Qatar will purchase $500 million worth of Lebanese bonds in order to support the country's economy, which is facing one of the world's biggest debts, the Qatari Foreign Ministry said on Monday in a statement
DOHA (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 21st January, 2019) Qatar will purchase $500 million worth of Lebanese bonds in order to support the country's economy, which is facing one of the world's biggest debts, the Qatari Foreign Ministry said on Monday in a statement."In a statement to Qatar news Agency (QNA), HE [His Excellency Deputy Prime Minister and Qatari Foreign Minister] Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al-Thani said that the State of Qatar will purchase Lebanese government bonds worth $500 million. HE stressed that this step comes to strengthen the Lebanese economy, adding that the State of Qatar has always been committed to supporting Lebanese people in light of the great challenges they face," the statement said.
According to the Qatari Foreign Ministry, the decision was made after Qatari Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani met with the president of Lebanon, Michel Aoun over the weekend. The meeting was part of the Qatari leader's visit to Beirut, where the delegation he was leading took part in the Arab Economic and Social Development Summit.
"HE the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs expressed hope that the Lebanese Republic and Lebanese people enjoy stability and prosperity, and that the Lebanese economy will recover, stressing that the region needs a strong and prosperous Lebanon," the statement added.
According to the Trading Economics media outlet, Lebanese public debt currently stands at 149 percent of the national GDP, one of the highest debts-to-GDP ratios in the world. The World Bank has named decreasing oil prices, political instability and lower economic growth as the major causes of the nation's economic difficulties.
