Lebanon sails into uncertain economic waters

The Middle East is lately undergoing economic and political changes that imply the need to rethink Lebanon’s posture in this volatile geopolitical neighborhood. The two main impulses to consider are the expansion of the European Union and the recent and future American intentions for the region, and what the latter means for Lebanon. Both factors combine with recent improvements in Lebanon’s economic performance that brought upturns in not all but some important areas. Besides the much talked-about resurgence of tourism, the country’s export performance is to be named here. Despite regional factors of international business concern, such as the war raging for much of the year in Iraq and the third year of the intifada in Israel, Lebanon’s outbound trade thrived in 2003. A report released by Lebanon’s ministry of industry in mid-July announced that the country’s industrial exports for 2003 increased by 28.2% compared to the previous year. The