Innholdsfortegnelse for Volume 5 - 2022 i Lebanon Opportunities

Doing nothing doesn’t just lead to nothing. The financial collapse was accompanied by an economic one. No one has acknowledged that most deposits in banks have evaporated and that the Central Bank is bankrupt. Also no one is ready to recognize the $18 billion in gold and $10 billion in foreign currency reserves – more than enough to restart any economy. Instead, they are busy estimating the ‘losses’ and to whom they should be allocated. Except for InfoPro’s Revival Plan, no one, be it the IMF, the government, the economic associations, or ‘experts’, has given any thought on economic revival. They are distracted from looking ahead because their eyes are fixated on the rear-view mirror. The result will be more accidents. But the market is forcing the issues needing attention.…

Provided by Toters raises $18 million from IFC and investment funds Toters, a provider of delivery services of food, grocery, and other items through a mobile application, has closed a second round of funding of $18 million (Series B). The funding round, which aims to finance Toters’ expansion in Iraq, was led by the International Finance Corporation (IFC), the World Bank’s private sector arm. “Our partnership with the IFC will speed up our growth and further our expansion in Iraq, which is one of the largest markets in the region,” said Tamim Khalfa, co-founder and CEO of Toters. “This is a massive opportunity. We will leverage our leading position and powerful platform to offer critical new services that benefit customers, retailers, and couriers alike,” he said. Khalfa said they entered…

Jean-Christophe Carret World Bank Regional Director Jean-Christophe Carret has been appointed as the World Bank Regional Director for the Mashreq Department (Lebanon, Syria, Jordan, Iraq, and Iran). He replaces Saroj Kumar Jha whose five-year term has come to an end. Carret will be involved in dialogue with stakeholders in the region that will focus on jobs, sustainable growth, inclusion, and governance. He will also oversee the development of an analytical program that aims to inform policy, investment choices, and public debate to support countries that are seeking to implement economic and political reforms. Carret said the World Bank will continue to cooperate with Lebanese officials to help the country face the difficult circumstances. Prior to his new appointment, Carret was Country Director for the Democratic Republic of Congo, Angola, Burundi…

The inflation rate hit 1,000 percent in the period mid-2019 to mid-2022. The price index soared from 109 at the end of June 2019 to 1,286 at the end of June 2022. This upsurge was the outcome of mistaken fiscal and monetary policies, which included injecting a large amount of liquidity in the economy. Unchecked monetary expansion During that period, currency in circulation increased seven times from LL5.9 trillion to LL39.9 trillion, as a result of financial subsidies and monetary expansion. This is the main cause for inflation that led to the depreciation of the currency in the parallel market. Therefore, high inflation leads to the collapse of the currency. Misleading rumors are spreading that claim that floating (and unifying) the exchange rate and putting this into effect on all…

Employment in the private sector is growing. The survey by InfoPro Research shows that 43 percent of businesses in Greater Beirut plan to increase their workforce this year. This would result in an average growth in private sector jobs of ten percent. The joblessness trajectory caused by the severe economic crisis seems to have already started to run its course since 2021 with most of the job losses having occurred in 2019 and 2020. Few firms report decrease in workforce in 2021-2022 Just four percent of the companies surveyed stated that the number of their employees dropped between the beginning of 2021 and July 2022 while almost 60 percent reported a decrease in their workforce when comparing their headcounts in June-July 2022 to precrisis levels. An earlier InfoPro survey titled…

www.algorithm-lb.com CEO: Selim Ghorayeb Products: Cardiometabolic, gastroenterology, infectiology, neurology, rheumatology, urology, immunology, cardiology, pain and inflammation,…… Output and sales: Output increased by 30-35 percent over the 2018-2021 period. The value of sales in terms of real dollars remained basically unchanged over the period due to more focus on the local market where prices are comparatively lower than in export markets. Exports: Inched down a bit to $18-20 million due to measures taken by some Gulf countries including Saudi Arabia. Besides, all six GCC countries, Algorithm exports its output to Jordan, Cyprus, Yemen, and Syria. www.arwanlb.com President and Founder: Abdul Razzaq Yousef Vice President and Co-founder: Ruwayda Dham Products: Anti-infectives, anesthetics, pain management, gastroenterology, antianemic, respiratory, osteoporosis, antiplatelet, antipsychotic, leukemia, urology and biosimilars. Output and sales: Output increased by 54 percent…

