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Lebanon to Receive $1.135 Bln in SDRs from IMF

A woman counts US dollar banknotes as Lebanese pounds are pictured in the background at a currency exchange shop in Beirut. (Reuters)
A woman counts US dollar banknotes as Lebanese pounds are pictured in the background at a currency exchange shop in Beirut. (Reuters)
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Lebanon to Receive $1.135 Bln in SDRs from IMF

A woman counts US dollar banknotes as Lebanese pounds are pictured in the background at a currency exchange shop in Beirut. (Reuters)
A woman counts US dollar banknotes as Lebanese pounds are pictured in the background at a currency exchange shop in Beirut. (Reuters)

Lebanon's finance ministry said on Monday the central bank would receive $1.135 billion on Sept. 16 in International Monetary Fund Special Drawing Rights (SDRs), much needed funds as the country struggles with one of the deepest depressions in modern history.

The new allocation of the IMF's reserve currency is comprised of $860 million from 2021 and $275 million from 2009, Reuters quoted a statement by the ministry as saying.

Lebanon is in the throes of a deep financial crisis that has propelled three quarters of its population into poverty. Its central bank has all but run down its reserves.

The depletion of foreign currency has translated into worsening shortages of basic goods such as fuel and medication in the past couple of months.

After a year of political deadlock, Lebanese leaders finally agreed a new government on Friday opening the way to a resumption of talks with the IMF.

Information Minister George Kordahi said on Monday President Michel Aoun had stressed during the government's first cabinet meeting Lebanon's need for the IMF, The World Bank and donor agencies.

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Oil Falls on Demand Growth Concerns, Robust Dollar

FILE - Pump jacks extract oil from beneath the ground in North Dakota, May 19, 2021. (AP Photo/Matthew Brown, File)
FILE - Pump jacks extract oil from beneath the ground in North Dakota, May 19, 2021. (AP Photo/Matthew Brown, File)
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Oil Falls on Demand Growth Concerns, Robust Dollar

FILE - Pump jacks extract oil from beneath the ground in North Dakota, May 19, 2021. (AP Photo/Matthew Brown, File)
FILE - Pump jacks extract oil from beneath the ground in North Dakota, May 19, 2021. (AP Photo/Matthew Brown, File)

Oil prices fell on Friday on worries about demand growth in 2025, especially in top crude importer China, putting global oil benchmarks on track to end the week down nearly 3%.
Brent crude futures fell by 33 cents, or 0.45%, to $72.55 a barrel by 0730 GMT. US West Texas Intermediate crude futures eased 32 cents, or 0.46%, to $69.06 per barrel, Reuters said.
Chinese state-owned refiner Sinopec said in its annual energy outlook released on Thursday that China's crude imports could peak as soon as 2025 and the country's oil consumption would peak by 2027 as diesel and gasoline demand weaken.
"Benchmark crude prices are in a prolonged consolidation phase as the market heads towards the year-end weighed by uncertainty in oil demand growth," said Emril Jamil, senior research specialist at LSEG.
He added that OPEC+ would require supply discipline to perk up prices and soothe jittery market nerves over continuous revisions of its demand growth outlook. The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and allies, together called OPEC+, recently cut its growth forecast for 2024 global oil demand for a fifth straight month.
Meanwhile, the dollar's climb to a two-year high also weighed on oil prices, after the Federal Reserve flagged it would be cautious about cutting interest rates in 2025.
A stronger dollar makes oil more expensive for holders of other currencies, while a slower pace of rate cuts could dampen economic growth and trim oil demand.
JPMorgan sees the oil market moving from balance in 2024 to a surplus of 1.2 million barrels per day (bpd) in 2025, as the bank forecasts non-OPEC+ supply increasing by 1.8 million bpd in 2025 and OPEC output remaining at current levels.
In a move that could pare supply, G7 countries are considering ways to tighten the price cap on Russian oil, such as with an outright ban or by lowering the price threshold, Bloomberg reported on Thursday.
Russia has circumvented the $60 per barrel cap imposed in 2022 using its "shadow fleet" of ships, which the EU and Britain have targeted with further sanctions in recent days.