Money Matters

S ociete Generate Libano-Europeenne de Banque (SGLEB) has reportedly acquired the financially troubled lnaash Bank in a deal worth $50 million. The Central Bank had recently taken control of lnaash …

Y ou don’t have to pick up a copy of the National Enquirer to know that insurance firms are going to bed with banks these days. The megamerger of Citicorp …

T he rating agency just won’t quit. Two months ago Standard & Poor’s (S&P) threatened that if the government didn’t do something about fiscal problems running wild, Lebanon would be …

Rasamny-Younis Motor Company(Rymco) is still holding on to thenumber one position in car sales inthe local market with a 14.4% share so farthis year. That’s good news for the only …

Economic focus United States • The economy’s performance is shifting from truly spectacular tomerely good. Mounting evidence points to a slowdown in growth.The latest sign was declining retail sales figures …

Arab countries have relativelylarge pension and social securityfunds by the standards of developingcountries. However, they lag behindin terms of the efficiency with which theyutilize the long-term financial resourcesthey mobilize. In …

MOROCCO The Casablanca Stock Exchange was almost unchangedin thin trading marked by narrow movementsin blue-chip stocks. The market continues to lack directionin the absence of concrete steps to attract dwindlinglocal …

The government demonstrated its creativeinclinations, or that its feet arenot entirely on the ground, when itlaunched five-year interest-free T-billsgeared towards the Lebanese expatriatecommunity. What an altruistic lot thoseemigrants must be. …

Isn’t turning a good profit on sales thewhole essence of business? Al-Fajrinsurance company, which has a capitalof more than $2.3 million, appears tomarch to a different beat. Last year itranked …