udi Arabia 4.8% (2007)

Economic aid - recipient:

of the $7.6 billion in grants and loans pledged to Lebanon at the
Paris III conference in January 2007, Beirut as of mid-December 2007
had signed agreements for $3 billion, including $1 billion in
project financing, $750 million in direct budget support, $750
million in private sector credit, and $285 million in in-kind aid;
about $500 million of the $1.7 billion pledged for direct budget
support has been disbursed to Lebanon; donors in August 2006 also
pledged nearly $1.8 billion in aid to help Lebanon recover from the
2006 Israel-Hizballah war; during the conflict, Saudi Arabia and
Kuwait provided $1.5 billion in concessional loans to the Lebanese
central bank to maintain confidence in the Lebanese currency. (2005)

Reserves of foreign exchange and gold:

$20.55 billion (31 December 2007 est.)

Debt - external:

$31.6 billion (31 December 2007 est.)

Stock of direct foreign investment - at home:

$NA

Stock of direct foreign investment - abroad:

$NA

Market value of publicly traded shares:

$8.279 billion (2006)

Currency (code):

Lebanese pound (LBP)

Currency code:

LBP

Exchange rates:

Lebanese pounds (LBP) per US dollar - 1,507.5 (2007), 1,507.5
(2006), 1,507.5 (2005), 1,507.5 (2004), 1,507.5 (2003)

Communications
Lebanon

Telephones - main lines in use:

681,400 (2006)

Telephones - mobile cellular:

1.26 million (2007)

Telephone system:

general assessment: repair of the telecommunications system,
severely damaged during the civil war, now complete
domestic: two wireless networks provide good service; political
instability hampers privatization and deployment of new
technologies; combined fixed-line and mobile-cellular subscribership
50 per 100 persons
international: country code - 961; submarine cable link to Cyprus;
satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (1 Indian Ocean and 1 Atlantic
Ocean); coaxial cable to Syria (2007)

Radio broadcast stations:

AM 20, FM 22, shortwave 4 (1998)

Radios:

2.85 million (1997)

Television broadcast stations:

15 (plus 5 repeaters) (1995)

Televisions:

1.18 million (1997)

Internet country code:

.lb

Internet hosts:

36,681 (2008)

Internet Service Providers (ISPs):

22 (2000)

Internet users:

950,000 (2006)

Transportation
Lebanon

Airports:

7 (2007)

Airports - with paved runways:

total: 5