Struggling industry

Factories are selling at production cost to uphold their reputation: Jacques Sarraf

July 25, 2011- Former President of the Association of Lebanese Industrialists, Jacques Sarraf, said several factories are operating at half their output capacity. He said factories are selling their products at the production cost without generating any profits so as to preserve their business reputation in local and international markets.

Sarraf said, in a press statement, that industrial exports posted a growth of 9.3 percent during the first half of 2011. He said such a growth rate is acceptable, despite it having dropped from 25 percent for the same period a year earlier.

Sarraf said local demand fell by 20 percent during the first half of this year, attributing the drop to the slowdown in tourism activity. He called industrialists to seek out new markets for their products, particularly in Europe.