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USAID has launched a new program which supports the expansion of the agribusiness, tourism, and information and communication technology sectors, the U.S. embassy said in a statement. (more…)

10/7/2008- The Daily Star- Outgoing Finance Minister Jihad Azour predicted on Tuesday that Lebanon’s GDP growth will see an upturn in 2008 as a result of a better political climate. (more…)

9/7/2008- Lebanese bankers being sued by Israelis in a US court for allegedly supporting the Shiite Hezbollah group have said they are the target of slander and insisted that they are committed to high standards. (more…)

9/7/2008- Figures released by the Central Bank reveal that Lebanon’s cumulative balance of payments, which mirrors net foreign assets in the country, registered a deficit of $556.9 million in the first five months of 2008. (more…)

9/7/2008- The Ministry of Tourism said that the number of tourists visiting Lebanon totaled 336,721 in the first five months of 2008, down by 1.8 percent from the same period of 2007. (more…)

9/7/2008- The Daily Star- Outgoing Finance Minister Jihad Azour predicted that Lebanon’s GDP growth will see an upturn in 2008 as a result of a better political climate. “The GDP growth in Lebanon in 2008 is expected to be better than 2007 due to the positive political climate. (more…)

1/7/2008- The head of the Association of Banks in Lebanon Francois Bassil has hoped that the formation of a national unity cabinet would give a boost to “positive” economic conditions in Lebanon. (more…)

30/6/2008- AFP- A decade ago, it was a glittering vision — a scheme to lure nature lovers to the Lebanese highlands, providing income to local people, nurturing the country’s damaged environment and cementing national unity in one stroke. (more…)

30/6/2008- Trading on the Beirut Stock Exchange was marked by the gradual decline of activity throughout the week in terms of value and volume. Weekly traded value fell 16 percent to $30 million and the corresponding volume dropped 2.5 percent to 1 million traded stocks. (more…)

30/6/2008- The Daily Star- The World Bank said Lebanon ranks 150th globally and 13th in the Middle East and North Africa region in terms of government effectiveness. In its annual governance indicators, the World Bank said Lebanon has fallen in general terms of rankings on five of the six indicators in 2007. (more…)

27/6/2008- Leading economists on Thursday warned of spreading social unrest across the Arab world due to the food-price crisis if governments fail to address the problem. “The food-price crisis is quite serious and the Arab countries must pay more attention to these issues to avoid social unrest in some of these states,” Ibrahim Saif, a senior economist at Carnegie Middle East Center, told reporters at the Press Club. (more…)

26/6/2008- The notoriously inefficient Lebanese telecommunications industry is turning another corner. The government is set to begin the process of privatization and leasing of broadband internet frequencies to companies later this year. (more…)