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BTA Retail Index: more institutions close, consumption decline
20-8-2019
The Beirut Traders Association (BTA) Fransabank Retail Index for the second quarter of 2019, has shown a steady decline in consumption in the absence of positive developments in the economic arena that will stimulate markets. The Index pointed out that the continuous deliberation for raising taxes on imported goods to protect national industry without providing credible studies on the impact of such measures on the trade activity, and the resulting flight of large deposits from banks due to the increasing taxes on the interest rates of deposits and a waning demand on new deposits, an additional rise in interest rates and the shrinking of banking facilities which in large part contribute to invigorating the economic cycle. According to Fransabank Retail Index, only growth can restore Lebanon’s economic stability and vigor. The state of anticipation among ‘a large number of traders’ has forced them to close their shops and institutions or rent them to non-Lebanese brokers, the Index noted, pointing to the shutdowns in Beirut alone which reached between 4% to 13%, with a higher rate in the regions. The Index also pointed out that the country has not seen a satisfactory number of incomers or a normal comeback of Lebanese expats recorded during the Ramadan, Al Fitr or Easter Holidays. Retail business figures during the second quarter of 2019 reported a continued decline in most sectors, and a more pronounced austerity in consumption and spending among households and individuals. The major sectors that witnessed continued decline during the second quarter compared to the same period in 2018, posted the following rates: Shoes and leather goods (- 54.78% against - 25.59%), smartphones (- 51.25% / - 35.03%), household electrical appliances (- 22.15% / - 15.62%), furniture (- 14.41% / - 6.42%) and hypermarkets and foodstuff (- 5.69% / - 8.41%). (Al Akhbar, Al Diyar, August 20, 2019)
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