Dr. Nasser Saidi’s comments on the rally in Lebanon’s Eurobonds appeared in an article in The National titled “Lebanon’s Eurobonds rise amid election of Joseph Aoun as president” published on 9th January 2025.
The comments are posted below.
“The strong rally in Lebanon’s government Eurobonds stems from the optimism that the election of Joseph Aoun as the next President, would lead to the implementation of much-needed deep institutional and structural reforms, and a national anti-corruption drive,” Nasser Saidi, a former economy minister and deputy governor of Lebanon’s central bank, told The National.
“The right governance set-up and transparency is vital for Lebanon’s next step towards reform implementation,” Mr Saidi said. “Reforms will need to range from restructuring the banking and financial sector, restructuring external debt, in addition to reforms including fiscal consolidation and reform, downsizing of the public sector, effective management and governance of the state-owned enterprises, in addition to creating a credible, transparent monetary and exchange rate system [including the move to a flexible exchange rate regime].”
Lebanon will also have to negotiate a new agreement with the IMF as the political, economic, banking, and financial landscape has changed dramatically since the previous IMF staff level agreement in 2020, he added.
