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1Week 30 July 16 - July 22, 2012
JULY 16 - JULY 22, 2012
WEEK 30
Bank Audi sal - Audi Saradar Group - Group Research Department - Bank Audi Plaza - Bab Idriss - PO Box 11-2560 - Lebanon - Tel: 961 1 994 000 - email: [email protected]
CONTACTS
RESEARCH
Treasury & Capital Markets
Micky Chebli(961-1) [email protected]
Nadine Akkawi(961-1) [email protected]
Emile Shalala(961-1) [email protected]
Private Banking
Toufic Aouad(961-1) [email protected]
Corporate Banking
Khalil Debs(961-1) [email protected]
Marwan Barakat(961-1) [email protected]
Jamil Naayem(961-1) [email protected]
Salma Saad Baba(961-1) [email protected]
Fadi Kanso(961-1) [email protected]
Nathalie Ghorayeb(961-1) [email protected]
Sarah Borgi(961-1) [email protected]
Nivine Turyaki(961-1) [email protected]
LEBANON MARKETS: WEEK OF JULY 16 - JULY 22, 2012
The LEBANON WEEKLY MONITOR
Economy___________________________________________________________________________p.2 AIRPORT ARRIVALS GROW AT A SLOWER MOMENTUM AND TOURISTS REPORT A DECLINE Figures released for the first half of 2012 on airport and touristic activity revealed a rising number of incoming passengers, albeit at a slightly slower pace than the previous months of the year, while tourists are still reporting an annual decline. Also in this issuep.3 Average coincident indicator rises by 3.1% over the first four months of 2012p.3 Activity at the Port of Beirut improves on a yearly basis p.4 Clearing activity up by a yearly 2.0% in the first half of 2012
Surveys___________________________________________________________________________p.5 EIGHT LEBANESE BANKS AMONGST THE BANKER’S TOP 1,000 BANKSIn its 2011 annual survey of the world’s top 1,000 commercial banks, the Banker Magazine included eight Lebanese banks with Bank Audi – Audi Saradar group ranking first locally in terms of Tier I capital, unchanged from 2010, followed by BLOM Bank, Byblos Bank, Fransabank and BLF.
Also in this issuep.6 HSBC sees Lebanon holding up fairly well despite instability in neighbouring countries
Corporate News___________________________________________________________________________p.7 BANK AUDI’S NET PROFITS AT US$ 230.1 MILLION IN THE FIRST HALF OF 2012Bank Audi sal – Audi Saradar Group announced consolidated net profits of US$ 230.1 million in the first half of 2012, against US$ 180.2 million in the first half of 2011.
Also in this issuep.7 Bank of Beirut’s net profits up by a yearly 6.9% to US$ 52.0 million in the first half of 2012p.8 CMA-CGM to bid for Abidjan's second port terminal p.8 Middle East Airlines cancels IPO plans
Markets In Brief___________________________________________________________________________p.9 DEMAND FOR EQUITIES AT THEIR LOW PRICE LEVELS Lebanese capital markets saw conversions in favor of the local currency on the FX market, a rise in prices on the equity market and a relative stability in spreads on the Eurobond market. In details, some depositors converted their FC holdings to LP holdings, which called for the Central Bank’s intervention for two days as a buyer of the US Dollar surpluses at LP 1,501, while the LP/US$ interbank rate hovered between LP 1,501 and LP 1,503. On the equity market, the price index rose by 0.9% on the back of demand for Solidere shares ahead of dividends’ distribution in addition to demand for some banking stocks. The total trading value was limited to US$ 4.5 million versus US$ 9.8 million since the beginning of the year 2012. At the level of the Eurobond market, the foreign offer witnessed at the beginning of the week was met by enough local demand. Yet, a calm and cautious mood started to sway over the market towards the end of the week on the backdrop of the regional political and security developments. The average spread remained stable at 371 bps, while Lebanon five-year CDS spread rose to 470-490 bps this week from 460-485 bps last week.
