Lebanon

Looking in detail at what the new business environment ratings tells us about the East Med region, the picture is not greatly changed. As with our previous ratings, Israel is well... 2007-10-01

In spite of Speaker of Parliament Nabih Berri's refusal to call a parliamentary session, the tribunal of those accused of involvement in the assassination of former Prime Minister... 2007-07-27

We are revising our real GDP growth forecast down from 3.5% to 2.0% for 2007, with further risks to the downside if we do not see a pick-up in confidence towards Lebanon. Thereafter,... 2007-07-27

BMI View: Our downwardly revised growth forecasts reflect our low expectations for consumer, investor and tourist confidence, all of which are key for an economic

There has been a return to fighting in Lebanon - the Lebanese army laid siege to Fatah al-Islam, a Palestinian-Syrian militant group, starting May 20 and the conflict still continues.... 2007-06-04

BMI View: The emergence of the Sunni militant group Fatah al-Islam as an additional threat to Lebanon's stability adds to our already deep concern about the future of the state, but... 2007-05-24

BMI View: The fact that Lebanon needs to issue up to US$500mn worth of bonds just to support its state-run electricity company is testament to the urgency of structural

BMI View: The release of IMF aid is good news, and should trigger disbursements from other donors. However, it will not be enough to prevent a serious widening of the balance of payments... 2007-04-10

Lebanon is edging closer to civil conflict, with reports that Sunni militants have been entering the country from Iraq, as well as the allegation that the February bus bombings were... 2007-03-30

We stand by our forecast of 3.5% expansion in 2007, in spite of the deadlock so far this year. We had assumed political problems as part of our core scenario, and believe that the... 2007-03-30