DECEMBER 2010

Good work but can do better

Betting on the Blue Line
Optimistic entrepreneurs gamble on a stable border

Banking the Holocaust
Victims turn villains in $42.5 million embezzlement scandal

Gold’s glorious 2010
Prices soar for the market

Turkey’s EU report card
Pitiful progress leaves Ankara on the naughty step

Iran smiles through sanctions
Squeezing Tehran into submission may have strengthened its hand

An Afghan errand
Coalition forces send a mixed message in rural Afghanistan

Time of mixed fortunes
Jobless growth means more wealth for the few

Pipe Dreams?
Bickering ministers need to knuckle down if infrastructure reform is to be realized

Q&A with Raya Hassan
A word with the finance minister

Executive insight Byblos Bank
Disparity of wealth and infrastructure

Exporting the excess
Lebanese banks look to foreign shores to soak up deposits

Praying for peace
The super-hero sector bites its nails about the future

Executive insight – Standard Chartered
Hedging becomes halal as the long awaited tahawwut arrives

Beware the blind spot
Dearth of data leaves health of the insurance industry obscured

Towering profits
Prices soar as prime real estate becomes scarce

Q&A Bassim Halaby
Benchmark’s chief executive officer takes a look at the state of the industry

Executive insight Sayfco Holding
Despite it's meteoric rise in 2010, Chahe Yerevanian says the industry's footing is firm

Cultural capital
Lebanon’s cash generating hospitality could be hampered by insecurity and infrastructure

Looking to the future
A fresh new wave of web-savvy businesses get ready to sprint for the top

An issue of trust
Youthful Arab bourses struggle to restore their prestige after the global crash

Regional equity markets
A year-to-November review of 2010’s stock market trends throughout the MENA region

Drivers race to downsize
Small cars hog the limelight as the auto industry pulls away from a mixed 2010

A bright future?
The musclemen of the private sector see happy days ahead if the country can keep the peace

A state of denial
Ecological issues mount as bickering politicians fail to address pollution

More serious than just ‘the sniffles’
Migrating nurses and unpaid bills leave Lebanon’s healthcare system struggling

Q&A with Salam Rayes
St. George's CEO on the health of the country's hospitals

The souk of splendor
Growing pains pass as Lebanon's newest citadel of style comes of age

Boutique bouquet
Sensing safety in numbers, luxury brands are letting franchises in on the fun

Investing in the name
Intangible and abstract, Lebanon has yet to grasp the true value of a brand

Kings of consumption
Beirut's shoppers have their say on the country's top brands in an exclusive

A house of ineptitude
Lebanon's leaders are failing at their most basic responsibilities