2Week 30 July 16 - July 22, 2012
JULY 16 - JULY 22, 2012
WEEK 30
ECONOMY_____________________________________________________________________________AIRPORT ARRIVALS GROW AT A SLOWER MOMENTUM AND TOURISTS REPORT A DECLINE
Figures released for the first half of 2012 on airport and touristic activity revealed a rising number of incoming passengers, albeit at a slightly slower pace than the previous months of the year, while tourists are still reporting an annual decline. As a matter of fact, the year-on-year growth of the number of arriving passengers, which peaked in the first quarter of this year at 21.4%, has been slowing since then to reach 11.9% in the first half of 2012. The number of tourists retreated by 7.8% annually in the first half of 2012.
In details, the latest statistics published by the Rafic Hariri International Airport showed that the number of arriving passengers reached 1,397 thousand in the first half of 2012, driven mainly by arrivals of Lebanese expatriates and to a somewhat lesser extent by those of Arabic origin which since mid-May 2012 have relatively scaled back their visits to Lebanon. However, incoming passengers are still managing to report an increase which has also had a positive impact on hotel occupancy and domestic consumption. The latest data showed that hotel occupancy in Beirut went up by 11% year-on-year in the first half of 2012 moving from 54% in the first six months of 2011 to 65% in the same period of this year. Likewise, the year-to-date average de-taxed purchases were up by 7% in the first half of 2012 from the same period of 2011.
Still, Lebanon’s tourism sector remains under the influence of developments from neighboring countries, thus creating spillover fears through several linkages, of which land traveling. The aggregate number of tourists declined by 7.8% year-on-year to reach 713,919 during the first six months of 2012. The number of incoming Arab visitors reported an annual rise of 7.0%, a much slower pace from the double digit-growth seen during previous periods of 2012. The breakdown of tourists by nationality shows that most visitors were from Iraq accounting for 8.3% of the total, followed by those from the US with 7.8% of the total, the French and Saudis each with 7.4% of the total, Jordanians with 6.8%, and Canadians with 5.2% of the total.
It is worth finally mentioning that preliminary tourism indicators for the month of July 2012 suggest lower arrivals of those from the Arab region, which usually account for the bulk of tourists, within the context of the start of the Holy month of Ramadan.
Sources: Rafic Hariri International Airport, Ministry of Tourism, Bank Audi's Group Research Department
TOURISM AND AIRPORT ACTIVITY (FIRST HALF OF THE YEAR)
3Week 30 July 16 - July 22, 2012
JULY 16 - JULY 22, 2012
WEEK 30
_____________________________________________________________________________AVERAGE COINCIDENT INDICATOR RISES BY 3.1% OVER THE FIRST FOUR MONTHS OF 2012
Figures released by the Central Bank of Lebanon indicate that the coincident indicator, a composite indicator of economic activity developed to monitor Lebanon’s macroeconomic performance, reached an average of 263.1 points during the first four months of 2012, up by 3.1% from a low base recorded in the same period of 2011. This increase compares to a slightly lower one of 0.7% witnessed in the first four months of 2011, period during which the country was in the midst of political bickering subsequent to the dissolution of the government.
The year-on-year increase in the average coincident indicator during the first four month of 2012, reflects a positive growth in the country, albeit from a low base. In fact, activity in the real sector is rising progressively subsequent to the impact it had seen from the ongoing effects of the Arab turmoil mainly of spillover fears from conflict stricken neighboring countries, which has somewhat affected sentiment be it for leisure or business purposes. While certain economic indicators incorporated within the coincident indicator such as tourism are still on a downward path, financial services, port and airport activity, as well as real estate demand took an upturn in the first four month of 2012, while other indicators such as consumer spending remained solid.
Sources: Central Bank of Lebanon, Bank Audi's Group Research Department
AVERAGE COINCIDENT INDICATOR (FIRST FOUR MONTHS OF THE YEAR)
_____________________________________________________________________________ACTIVITY AT THE PORT OF BEIRUT IMPROVES ON A YEARLY BASIS
Maritime transport services, which mirror the performance of the trade sector, witnessed an improvement during the first six months of 2012 relative to the same period of last year, as reflected by the main indicators of the Port of Beirut which handles the bulk of the country’s import and export activity.
