Lebanon: warning strike for money exchange offices and gas stations continues to strike

The open-ended strike announced by the owners of gas stations in Lebanon for the second day in a row, and the owners of exchange shops are carrying out a one-day warning strike to protest their accusations of depreciation of the lira.

The union's president, Mahmoud Murad, told the Anatolia news agency that the union started on Friday a one-day warning strike, after accusations made by cashiers to raise the dollar exchange rate and manipulate the exchange rate of the lira, saying that the reason for the change in exchange rates is the poor financial and economic conditions.

In a separate statement on Thursday, the union rejected the continued depreciation of the currency "because it is affected by the crisis like other sectors, as the buying and selling in the market drains the cashiers' capital and threatens their presence."

The value of the local currency has fallen gradually for months as banks set a ceiling for dollar withdrawals, exacerbated by tight restrictions this month on dollar conversion.

The exchange rate of the dollar inside the black market amounted to 2000 lira per dollar, and some cashiers at 2200 lira, although the official rate is only 1507 lira.

Gas stations began yesterday to carry out an open strike nationwide, justifying the losses resulting from the rise in the price of the dollar necessary to import fuel.

The Lebanese economic authorities, a group representing the private sector, including industrialists and bankers, canceled their three-day strike that was due to start on Thursday, justifying its decision on the economic situation and the need for employees to be paid at the end of the month.

On Thursday evening, some protesters crossed the checkpoints in front of the Central Bank of Lebanon in the capital, Beirut, before army patrols arrived and prevented them from reaching the gate of the bank.

The protesters demanded the Governor of the Banque du Liban Riad Salameh to recover the "looted" funds, and remove restrictions placed by banks on depositors, while police blocked roads leading to the bank.

Budget
Finance and Budget Committee Chairman Ibrahim Kanaan said yesterday that the committee should rush to approve the 2020 budget in order to restore confidence in the country taking into account the difficult economic conditions, pointing out that the approval of the budget will be before the end of this year and that the government that will form adopt.

Lebanon needs to form a new government to implement emergency economic reforms that could persuade donors to provide about $ 11 billion in aid pledged at last year's conference.

The Lebanese presidency announced that a meeting will be held on Friday afternoon, in the presence of the ministers of finance and economy and economic adviser to the head of the caretaker government and the governor of the central bank and president of the Association of Banks, to discuss financial and economic affairs.

Lebanese President Michel Aoun said in a tweet that "the current situation does not tolerate conditions and counter-conditions. We must work together to get out of the crisis in the interest of the Lebanese," referring to the stalled talks on the formation of a new government.

For its part, said the Hezbollah bloc in the House of Representatives that the remedy of serious deterioration of the monetary and economic situation depends on the formation of "a harmonious government and understanding of a new methodology."