Graffiti on walls around Beirut. (AFP archive photo)
The announcement came at the end of September.In the wake of the 2022 budget vote, which was almost 10 months overdue, caretaker Finance Minister Youssef Khalil told the press that Lebanon would abandon its old peg of LL1,507.5 to the dollar — which has the official peg for 25 years — for a new one set at LL15,000 to the dollar.This decision was meant to come into effect on Nov. 1, 2022, but the elusive switch only took place yesterday.For the first time, it is possible to speak of devaluation instead of depreciation, since this is an official decision to reduce the value of the local currency.As of Wednesday morning, Banque du Liban (BDL) replaced the old figure with the new rate on its main website page.This came as a surprise to many Lebanese, as the authorities have been careful to avoid clear communication on the subject. Read...
The announcement came at the end of September.In the wake of the 2022 budget vote, which was almost 10 months overdue, caretaker Finance Minister Youssef Khalil told the press that Lebanon would abandon its old peg of LL1,507.5 to the dollar — which has the official peg for 25 years — for a new one set at LL15,000 to the dollar.This decision was meant to come into effect on Nov. 1, 2022, but the elusive switch only took place yesterday.For the first time, it is possible to speak of devaluation instead of depreciation, since this is an official decision to reduce the value of the local currency.As of Wednesday morning, Banque du Liban (BDL) replaced the old figure with the new rate on its main website page.This came as a surprise to many Lebanese, as the authorities have been careful to avoid clear communication on the subject. ...