The International Monetary Fund (IFM) has informed the Ministry of Finance that Lebanon will receive on September 16, around $1.135 billion in Special Drawing Rights for the year 2021, with a value of $860 million, in addition to $275 million for the year 2009, to be deposited in the account of the Central Bank.

The quality of commodities consumed by the Lebanese whether basic or luxury products has dropped. Citizens are selecting their purchases based on its prices rather than its quality. Iranian products were the alternative.

What is the volume of Iranian imports?

Without calculating the Iranian fuel ships that are supposed to enter Lebanon today, imports from Iran soared by 266 percent within 5 months this year.

The volume of imports from Iran to Lebanon in the first eight months of 2021 amounted to $27 million, compared to $16 million dollars in the same period of 2020, registering 70 percent increase.

According to the latest Customs figures Lebanon imported worth $24 million from Iran in the first three months of the year, compared to $7 million in the same period last year.

Figures from the Iranian Trade Development Organization indicated that Iranian merchandise imports to Lebanon increased by 266 percent year-on-year from March to August, and the volume of trade exchange between Lebanon and Iran during reached $20 million in the five months. Imports from Iran amounted to $12.7 million, compared to $7.5 million in Lebanese exports. It is noteworthy that the volume of imports from Iran to Lebanon recorded an increase in terms of value by 266 percent, but in terms of quantity, the increase reached 677 percent, and the import included commodities, like medicines, iron bars, glass, pistachios, textile, and others.

Former Minister of Energy Raymond Ghajar revealed in his handover letter that the first shipment of Iraqi oil will arrive within days to Lebanon to secure fuel to the power plants, which will provide additional 4 hours of electricity, to be followed by the second shipment next week.