance, according to the World Bank’s Middle East and North Africa …

‘We’re sick of them’: Lebanon economy freefalls as leaders bicker
4 years ago

‘We’re sick of them’: Lebanon economy freefalls as leaders bicker

Al Jazeera  

Beirut, Lebanon – Lebanon’s politicians continue to bicker about forming a new government while the economic crisis engulfing the country continues to foment public outrage. “It is not the prime minister-elect’s job to sign papers, and it is not the president’s job to form a government.” Aoun later issued a statement condemning Hariri for sharing with the press his proposed …

Lebanese are gripped by worry as economic meltdown speeds up
4 years ago

Lebanese are gripped by worry as economic meltdown speeds up

Associated Press  

BEIRUT — Shops closing, companies going bankrupt and pharmacies with shelves emptying — in Lebanon these days, fistfights erupt in supermarkets as shoppers scramble to get to subsidized powdered milk, rice and cooking oil. Like almost every other Lebanese, Nisrine Taha’s life has been turned upside down in the past year under the weight of the country’s crushing economic crisis. …

Lebanon: Anger mounts over economic crisis as politicians dawdle
4 years ago

Lebanon: Anger mounts over economic crisis as politicians dawdle

Al Jazeera  

Pharmacies shutting and petrol stations rationing scarce fuel supplies as the country plunges deeper into economic collapse. Pharmacies went on strike and petrol stations rationed scarce fuel on Thursday across Lebanon as public anger over an accelerating economic collapse intensified with little sign of an end to a high-level political standoff. “We are really looking at the abyss, seeing it …

Protests around Lebanon as local currency continues to slide
4 years ago

Protests around Lebanon as local currency continues to slide

The Independent  

For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy Lebanon’s currency plummeted to a …

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