Economics
Lebanese Peg That’s Held Up for Over Two Decades Is Under Siege
- Businesses complain they can’t get enough dollars from banks
- Central bank offers relief for some importers amid strikes
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Lebanon’s slow-churning currency crunch is fast engulfing Bashar Boubess’s business.
The miller pays for wheat imports in dollars but bakeries buy his flour in Lebanese pounds. For weeks now, the bank has refused to exchange those pound earnings back into the hard currency he needs to replenish supplies. His wheat stocks have dropped 30%.