After the slight decline recorded by the black market dollar yesterday morning, it resumed its rise this Friday morning, setting new records, as it ranged between 30,000 Lebanese pounds for purchase and 29,950 pounds for sale

The Lebanese pound has lost more than 93 percent of its value since summer 2019, when it began breaking away from the exchange rate of 1,500 LBP to the dollar, which has been pegged since 1997.

A month ago, Lebanon’s Central Bank had set a new rate of 8,000 Lebanese pounds to the US dollar for withdrawals from bank deposits denominated in dollars but which can now only be accessed in the local currency.

The rate was previously set at 3,900 pounds, which implied a “haircut” or loss of more than 80 percent at the current market rate of around 25,000 pounds per dollar. The new rate represents a haircut of around 70 percent.