US dollar banknotes and Lebanese lira are shown at a Beirut currency exchange, March 2, 2021. (Credit: Reuters/Mohamed Azakir)
BEIRUT — The Lebanese lira drops another LL1,000 to LL36,000 to the US dollar. The slide remains unchecked given heightened political uncertainty.
Here’s what we know:
• Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri has called newly elected Parliament members to convene for a Parliament session on Tuesday at 11 a.m. to elect a new speaker and deputy speaker.
• Hezbollah chief Hassan Nasrallah ended his Liberation and Resistance Day address Wednesday on an ominous note, saying “within days, things may happen in the region that will lead to an explosion of the region.”
• The gap between the parallel market rate and Sayrafa rate continues to widen. The difference stands now at LL11,500.
• The Union of Hospital Owners and the Order of Doctors of Beirut and Tripoli began a two-day strike today, organizing protests at BDL’s headquarters in Hamra to decry difficulties in accessing funds held at commercial banks.
• The central bank continues to stand behind the intervention strategy of selling US dollars through banks, albeit data suggests the strategy is no longer working.