Central Bank: Lebanese lira covers state's needs, raises borrowing concerns

A high-ranking source at the Central Bank of Lebanon expressed astonishment at the "preoccupation of political forces with the issue of borrowing from the bank, while there are laws that require months to accomplish and have not been studied yet." 

This article was originally published in and translated from the Lebanese newspaper Al-Akhbar.

The source told Al-Akhbar that "financing is secured to cover the state's needs during August, and the state's accounts hold sufficient funds in Lebanese lira." 

However, the problem "is limited to the government's needs in US dollars, and the central bank, on its part, remains committed not to spend any dollars from the mandatory reserves."

The source also pointed out that First Deputy Governor Wassim Mansouri is preparing a detailed study on the mandatory reserves in foreign currency and the corresponding obligations. 

This study will reveal the size of the usable reserves. Moreover, the study will disclose the actual remaining reserves, far from the previous promotion, about their total size. 

Mansouri intends to publish this study with all its details soon.