Lebanon PM will meet IMF delegation amid deeping economic struggles

Lebanon PM will meet IMF delegation amid deeping economic struggles
February 18, 2020, 11:07 am

Lebanese Prime Minister-designate Hassan Diab delivers a speech after his nomination at the presidential palace in Baabda, east of the capital Beirut. (File photo AFP)

A delegation from the International Monetary Fund is due to meet Lebanon’s prime minister Tuesday as the debt-ridden country seeks assistance to rescue its moribund economy.

Lebanon has the world’s third-highest debt to GDP ratio and has been sliding towards default in recent months, with tight capital controls and a currency devaluation already hitting purchasing power.

“Prime Minister Hassan Diab meets at 4 pm (1400 GMT) with a delegation from the International Monetary Fund,” the state NNA news agency reported.

Diab’s government won parliament’s confidence only last week and the state immediately requested the Fund’s advice on tackling the economic crisis.

Lebanon is expected to decide whether to pay $1.2 billion in Eurobonds that reach maturity on March 9 or to default on its debt.

The IMF delegation is expected to provide an assessment of the measures needed to rebuild the economy but has not been asked to provide financial assistance.

source: AFP

Pakistan policeman killed as blast hits polio vaccine team Lebanon’s Tripoli prepares for day of rage after protester Ahmad Tawfiq dies