First, the goods at the Port, which include the tonnage of loaded and unloaded merchandise reached 3,486 thousand tons in the first six months of 2012, up by 7.4% from the first six months of 2011, period during which the indicator had recorded a yearly decline of 1.3%. The number of containers at the Port went up by 5.5% year-on-year to reach a total of 305,531 containers during the aforementioned period of 2012. This follows a yearly decline of 3.1% witnessed in the first six months of 2011. The mentioned number of containers encompasses all incoming and outgoing containers at the Port but not transshipments. As a matter of fact, the latter totaled 209,237 containers, down by 1.1% year-on-year from the first six months of 2011. As to the number of ships that used the Port of Beirut during the first six months of this year, it amounted to a total of 1,012 vessels, down by 6.9% on a yearly basis. Last year, transshipments recorded an increase of 22.0% annually while the number of ships using the Port had dropped by 7.6%.
4Week 30 July 16 - July 22, 2012
JULY 16 - JULY 22, 2012
WEEK 30
As to the Port of Beirut's revenues, they totaled US$ 85.1 million in the first half of 2012, up by 7.4% year-on-year. During last year's same period, they had reported a decline of 1.7% on an annual basis.
Sources: Port of Beirut, Bank Audi's Group Research Department
Sources: Association of Banks in Lebanon, Bank Audi's Group Research Department
GOODS AT THE PORT OF BEIRUT (FIRST HALF OF THE YEAR, THOUSAND TONS)
CLEARING ACTIVITY (FIRST HALF OF THE YEAR, US$ MILLION)
_____________________________________________________________________________CLEARING ACTIVITY UP BY A YEARLY 2.0% IN THE FIRST HALF OF 2012
The value of cleared checks in the banking system, a coincident indicator of overall consumption and investment patterns in the economy, pointed to an increase in spending levels during the first six months of 2012. In fact, the value of total cleared checks rose by a yearly 2.0% during the aforementioned period of this year, compared to a slight increase of 0.2% in the first half of 2011.
In details, the total value of cleared checks amounted to US$ 34.8 billion during the first six months of 2012, rising from a total of US$ 34.1 billion posted in the same period of 2011. A breakdown by currency shows that banks’ clearings in Lebanese Pounds amounted to LP 10,888 billion while those in US dollars amounted to US$ 27,571 million.
The dollarization of cleared checks reported a slight increase from 79.1% in the first six months of 2011 to 79.2% in the first six months of this year.
5Week 30 July 16 - July 22, 2012
JULY 16 - JULY 22, 2012
WEEK 30
SURVEYS_____________________________________________________________________________EIGHT LEBANESE BANKS AMONGST THE BANKER’S TOP 1,000 BANKS
In its 2011 annual survey of the world’s top 1,000 commercial banks, the Banker Magazine included eight Lebanese banks with Bank Audi – Audi Saradar group ranking first locally in terms of Tier I capital, unchanged from 2010, followed by BLOM Bank, Byblos Bank, Fransabank and Banque Libano-Française. It is worth noting that the Lebanese Canadian Bank is no longer included in the list as it merged with Société Générale de Banques au Liban in September 2011.
Bank Audi came in the 388th place worldwide and 32nd in the MENA region. It was followed by BLOM (411th position globally and 34th regionally), Byblos (470th globally and 43rd regionally), Fransabank (616th and 55th regionally) and Banque Libano-Française (674th and 58th regionally).
Fransabank posted the biggest increase in Tier I capital among Lebanese banks with a 9.9% jump year-on-year, followed by Banque Libalo-Française with an 8.6% increase, then Byblos Bank with 5.5%, Credit Libanais with 5.3%, BankMed with 4.2% and Bank Audi with 1.5%. As to Bank of Beirut and Blom Bank, they reported declines of 19.6% and 6.3% respectively. Overall, the Lebanese banks included in the rankings reported a tier-one capital of US$ 8,359 million, down by 3.6% from 2010.
