A person counts US dollars in Lebanon in 2023. (Credit: João Sousa/L'Orient Today/File photo)
Experts are anticipating an increase in the prices of imported goods, including two to 15 percent inflation on foodstuffs arriving in Lebanon, as a result of a threat made by the Iran-backed Houthi military group in Yemen to escalate assaults on shipping in the Red Sea during Ramadan.
For more than three months now, Houthi fighters have been attacking commercial and military ships in international waters in response to Israel’s war on Gaza.
French-Lebanese billionaire Rodolphe Saadé, owner of shipping giant CMA CGM, is set to buy French Altice Media and its news channel BFMTV (the most-watched news channel in France), a transaction worth 1.55 billion euros in cash, from businessman Patrick Drahi (whose group is embroiled in a corruption scandal where Armando Pereira, co-founder of the group, is suspected of having set up a network of dubious suppliers with the aim of embezzling large sums of money.)
The announcement took observers by surprise, as Altice had repeatedly denied rumors of a sale of its media arm, which had been recurrent in recent months. The transaction should be “finalized during the summer,” according to Altice France.
According to Le Monde, this is a “major coup” for CMA CGM’s Whynot Media subsidiary, as it hopes to become a leading media group. Saadé acquired other media groups between 2022 and 2023, including La Provence, a regional daily press group, and La Tribune, a digital business news platform.
Whynot Media also has a 10 percent stake in M6 and another stake in the online video platform Brut.
After a brief decrease in the price of gasoline, the cost per 20 liters of fuel has risen once more, according to the latest prices released by the Energy Ministry. However, the price of diesel fuel continues to drop.
Here are the latest prices:
