According to BDL statistics, interest rates fell significantly during the month of December in the light of BDL circular no. 536 that places caps on interest rates paid on USD deposits at 5% and LBP deposits at 8.5% noting that interest payments on USD deposits will be split equally between LBP and USD . In figures, the weighted average interest rate on Lebanese Pound denominated deposits dropped to 7.36% during the month of December 2019, from 9.40% in the previous month and 8.30% a year earlier. In the same vein, the weighted average interest rate on U.S. Dollar denominated deposits dropped to 4.62% in December 2019, down from 6.31% in November and 5.15% in December 2018. Commercial banks’ discount and lending rate on LBP denominated loans came in lower at 9.09% in December of the year 2019, with that on USD denominated loans increasing to 10.84%. Consequently, the average monthly spread between LBP lending and deposit rates stood at 180 basis points in December 2019, while that between USD lending and deposit rates reached 389 bps.