Vol.6, Issue 2 - February 2010

BEIRUT: The 2010 survey of office space costs in 63 cities by property consultants Cushman & Wakefield ranked Beirut as the 31st most expensive city worldwide and the fourth most expensive among 10 cities in the Middle East and Africa region, as reported by Lebanon This Week, Byblos Bank Group?s economic publication.

BEIRUT: Lebanese Economy Minister Mohammad Safadi said Tuesday that foreign direct investment (FDI) in Lebanon increased by 20 percent in 2009, reaching $4.3 billion from $3.6 billion in 2008.
Capital inflows exceeded $18 billion by the end of 2009, which represented a rise of around 24 percent from 2008 levels, resulting in a balance of payments surplus of over $6 billion by the end of 2009, he added.

BEIRUT: Central bank Governor Riad Salameh said on Thursday that he does not expect a real-estate bubble to take place in Lebanon, and that the surge in property prices in the country is due to a real increase in demand.
?The central bank issued in 2009 circulations aimed at decreasing interest rates on housing loans and other environmental and educational project loans.