In terms of the number of banks that made the Banker’s Top 1,000 list, eight Lebanese banks made it to the rankings, equal to the number recorded by Egypt. The UAE had 19 banks, KSA 11 banks, Bahrain ten banks, Kuwait ten banks and Qatar nine banks. Directly after Lebanon and Egypt were Morocco and Oman with six banks each, Jordan with four banks and Iraq with one bank.
Total assets of the eight Lebanese banks were at US$ 121,530 million, up by a yearly 2.2%, from a total of US$ 118,897 million recorded at end-2010. When it comes to the ranking of MENA countries that made the Banker’s top 1,000 list by total assets, Lebanon came in sixth as it was outperformed by Saudi Arabia (US$ 387,557 million), the UAE (US$ 383,505 million), Kuwait (US$ 176,515 million), Qatar (US$ 174,933 million), and Egypt (US$ 131,403 million). Lebanon exceeded Morocco (US$ 115,150 million), Bahrain (US$ 110,502 million), Jordan (US$ 62,270 million), Oman (US$ 39,012 million) and Iraq (US$ 17,801 million).
Finally, in terms of pre-tax profits, profits of the nine Lebanese banks summed up to US$ 1,703 million in 2011, down by a yearly 1.5% from US$ 1,729 million in 2010.
TOP LEBANESE BANKS IN TERMS OF TIER 1 CAPITAL AT END-2011 (US$ MILLION)
Sources: The Banker, Bank Audi's Group Research Department
6Week 30 July 16 - July 22, 2012
JULY 16 - JULY 22, 2012
WEEK 30
_____________________________________________________________________________HSBC SEES LEBANON HOLDING UP FAIRLY WELL DESPITE INSTABILITY IN NEIGHBOURING COUNTRIES
HSBC issued its quarterly report on the Middle East in which it indicated that Lebanon is still managing to hold up fairly well despite some isolated incidents witnessed in the second quarter of the year and the deepening instability in neighbouring countries. Indeed, the country appears no less stable than it was prior to the Arab Spring, as per HSBC.
In some senses, Lebanon also continues to outperform its fellow MENA oil importers, according to the report. High commodity prices in the first quarter have certainly affected it: import spending was up by nearly 23% year-on-year over the first four months of 2012. However, exports also reported a double-digit growth, despite the troubled global demand climate, and bank claims on the resident private sector were up by more than 10% year-on-year at end-April 2012.
Government revenues were also up and, although much of this growth came from one-off payments into the ‘other revenues’ category, tax revenues were also up by a nearly 13% year-on-year in the first quarter of 2012.
Still, investor and consumer confidence remain somewhat subdued, and HSBC foresees a fairly sluggish growth of 2.4% this year. Tourism has been contracting year-on-year since March 2011. Unrest in neighbouring countries would still weigh on confidence in Lebanon.
LEBANON'S REAL GDP GROWTH
Sources: HSBC, Bank Audi's Group Research Department
7Week 30 July 16 - July 22, 2012
JULY 16 - JULY 22, 2012
WEEK 30
CORPORATE NEWS_____________________________________________________________________________BANK AUDI’S NET PROFITS AT US$ 230.1 MILLION IN THE FIRST HALF OF 2012
Bank Audi sal - Audi Saradar Group’s net earnings reached US$ 230.1 million in the first half of 2012, of which US$ 44.5 million stemming from the sale of an 81% stake in LIA insurance sal on June 27, 2012. As such, Bank Audi achieved a 27.7% growth in net earnings when compared to the first half of 2011 (+5.6% before the profit from the sale operation), after allocating provisions of US$ 67.9 million. Net interest income increased by 9.3%, from US$ 260.7 million in the first half of 2011 to US$ 285.1 million in the first half of 2012, while net commission earnings rose by 8.7% over the covered period, from US$ 87.4 million in the first half of 2011 to US$ 95.0 million in the first half of 2012.
