Buildings on Mar Mikhael Street, Beirut. (Credit: Sandrine Frem and Pao Ibrahim/L'Orient Today)
- The Purchasing Managers Index (PMI), which measures the direction of economic trends in manufacturing around the world, recorded a modest increase in Lebanon for March. The index, published by BlomInvest and Markit, shows the morale of the Lebanese private sector seems to be steady, despite the country’s continued economic crisis and geopolitical uncertainties linked to the war in Gaza and its spillover into southern Lebanon.
The latest PMI scored 49.4 points, compared to 49.1 points in February, bringing it close to 50 (which represents the equilibrium point). It is also higher than the average posted over the last 12 months (49.3 points).
- Though Lebanon “did make progress” on economic reforms required by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) in a staff-level agreement (SLA) – a preliminary agreement reached between the IMF staff and the government of a member country on a set of economic policies and reforms that the country must implement in exchange for financial assistance from the IMF – two years ago, the country is still not close to meeting its end of the deal to unlock the $3 billion funds being offered, the official in charge of the negotiations told L’Orient Today last week.
That limited progress was “not to the extent that would satisfy all prior actions required by the IMF,” said caretaker Deputy Prime Minister Saade Chami, who has been heading negotiations between Lebanon and the IMF.
Two years have passed since Lebanon reached a staff-level agreement (SLA) with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) that would grant the government access to around $3 billion over four years, provided the country undertakes a series of fiscal, financial, and monetary reforms set by the international institution.
- A German startup platform, co-founded by Lebanese businesswoman, Rita Kerbaj, has announced that it has raised 2.7 million euros in the seed phase. Torg is a platform that connects retail and wholesale buyers with over 100,000 food and beverage producers. It is led by Connect Ventures and with the participation of FoodLabs (a former investor), Sondo and Ventures Together, as well as investors Sameer Singh and Jonas Meynert. This new amount brings the total funds raised by the company since its foundation, at the end of 2022, to 3.9 million euros. Torg intends to use the new funding to "transform the 'matching' process between these two parties", emphasizes Rita Kerbaj, who is also the platform's commercial director.
- There was a slight increase in gasoline and heating oil prices in Lebanon on Monday morning, while gas cylinder prices remained steady. Diesel and heating oil prices saw a slight decrease, according to the new price list put out by the Energy and Water Ministry.
Here are the new prices:
