Prices to 'remain stable in foreseeable future' of imported food products, says head of syndicate

BEIRUT — The Head of the Syndicate of Food Importers, Hani Bohsali, reassured in a statement released on Tuesday that the prices of imported food products "will remain stable in the foreseeable future, especially before and after Eid al-Adha", according to the state-run National News Agency.

While expressing “the syndicate's reservation about the increase in fuel prices and its impact on operational and transportation costs and on the Lebanese in general,” he noted that “this will not have an impact on the prices of imported products in the Lebanese market, because it still falls within the margins that institutions can afford.”

Last week, fuel prices rose sharply following a Cabinet decision to raise rates in order to fund monthly subsidies for active and retired military personnel.

Bahsali pointed out that “the prices of imported food products are currently stable and are expected to remain so in the coming period, in relation to global prices,” noting in this context that “the fluctuations in the prices of food products, especially raw materials globally, constitute the main factor in the rise and fall of the prices of these materials in Lebanon.”