The Lebanese Central Bank’s balance sheet conveys some $48.87 million appreciation (0.34%) in BDL’s foreign assets portfolio during the second half of December 2023 to $14.53 billion (LBP 217.92 trillion), noting that this figure includes the face value of the ROL Eurobonds portfolio held by BDL amounting to circa $5.21 billion. The liquid foreign reserve assets of the Central Bank stood at $9.32 billion as at end of December 2023, up from $9.26 billion a fortnight earlier. Similarly, the value of gold reserves at BDL increased by 1.74% ($328.41 million) in the second half of December to $19.17 billion (LBP 287.48 trillion) as gold prices soared to record-high levels due to a weaker US Dollar and lower treasury yields on expectations that the US Federal Reserve will implement interest rate cuts in 2024.

On an annual basis, BDL’s foreign assets came in 4.32% ($0.66 billion) lower than the $15.18 billion reading reported as at end of December 2022. Conversely, the value of gold reserves settled 15.10% ($2.51 billion) higher when benchmarked to the $16.65 billion figure recorded in the same period in 2022.

In a related note, BDL’s balance sheet narrowed by 0.44% on a bi-weekly basis to LBP 1,607.62 trillion. According to BDL, all previous Central Council decisions related to Seigniorage were suspended and all deferred interest costs stemming from open-market operations will be presented under a new balance sheet item. More specifically, all deferred interest costs included in the “Other Assets” and “Assets from Exchange Operations” accounts amounting to LBP 118.97 trillion as at end of December 2023 were reclassified and booked under the newly added “Deferred Open-Market Operations” account. The bi-weekly drop in BDL’s total assets owes to the 96.29% (LBP 110.47 trillion) contraction in the value of other assets to LBP 4.26 trillion, coupled with the 0.62% decrease in the valuation adjustment account to LBP 647.30 trillion and the 1.38% drop in loans to the local financial sector to LBP 15.99 trillion, altogether outweighing the 1.74% rise in the value of gold reserves, the 0.34% increase in the value of foreign assets and the 1.75% rise in the value of the securities portfolio to LBP 65.98 trillion. 

The share of BDL’s foreign assets of the latter’s total balance sheet stood at 13.56% as at end of December 2023 while that of gold reserves, valuation adjustment, and loans to the public sector reached 17.88%, 40.26%, and 15.50% respectively.