The Central Administration of Statistics (CAS) released its 2017 “Lebanese National Accounts”, shedding light on the evolution of Lebanon’s GDP, as well as its breakdown by sector. In details, the report unveiled that Lebanon’s real GDP grew by 0.6% in 2017 to LBP 64.40 trillion (i.e. around $42.72 billion), compared to a real growth of 1.6% in 2016. Despite such a shy growth, Lebanon’s real GDP growth remains slightly higher than the 0.4% rate reported in 2015, yet still lingers far below the 1.9% and 2.6% rates reported in each of the years 2014 and 2013 respectively. The growth figure for 2017 also pales in comparison with those registered in the 2007-2010 period prior to the eruption of the regional turmoil, where growth hovered between 8.0% and 10.1%. In fact, the prolonged local and regional political instabilities continued to weigh on the Lebanese economy, which can be reflected by the slower 1% growth in the real estate sector (which is the largest constituent of the country’s GDP), the 4% contraction in the construction sector, the 6% slump in the financial services sector, the 0% growth in the electricity sector, and the 15% nosedive in the water supply & waste management sector. In parallel, the wholesale & retail trade sector witnessed a modest 1% uptick, mirroring households’ hesitance towards spending. From a more positive angle, the hotels & restaurants sector recorded a 9% rebound in 2017, with the agricultural sector expanding by 15%, which may be attributed to alternative export channels, mainly through maritime routes, a move which was highly supported and facilitated by Lebanese authorities.

More on the sectoral front, the real estate sector emerged for yet another consecutive year as the largest contributor to Lebanon’s GDP, accounting for 15% of year 2017 GDP, followed by the education, health & other services sector (14%), the commercial trade & motor vehicle repairs sector (13%), and the mining, manufacturing & utilities sector (11%), as depicted by the following chart: