Lebanon Expects to Receive 1 Mn Tourists this Summer

A tourist takes a picture of fellow tourists at the sea castle in Sidon, Lebanon (File photo: Reuters)
A tourist takes a picture of fellow tourists at the sea castle in Sidon, Lebanon (File photo: Reuters)
TT
20

Lebanon Expects to Receive 1 Mn Tourists this Summer

A tourist takes a picture of fellow tourists at the sea castle in Sidon, Lebanon (File photo: Reuters)
A tourist takes a picture of fellow tourists at the sea castle in Sidon, Lebanon (File photo: Reuters)

Lebanon expects to receive one million tourists this summer, with 600,000 visitors already arriving in the country, caretaker Tourism Minister Walid Nassar said.

The latest data showed a 77 percent increase in travelers through Rafic Hariri International Airport in Beirut since the beginning of the year.

Nassar expressed his "optimism about the tourist season," saying in a statement during his participation in the "B Nos Jounieh" festival that over one million tourists are expected to arrive, and hoping for stability.

He said that despite the difficult economic conditions and the scarcity of funds in the municipalities, it is possible through creative ideas to create an atmosphere and restore joy to citizens while reviving the economic cycle.

On the eve of Eid al-Adha, about 30,000 passengers arrive daily through the airport, most Lebanese residents and expatriates.

The number of passengers at the airport in the first week of July increased 44.91 percent, compared to the same period last year, and reached 183,352 passengers.

Lebanon's National News Agency said that at the end of June, the number of passengers arriving through the airport increased during the first half of this year.

About 2,568,797 passengers arrived in Lebanon, compared to 1,444 502 passengers in 2021, which amounts to a 77.83 percent increase and a 113 percent increase over the same period in 2020.

However, the figures showed a decline of about 35 percent from the first half of 2019, when 4,400,523 passengers arrived at the airport.



Egypt's Net Foreign Assets Retreat in April after March Jump

A general view of the new headquarters of Central Bank of Egypt, at the New Administrative Capital (NAC) east of Cairo, Egypt December 8, 2023. REUTERS/Amr Abdallah Dalsh/File Photo
A general view of the new headquarters of Central Bank of Egypt, at the New Administrative Capital (NAC) east of Cairo, Egypt December 8, 2023. REUTERS/Amr Abdallah Dalsh/File Photo
TT
20

Egypt's Net Foreign Assets Retreat in April after March Jump

A general view of the new headquarters of Central Bank of Egypt, at the New Administrative Capital (NAC) east of Cairo, Egypt December 8, 2023. REUTERS/Amr Abdallah Dalsh/File Photo
A general view of the new headquarters of Central Bank of Egypt, at the New Administrative Capital (NAC) east of Cairo, Egypt December 8, 2023. REUTERS/Amr Abdallah Dalsh/File Photo

Egypt's net foreign assets (NFAs) fell by $1.5 billion in April, central bank data showed on Wednesday, retreating from March, when the approval of the fourth review of the country's IMF program sparked a jump.

NFAs slid to the equivalent of $13.54 billion, from $15.08 billion at the end of March, according to Reuters calculations based on official central bank currency exchange rates.

In March, NFAs jumped by $4.9 billion after the International Monetary Fund approved the disbursement to Egypt of $1.2 billion after completing its review of the country's $8 billion economic reform program, Reuters reported.

The IMF also approved a request for a $1.3 billion arrangement under the IMF's resilience and sustainability facility.

The approvals led to an inflow of foreign investment in Egyptian pound treasury bills, bankers said.

Egypt had been using foreign assets, which include assets held by both the central bank and commercial banks, to help prop up its currency since as long ago as September 2021. Net foreign assets turned negative in February 2022 and only returned to positive territory in May last year.

Foreign assets increased in April at both the central bank and commercial banks, while foreign liabilities fell at both as well.