Soundbytes Is there a country in the world that produces zero electricity with an excuse that “they didn’t let us?” Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri The Egyptian gas, the Jordanian electricity, and the Algerian fuel will not come as long as electricity prices are not raised and the regulatory authority is not established Walid Jumblatt, Leader of the Socialist Progressive Party Fuel gifts from Iran are not prohibited by US sanctions Walid Fayad, Minister of Energy and Water The country needs $20 billion to $25 billion to get back on its feet Riad Salameh, Governor of the Central Bank The first condition for recovery is to have the courage to fight defeatism Riad Obegi, Chairman – Bank Bemo Where is the IMF? Some people accustomed to begging are combatting us because…

Provided by RYMCO delists from BSE Rasamny-Younis Motor Co. (RYMCO) has delisted its shares from the Beirut Stock Exchange (BSE) due to low trading volumes, the economic and financial crises, and the monetary collapse. RYMCO’s shares were delisted on July 1, 2022. The car importer and distributor, which has 27.3 million outstanding shares, said trading in its shares will remain free among existing shareholders and others in accordance with applicable laws. Its delisted shares are classified into three categories. Class ‘A’ shares, representing 51 percent of total shares, could be owned only by Lebanese natural and legal persons. Class ‘B’ and class ‘C’ shares, accounting for 40 percent and nine percent of the total, could be owned by any person regardless of their nationality. The last trading day for the…

Name Bhouwara sal Capital (Shares) LL30,000,000 (100) Directors Ali Said Abdelatif (Chairman & Gen. Mgr) (01), MSK (Holding) (50), A.S.A (Holding) (49) Reg. address Vision 1974 Center, Lot No. 1974/21, Ras Beirut, Beirut Object General trade, industry, import, export, commerce, packing and packaging of agri-food products, management of agricultural land, consultancy, studies and tenders Bank AM Bank Auditor Sidani & Co. Name Sustain Ability sal Capital (Shares) LL30,000,000 (1,000) Directors Raja Ramzi Abi-Saab (Chairman & Gen. Mgr) (940), Hiyam Sami Abou-Fakhreddine (10), Ghada Wahib Ghazal (10) Shareholders Ghada Wahib Ghazal (10), Akram Ramzi Abi-Saab (20), Alec Sebouh Babahekian (10) Reg. address 6th Floor, Al-Wafaa building, Mama Street, Mar Elias, Beirut Object General trade, import, export, management and treatment of organic waste Bank BLOM Bank Solicitor Me Ziad Abdelrahman Naamani Auditor Gisele Emile Abdo Name The Alchemist sal Capital (Shares) LL30,000,000…

The Financial Sector Recovery Strategy approved by the government last May and that aims to meet some of the requirements for a possible IMF agreement, has been met by objections from all sides including the banks, business associations, experts, and political parties of different stripes. Rival political factions, who oppose each other on almost everything else, agree on objecting to the recovery plan. From Hezbollah, Amal Movement, and the Lebanese Democratic Party to the Lebanese Forces, they all oppose making depositors bear the losses. One MP said they will not allow the recovery plan to pass because it is anti-constitutional since it tears down private property, that is, depositors’ money. He said that discriminating between small and large depositors is illegal and a desperate attempt to continue to misappropriate depositors’…

The results of a survey of medium and large sized companies undertaken this summer by InfoPro Research in Greater Beirut are showing that company sales, unemployment, and salary levels have bottomed up. Encouraged by a slight rebound in sales, and the conversion of billing in many sectors to fresh dollars, many businesses have started raising their salary levels and hiring again. The summer has passed without troubles for the first time in years. All this indicates that – bar any major negative event – economic growth is on its way, albeit from a very low threshold.…

Demand for certain job specialties are starting to show for the first time since the beginning of the crisis, as 43 percent of businesses are increasing their workforce on the short term. Most of the recruitment is occurring in the information technology sector (IT), manufacturing, and the restaurant sector, according to the InfoPro survey. The recruitment mainly aims to offset job losses caused by the brain drain and to boost production in order to meet growing exports and rising demand for local products. There is also a rise in seasonal demand as is the case of restaurants. Export-driven hiring The IT and manufacturing sectors as well as some services such as advertising are increasing their workforce in order to meet growing demand in export markets. “A number of advertising companies…

Both the supply and demand sides in the residential real estate sector are moving away from the home-buying market towards the rental market. Developers have settled most of their debts by selling part of their inventory of apartments. They are not ready to sell the remainder of their stock amid the current plunge in prices. Low prices are also discouraging sales by those who had purchased real estate as a safe haven for their saving. The decline in supply is paralleled by a sharp drop in demand driven by dwindling purchasing power, the lack of fresh foreign currency, and low investor confidence. In the 12 months ending in May 2022, inquiries for buying apartments plunged 92 percent from the previous period and the number of owners looking to sell apartments…

