With unwavering tensions among the country’s top officials, the Lebanese pound, or Lira, is falling back against the US dollar.
The dollar is trading at around 12,225 LBP on Thursday afternoon with black market traders selling it for around 12,250 LBP and buying it for around 12,200 LBP.
This comes after the Lira had bounced back against the dollar just days ago, trading at around 11,675 LBP after trading for 12,150 LBP the day before, on Monday.
By the weekend, Lebanon will have been without a fully functional government for 8 months since Hassan Diab resigned in the wake of the Beirut explosion.
After Diab‘s resignation, Mustapha Adib attempted to form a government but resigned in less than a month of his appointment as he faced unwillingness to form a rescue government in line with the French initiative.
Following Adib, in October, Saad Hariri was selected to form a government, a task the Lebanese nation had hoped the more experienced former premier would succeed to quickly achieve.
However, it has been over 6 months since Hariri was designated Prime Minister for the sole purpose of forming a new cabinet while Diab remains the caretaker premier and the French Initiative that could save Lebanon on hold.
Meanwhile, Lebanon’s president, who plays a chief role in the deadlock of the government formation, just blamed the central bank’s governor for hindering the French Initiative by refusing to fully cooperate with the forensic audit.
It is worth mentioning a pattern that any time there are any slight hopes that a government will be formed, the black market value of the Lebanese pound rises.
