Lebanon Reserves Recovered After Hariri Crisis, Salameh Says
- Outflows after prime minister quit reached about $2 billion
- Inflows exceeded outflows after Hariri retracted resignation
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Lebanon’s foreign-currency reserves have recovered from the shock of Prime Minister Saad Hariri’s surprise resignation, proving the resiliency of the country’s financial system, Central Bank Governor Riad Salameh said.
Reserves fell to about $41.5 billion from more than $43 billion at the end of October after Hariri’s Nov. 4 resignation from Saudi Arabia, Salameh said in an interview on Wednesday. The political crisis roiled markets in the Arab world’s most indebted country, raising its credit risk and sending bond yields soaring. Reserves rebounded after Hariri retracted his resignation a month later. “We are back at over $43 billion,” Salameh said.