Arab Press

بالشعب و للشعب
Friday, Mar 24, 2023

Lebanese currency reaches record-low value

Lebanese currency reaches record-low value

After being pegged at 1,505 pounds to the US dollar 25 years ago, the Lebanese pound’s official exchange rate changed to 15,000 pounds to the dollar as of Wednesday.
The previous exchange rate lasted from 1998 until 2019, when the financial crisis erupted and the Lebanese currency began to gradually collapse, losing
about 97 percent of its value by 2023.

The Lebanese Ministry of Finance has started charging value-added tax based on the new rate, causing confusion in the markets, as all official and unofficial transactions changed. Meanwhile, the black-market exchange rate ranges between 59,000 and 61,000 Lebanese pounds to the dollar, in the absence of any solutions by the Central Bank or the government.

Almost all services and products are now priced in US dollars: foodstuffs, medicine, gasoline, the Internet, and private generator bills. Security services seem to have given up on pursuing illegal money changers, who are now operating using secret social media groups or personally making home visits to practice their illegal exchanges.

During its monthly meeting on Wednesday, the Council of Maronite Bishops warned against the dangerous manipulation of the exchange rate on the black market, which leads to extreme price hikes, preventing most of the Lebanese people from securing their needs.

The council urged Parliament to convene and elect a new Lebanese president to end the four-month presidential vacuum.

The council further warned that Lebanon is on the verge of a complete catastrophic collapse and blamed the MPs’ reluctance to elect a president for this worsening collapse.

Over the past two days, Lebanon’s parties have been intensifying their meetings to come to an agreement on a new presidential candidate, form a government and appoint a governor for the Central Bank.

Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri is yet to set a new date for the presidential election session after the Progressive Socialist Party’s MPs threatened to stop attending voting sessions if Hezbollah’s MPs and their allies insist on casting blank votes.

A spiritual summit was held that included the Catholic and Orthodox patriarchs, dedicated to discussing a way to resolve the presidential crisis.

Head of the Progressive Socialist Party Walid Jumblatt said after his meeting with Berri on Tuesday evening that he is trying to find common denominators with all the parties to finally elect a new president.

“The country is abandoned, the economic situation is deteriorating, and the judicial situation is collapsing as well,” he said.

Among the candidates being discussed is Army Commander Gen. Joseph Aoun, but agreeing to elect him requires amending the constitution.

So far, no presidential candidate has the support of 65 MPs. The Free Patriotic Movement and the Lebanese Forces party oppose the candidacy of Suleiman Frangieh, an ally of Syrian President Bashar Assad. However, Hezbollah supports him.

MP Michel Moussa, a member of the Parliamentary Development and Liberation Bloc, said: “The election of a president is still hampered by the vertical division in Parliament, as none of the two opposing poles is able to rally votes for its candidate.”

Moussa noted: “Berri knew from the start that this would happen, and this is why he called for dialogue, but no one responded, although everyone is well aware that the only way to start solving Lebanon’s crises is to elect a new president and form a new government that would implement reforms according to a recovery plan.”
Newsletter

Related Articles

Arab Press
Close
0:00
0:00
Donald Trump arrested – Twitter goes wild with doctored pictures
Credit Suisse's Scandalous History Resulted in an Obvious Collapse - It's time for regulators who fail to do their job to be held accountable and serve as an example by being behind bars.
Paris Rioting vs Macron anti democratic law
'Sexual Fantasy' Assignment At US School Outrages Parents
Credit Suisse to borrow $54 billion from Swiss central bank
Russian Hackers Preparing New Cyber Assault Against Ukraine
If this was in Tehran, Moscow or Hong Kong
A brief banking situation report
We are witnessing widespread bank fails and the president just gave a 5 min speech then walked off camera.
Donald Trump's asked by Tucker Carlson question on if the U.S. should support regime change in Russia?.
Elon Musk Is Planning To Build A Town In Texas For His Employees
The Silicon Valley Bank’s collapse effect is spreading around the world, affecting startup companies across the globe
Market Chaos as USDC Loses Peg to USD after $3.3 Billion Reserves Held by Silicon Valley Bank Closed.
Banking regulators close SVB, the largest bank failure since the financial crisis
Silicon Valley Bank: Struggles Threaten Tech Startup Ecosystem"
The unelected UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, an immigrant himself, defends new controversial crackdown on illegal migration
Man’s penis amputated by mistake after he’s wrongly diagnosed with a tumour
In a major snub to Downing Street's Silicon Valley dreams, UK chip giant Arm has dealt a serious blow to the government's economic strategy by opting for a US listing
It's the question on everyone's lips: could a four-day workweek be the future of employment?
Spain officials quit over trains that were too wide for tunnels...
Corruption and Influence Buying Uncovered in International Mainstream Media: Investigation Reveals Growing Disinformation Mercenaries
European MP Clare Daly condemns US attack on Nord Stream
Tucker Carlson called Trump a 'demonic force'
US Joins 15 NATO Nations in Largest Space Data Collection Initiative in History
White House: No ETs over the United States
Saray Street in Hatay-Antakya before and after the earthquake
U.S. Jet Shoots Down Flying Object Over Canada
Nord Stream terror attack: David Sacks breaks down Sy Hersh's story
Being a Tiktoker might be expensive…
Miracle: El Salvador Search and Rescue teams, with the support of Turkish teams, rescued a woman and a child from the rubble 150 hours after the earthquake
SpaceX, the private space exploration company, made a significant breakthrough in their mission to reach space.
China's top tech firms, including Alibaba, Tencent, Baidu, NetEase, and JD.com, are developing their own versions of Open AI's AI-powered chatbot, ChatGPT
This shocking picture, showing how terrible is the results of the earthquake in Turkey
President Joe Biden delivered the 2023 State of the Union Address , in order to help Americans that missed the 2022 speech, do not have internet, and suffer from short memory.
The desk of King Carlos Alberto of Sardinia has many secret compartments
Today's news from Britain - 9th February 2023
The five largest oil companies in the West generated combined profits of nearly $200 billion in 2022, which has led to increased calls for governments to impose tougher windfall taxes
2 earthquakes in Turkey killed over 2,300 people
Powerful Earthquake Strikes Turkey and Syria, Killing More Than 1,300 People.
Turkish photographer Ugur Gallenkus portrays two different worlds within a single image. Brilliant work
Charlie Munger, calls for a ban on cryptocurrencies in the US, following China's lead
Shell reports highest profits in 115 years
EU found a way to use frozen Russian funds
First generation unopened iPhone set to fetch more than $50,000 at auction.
WARNING GRAPHIC CONTENT - US Memphis Police murdering innocent Tyre Nichols
Almost 30% of professionals say they've tried ChatGPT at work
Interpol seeks woman who ran elaborate exam cheating scam in Singapore
What is ChatGPT?
Bill Gates is ‘very optimistic’ about the future: ‘Better to be born 20 years from now...than any time in the past’
Tesla reported record profits and record revenues for 2022
×