UAE, Qatar travel advisory upsets Lebanon, update

UAE and Qatar’s foreign ministries issued a travel advisory in which they restricted travel to Lebanon and urged their nationals in the country to leave because of the unstable security situation.

“The UAE is keen to preserve the safety of its nationals and expats (more…)

Syria complains to UN about tourism downturn

Syria has complained to the United Nations that its tourism industry has been severely damaged by a 14-month conflict between government forces and rebels fighting to overthrow President Bashar al-Assad, which has raised fears of civil war. (more…)

Lebanon Seeks $2 Billion in Eurobonds This Year, report

Finance Minister Mohammad Safadi said Lebanon plans to raise $2 billion in Eurobonds this year after borrowing costs of the most indebted Arab country dropped to a record.

“We are now talking to the financial markets to get their advice on when is the best time” (more…)

bank runs looming in Greece, report

A day after Greece’s president warned about the possibility of bank runs, Greek political leaders on Wednesday began forming a caretaker government before new elections next month that could lead the rudderless country to exit the euro, a prospect that has already sent jitters sweeping through world markets. (more…)

Lebanon’s Salameh : We are not worried about a bubble

Lebanese Central Bank Governor Riad Salameh discusses the exposure of the country’s banks to government debt as well as the latest efforts to insulate the lenders from a crisis in neighboring Syria.

He spoke in an interview today at his office in Beirut.

On economic growth:

“The indicators are showing that the real growth could be between 3 percent and 3.5 percent, which is in line (more…)

Analysis: Five myths about America’s decline

By Ian Bremmer: Drawn-out wars, economic struggles, exploding debt — it’s easy to point to these signs and conclude that America is in an irreversible decline;

Asian buyers cut imports of Iranian oil

Iran is poised to lose at least 192,000 barrels a day of crude-supply contracts, or about 9.5 percent of its global exports, as Asian buyers curb purchases amid western sanctions targeting the nation’s oil trade. (more…)

The rather dangerous Monsieur Hollande

IT IS half of the Franco-German motor that drives the European Union. It has been the swing country in the euro crisis, poised between a prudent north and spendthrift south, and between creditors and debtors. And it is big. If France were the next euro-zone country to get into trouble, the single currency’s very survival would be in doubt.
(more…)

Less bread in the new pack in Lebanon

Lebanon is dropping the metric system in its new pack of bread. Instead of one kg pack the new one will be 2 lbs or 900 grams, but the price will be same.. . One buck or 1500 LL.

The government approved the reduction in the weight of the bread pack to appease the bakeries , who have been complaining about the rising price of flour . (more…)

Syria’s economy and currency are sinking

Syria’s remaining cash reserves are quickly dwindling as the country’s anti-government uprising marks its 13th month, according to intelligence officials and financial analysts who describe a steady hollowing-out of the country’s economy in the face of sanctions. (more…)