The commercial sectors in Lebanon are suffering from a confusion of papers and confusion in the pricing mechanisms of goods and commodities, adding to it the collapse of the lira against the dollar. Marble and granite are materials in which the importer stands alongside the local alike. How are prices calculated?

A worker in a marble factory told “Sawt Beirut International” correspondent Ghassan Farran, “The imported goods are so far competing with the national goods, and we are benefiting from the dollar price difference because customs duties are still in Lebanese pounds, knowing that the price of national goods is cheaper than the price of imported ones.” He pointed out that “if the state raises customs duties, prices will rise and demand for foreign goods will decrease,” adding that, “This sector is very important in Lebanon, due to the abundance of production and creativity, as it is ready to export goods abroad, especially with the support of the state.”

It is noteworthy that this sector suffered a crisis in 2017 due to political rivalries, and it is one of the first and most important sectors that put Lebanon on the industrial map among countries.