Total operating income increased by a yearly 15.1% to reach US$ 538.8 million in the first half of 2012. Total operating expenses progressed by 7.2%, from US$ 215.4 million in the first half of 2011 to US$ 230.8 million in the first half of 2012, of which staff expenses amounting to US$ 124.8 million, up by 1.1% year-on-year, and other operating expenses totaling US$ 90.4 million, up by a yearly 17.4%.
Total assets reached US$ 28.8 billion and customer deposits amounted to US$ 24.7 billion at end-June 2012. Loans to customers reached US$ 9.1 billion at end-June 2012, against US$ 8.6 billion at year-end 2011. Shareholders’ equity amounted to US$ 2.6 billion at end-June 2012.
BANK AUDI'S FINANCIAL AGGREGATES
Source: Bank Audi sal- Audi Saradar Group
_____________________________________________________________________________BANK OF BEIRUT’S NET PROFITS UP BY A YEARLY 6.9% TO US$ 52.0 MILLION IN THE FIRST HALF OF 2012
Bank of Beirut’s consolidated net profits reached US$ 52.0 million in the first half of 2012, up by 6.9% from US$ 48.7 million in the first half of 2011.
Net interest income increased by 11.9%, from US$ 68.8 million in the first half of 2011 to US$ 76.9 million in the first half of 2012, while net commission earnings increased by 18.4%, from US$ 30.8 million in the first half of 2011 to US$ 36.5 million in the first half of 2012. Subsequently, total operating income amounted to US$ 136.1 million in the first half of 2012, up by 17.9% from US$ 115.5 million in the corresponding period of 2011.
8Week 30 July 16 - July 22, 2012
JULY 16 - JULY 22, 2012
WEEK 30
Total operating expenses progressed by 22.0%, from US$ 59.7 million in the first half of 2011 to US$ 72.8 million in the first half of 2012, of which staff expenses amounting to US$ 42.0 million, up by 27.3% year-on-year, and other operating expenses totaling US$ 26.8 million in the first half of 2012, up by a yearly 12.8%.
Total assets reached US$ 9.9 billion at end-June 2012, up by 1.6% from US$ 9.7 billion at end-2011. Loans to customers went up by 3.1% to attain US$ 3.4 billion at end-June 2012, from US$ 3.3 billion at end-2011. Customer deposits amounted to US$ 7.6 billion at end-June 2012, up by 1.2% from US$ 7.5 billion at end-2011. Shareholders’ equity amounted to US$ 1,046.5 million at end-June 2012, against US$ 1,047.6 million at end-2011.
BANK OF BEIRUT'S FINANCIAL AGGREGATES
Sources: Bank of Beirut, Bank Audi's Group Research Department_____________________________________________________________________________CMA-CGM TO BID FOR ABIDJAN'S SECOND PORT TERMINAL
CMA-CGM announced plans to bid and invest between € 200 million and € 250 million to develop and manage a second container terminal at the Abidjan port. Ivory Coast plans to triple the capacity of its main port at the commercial hub of Abidjan to 2.3 million units by 2016. The current 800,000 units terminal at Abidjan is managed by France's Bollore Group.
CMA-CGM aims to be a market leader in Africa, and will continue to look at other parts of West Africa for growth, although the continent's fast development is attracting all shipping companies, as per CMA-CGM._____________________________________________________________________________MIDDLE EAST AIRLINES CANCELS IPO PLANS
Middle East Airlines has scrapped plans for a partial initial public offering because of unfavourable market conditions and is no longer looking at buying a stake in Cyprus Airways Ltd., as per announcements from Lebanon’s Central Bank officials.
MEA had considered listing 25% of its shares on the Beirut Stock Exchange about two years ago, however domestic political turmoil last year and the regional popular uprising, coupled with the debt crisis in Europe have deterred those plans.
In parallel, MEA said it is no longer looking at buying a stake in Cyprus Airways. The government of the Mediterranean island, which owns 70% of the carrier, had stated that it would consider offers for a stake in the airline.
