The commercial sector in Lebanon presents a bleak picture in Ramadan

The Chief of Beirut Traders’ Association, Nicolas Shammas, said he was not optimistic about the future of the trade sector which is influenced by the political turbulence in the region. Speaking to Al Diyar daily, Shammas lamented a shortage of liquidity and a weakening purchasing power among buyers, for whom consumption is no longer a priority, while pointing out that nearly 80% of consumption is accounted for within the GDP, thus when sluggish can result in an economic crisis. This bleak situation, Shammas added, is particularly worrying as it is accompanied by a decline in exports, an overall freeze in public investment since 10 years and decreasing private investments. Elaborating on his meeting with the World Bank delegation that visited Lebanon recently, BTA chief underlined that WB reports do not give the due attention to the commercial sector as they mainly focus on data provided by the government and banking sector and which largely overlook the internal trade sector. However, he drew the delegation’s attention to the need to address the growing debts of the sector, as well as the high level of merchandise stockpiles among traders as a result of low consumption. Shammas finally praised the existing cooperation between the commercial sector and the Governor of the Central bank who continue pumping liquidity in order to stimulate growth, while attempting to address various bottlenecks in the commercial sector. (Al Diyar, 15 June 2015)