Minister of Industry Hussein al-Haj Hassan revealed on Friday that the deficit in the trade balance reached 15 to 16 billion USD, while the exports have fallen in the last five years from 4.5 to 2.5 billion USD.
The minister’s comments after meeting with Speaker Nabih Berri whereby he noted that unemployment reached 35% among the youth and 25% in general.
He also warned that Lebanon has lost the factor of competition “because of the high cost of production.”
The minister concluded by calling for finding means to protect the Lebanese consumer and to promote exports.