(consumer prices): 0.5% (2001 est.)

Labor force: 1.5 million (2001 est.) note: in addition, there are as
many as 1 million foreign workers (1999 est.)

Labor force - by occupation: services NA%, industry NA%, agriculture NA%

Unemployment rate: 18% (1997 est.)

Budget: revenues: $4.6 billion expenditures: $8.9 billion, including
capital expenditures of $NA (2001 est.)

Industries: banking; food processing; jewelry; cement; textiles;
mineral and chemical products; wood and furniture products; oil refining;
metal fabricating

Industrial production growth rate: NA%

Electricity - production: 7.95 billion kWh (2000)

Electricity - production by source: fossil fuel: 96.86% hydro: 3.14%
other: 0% (2000) nuclear: 0%

Electricity - consumption: 8.643 billion kWh (2000)

Electricity - exports: 0 kWh (2000)

Electricity - imports: 1.25 billion kWh (2000)

Agriculture - products: citrus, grapes, tomatoes, apples, vegetables,
potatoes, olives, tobacco; sheep, goats

Exports: $700 million (f.o.b., 2001 est.)

Exports - commodities: foodstuffs and tobacco, textiles, chemicals,
precious stones, metal and metal products, electrical equipment and
products, jewelry, paper and paper products

Exports - partners: Saudi Arabia 11%, UAE 11%, Switzerland 7%, US 7%,
France 5%, Iraq 4%, Jordan 4%, Kuwait 4%, Syria 4% (2000)

Imports: $6.6 billion (f.o.b., 2001 est.)

Imports - commodities: foodstuffs, machinery and transport equipment,
consumer goods, chemicals, textiles, metals, fuels, agricultural foods

Imports - partners: Italy 11%, France 8%, Germany 8%, US 7%, Switzerland
6%, China 5%, Syria 5%, UK 4% (2000)

Debt - external: $8.4 billion (2001 est.)

Economic aid - recipient: $3.5 billion (pledges 1997-2001)

Currency: Lebanese pound (LBP)

Currency code: LBP

Exchange rates: Lebanese pounds per US dollar - 1,507.5 (January 2002),
1,507.5 (2001), 1,507.5 (2000), 1,507.8 (1999), 1,516.1 (1998), 1,539.5
(1997)

Fiscal year: calendar year

Communications Lebanon

Telephones - main lines in use: 700,000 (1999)

Telephones - mobile cellular: 580,000 (1999)

Telephone system: general assessment: telecommunications system severely
damaged by civil war; rebuilding well underway domestic: primarily
microwave radio relay and cable international: satellite earth stations -
2 Intelsat (1 Indian Ocean and 1 Atlantic Ocean) (erratic operations);
coaxial cable to Syria; microwave radio r