Balance of payments sees $321.7 mln deficit

Lebanon’s balance of payment remained in the red this year as it registered a deficit of $321.7 million in July. Escalating regional and domestic tensions led to a decline in capital inflows that were not sufficient to offset the trade deficit. Data from the Central Bank showed a worsening negative balance of payment in 2012, reaching a deficit of $1.342 billion compared to $786.5 million in the same period of 2011, which was the first negative figure recorded since 2005’s $748 million deficit. Net foreign assets of banks in the first seven months went down by $2.253 billion, while the Central Bank’s NFA jumped by $910 million. From DailyStar