Lebanon raises price of bread for the fifth time in a year

Lebanon raises the price of bread as its political, financial and economic crises deepen with no resolution in sight.

Lebanon’s Ministry of Economy and Trade has raised the price of subsidised bread for the fifth time in a year as the country’s multiple crises worsen with no resolution in sight. The ministry said on Tuesday the reason behind the latest increase — 18 percent from the last raise in February — was the central bank’s ending of sugar subsidies, which in turn adds to the cost of bread production. Lebanon is grappling with the worst economic and financial crisis in its modern history — one that the World Bank has said is likely to rank as one of the worst the world has seen in the past 150 years. The Lebanese pound has lost 90 percent of its value since unrest swept the country in 2019. Earlier this month, the pound broke a record low earlier of 15,500 Lebanese pounds to the dollar on the black market. The official exchange rate remains 1,507 pounds to the dollar.