The giant cranes at the container terminal of the Port of Beirut. (Credit: Philippe Hage Boutros/Archives L'Orient-Le Jour)
For the second consecutive year, Lebanon saw a reduction in its trade balance deficit, which measures the difference between exports and imports. According to official customs data, the deficit reached $14.2 billion in 2024, down from $14.5 billion the previous year.This 2.3 percent decrease, while a positive sign in terms of limiting foreign currency outflow, was not driven by an increase in exports relative to imports. Rather, it reflects a sharper decline in imports compared to exports, amid Lebanon’s involvement in a war with Israel from Oct. 8, 2023, to Nov. 27, 2024, when a cease-fire was declared. Read more USAID Freeze: Time for Lebanon to rethink its aid-dependence? Amid the conflict, several stakeholders in the sector told L’Orient-Le Jour that commercial activity at key crossing points — both maritime and air — remained...
For the second consecutive year, Lebanon saw a reduction in its trade balance deficit, which measures the difference between exports and imports. According to official customs data, the deficit reached $14.2 billion in 2024, down from $14.5 billion the previous year.This 2.3 percent decrease, while a positive sign in terms of limiting foreign currency outflow, was not driven by an increase in exports relative to imports. Rather, it reflects a sharper decline in imports compared to exports, amid Lebanon’s involvement in a war with Israel from Oct. 8, 2023, to Nov. 27, 2024, when a cease-fire was declared. Read more USAID Freeze: Time for Lebanon to rethink its aid-dependence? Amid the conflict, several stakeholders in the sector told L’Orient-Le Jour that commercial activity at key crossing points — both maritime and air —...
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