Targeting high-end niche markets is an effective policy for an agri-food company to boost its exports since low cost is not a sustainable competitive advantage in Lebanon. Small and medium enterprises (SMEs) involved in the production of extra virgin olive oil, goat dairy products, and organic wine are seizing opportunities in export markets and earning the much-coveted fresh dollars. Quality, which is a prime requirement on global markets, necessitates abiding by specific and concrete standards to obtain certifications that are a ticket to enter increasingly demanding markets. Goat dairy and extra-virgin olive oil Hajjar Foods (Go Baladi), which produces conventional and organic dairy products from goat milk, currently exports 40-50 percent of its total output to the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and an African country. The company is currently focusing…

Electric charger deal between Gargour Mobility and Wallbox Gargour Mobility, a unit of the car distribution company T. Gargour & Fils, has concluded a deal to act as the only authorized distributor in Lebanon of Wallbox chargers for electric vehicles (EVs). Spain-based Wallbox is a global provider of charging and energy management solutions for EVs in more than 100 countries. Cesar Aoun, Managing Director of Gargour Mobility said: “Our company is adapting to the new market dynamics by creating new online services and is today ready to introduce diverse solutions for all electric vehicles.” All Wallbox products can be managed through a mobile application to provide a convenient and effective customer experience, he said. Usamah Alhamad, responsible for the Middle East and Africa region at Wallbox said that this initiative…

Market Research Project Manager InfoPro Research. Intermediate, senior, and management positions. Full-time or project basis Design and supervise implementation of market research studies including questionnaire design, management of fieldwork and data-entry tasks, usage of project management and statistical software, data analysis and charting, and report writing. Degree in business (marketing or management), social sciences, statistics, economics, or mathematics, from a top-tier university. Demonstrable several years of experience in market research, management consulting, quantitative analysis, or a field using similar techniques. Proficient in Excel, PowerPoint, MS Project, SPSS or equivalent. Business writing and presentation skills. Fluent in English and Arabic. Market Research Project Assistants InfoPro Research. Intermediate positions. Full-time only Team member of market research projects. Supervise fieldworkers. Desk research. Data manipulation. Charting. Degree in business (marketing or management), social sciences,…

The recently passed competition law, voted by Parliament, is likely to contribute to the revival of the economy by boosting productivity and innovation, creating job and investment opportunities, and reducing inflation and the trade deficit, according to the ‘Competition in Lebanon’ report issued by ESCWA. In a healthy competitive environment, businesses provide goods and services in the most efficient way possible as part of their competition with rivals, and in the process they drive prices down and quality up for the benefit of consumers, according to the report. “Lebanese strategic sectors currently prone to uncompetitive behaviors such as the agriculture and industrial sectors can experience great productivity gains in light of higher competition levels. These industries, characterized by high concentration, when faced with tougher competition, are prompted to have more…

The huge slump in business activity and sales that was recorded in 2020 is attributed to the co-occurrence of both the economic and financial crises and heightened Covid-19 restrictions. The pandemic has disrupted business activity worldwide and negatively affected global economic growth. Around 93 percent of local companies reported a plunge in sales in 2020 but the sales performance of businesses partially recovered in 2021 and improved further this year. Slump continued in 2021 but at a slower pace Easing the Covid-19 restrictions in 2021 ought to have produced a significant rebound in business activity as has happened globally, but the worsening crises in Lebanon prevented a recovery. The pace of the decline in sales (in fresh dollars), however, slowed down in 2021 thanks to the waning impact of the…

Agricultural food exports grew by 51 percent to $949 million over the period 2019-2021 mainly driven by a surge in fruit exports especially grapes, according to the ‘Agrifood Exports 2019-2021’ report recently released by Fair Trade Lebanon, an NGO that supports small producers and food processing cooperatives. Growth mainly driven by fruit sales Exports of the fruits and nuts category, which is mainly made up of fruits, soared 5.6 times over the period to $404 million. Exports of grapes surged 16 times from just $14.5 million in 2019 to $234 million in 2021. “The agri-food products that have an important export potential include fruits such as apples, cherries, and grapes, in addition to preparations of vegetables, Lebanese ethnic sauces and condiments like pickles and tarator, and flavored mineral and aerated…

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