Coincident indicator up 3.3 percent

The coincident indicator, an economic growth index published by the Central Bank (BDL), grew by 3.3 percent in December 2015 from a year earlier.

The coincident indicator is comprised of sub-indicators, such as cleared checks, cement deliveries, electricity production, fuel imports, passenger traffic, the money supply M3, and external trade.

Fuel imports jumped by 12 percent, in terms of quantity, to 7.66 million tons last year compared with 2014. The value of oil imports decreased despite the growth in imported quantities, thanks to declining oil prices that had reduced the energy bill. Economic Consultant Toufic Gaspard said the substantial decrease in transfers to Electricité du Liban (EDL), estimated to range between $800 million and $1 billion, will have a positive impact on the 2015 public budget.

Passenger traffic at the airport, which includes arrivals, departures, and transit passengers, rose by 10 percent to 7.24 million. The money supply M3 grew by 5.5 percent last year to reach LL 186,360.4 billion ($123.7 billion) at the end of December.

The deficit of the balance of trade narrowed by 12 percent over the same period to $15 billion with imports falling by 12 percent and exports by 11 percent.

The sub-indicators that declined last year include cleared checks and cement deliveries. The value of cleared checks in lira and foreign currencies fell by 6.3 percent to LL104,953.9 billion ($96.6 billion). Cement deliveries dropped by 8.6 percent to 5.04 million tons.