9Week 30 July 16 - July 22, 2012
JULY 16 - JULY 22, 2012
WEEK 30
CAPITAL MARKETS_____________________________________________________________________________MONEY MARKET: NO CHANGE IN OVERNIGHT RATE WEEK-ON-WEEK
The overnight rate remained stable at its low official level of 2.75% set by the Central Bank of Lebanon, within the context of abundant local currency liquidity at hand. As to Certificates of Deposits, no subscriptions were made during this week. Accordingly, total subscriptions since the beginning of the year 2012 stood at LP 572 billion. Interest rates on the 45-day and 60-day CDs categories remained stable at 3.57% and 3.85% respectively.
At the monetary aggregates level, figures for the week ending 5th of July 2012 released this week showed a rise in local currency deposits of LP 36 billion, as a result of an increase of 68 billion in LP time deposits and a decline of LP 32 billion in LP demand deposits week-on-week. Deposits in foreign currencies decreased by US$ 33 million. These weekly variations compare to an average weekly increase of LP 143 billion in LP deposits, and an average weekly rise of US$ 44 million in foreign currency deposits since the beginning of the year 2012. Total money supply in its large sense (M4) expanded by LP 251 billion week-on-week. This compared to an average weekly growth of LP 211 billion since the beginning of the year.
On a cumulative basis, money supply in its large sense (M4) expanded by LP 7,192 billion since the beginning of the year 2012. This is the result of a rise in local currency denominated time deposits of LP 5,299 billion, an increase in foreign currency deposits of LP 1,731 billion (the equivalent of US$ 1,149 million), a contraction in money supply (M1) of LP 127 billion, and a growth in Treasury bills held by the public of LP 289 billion.
_____________________________________________________________________________TREASURY BILLS MARKET: STABILITY IN INTEREST RATES
The latest auction’s results (July 19, 2012) showed stability in the average yields on the three-month, six-month and five-year categories at 4.44%, 4.99% and 6.74% respectively.
On the other hand, the auction results for value date 12th of July, 2012 released by the Central Bank of Lebanon showed that total subscriptions amounted to LP 675 billion and were distributed as follows: LP 110 billion in the one-year category, LP 138 billion in the two-year category, and LP 427 billion in the three-year category. These compare to maturities of LP 738 billion, resulting in a nominal deficit of LP 63 billion.
INTEREST RATES
Source: Bloomberg
10Week 30 July 16 - July 22, 2012
JULY 16 - JULY 22, 2012
WEEK 30
TREASURY BILLS
Sources: Central Bank of Lebanon, Bloomberg
_____________________________________________________________________________STOCK MARKET: PRICE INDEX UP BY 0.9%
The BSE price index rose by 0.9% week-on-week to close at 108.90, supported by demand for Solidere shares and some banking shares. The total trading value amounted to US$ 4.5 million this week, versus US$ 46.9 million in the previous week and an average weekly trading value of US$ 9.8 million since the beginning of the year 2012. The average daily trading value was quoted at US$ 895 thousand versus US$ 9.4 million last week, which resulted into a drop in the trading volume index from 388.43 last week to 37.14, down by 90.4%.
_____________________________________________________________________________FOREIGN EXCHANGE MARKET: FC-TO-LP CONVERSIONS
Some depositors converted their FC holdings into LP holdings during this week, which called for the Central Bank’s intervention on Thursday and Friday as a buyer of the US Dollar surpluses at the lower end of its intervention bracket (LP 1,501). In parallel, commercial banks traded the green currency at a rate hovering between LP 1,501 and LP 1,503.
The Central Bank of Lebanon’s latest bi-monthly balance sheet ending 15th of July 2012 showed that foreign assets declined by US$ 165 million during the first half of July to stand at US$ 35.05 billion at mid-July. The BDL’s foreign assets covered 86.0% of LP money supply, with this coverage ratio rising to 121.7% when accounting for gold reserves estimated at US$ 14.6 billion. In addition, the Central Bank’s foreign assets covered 19.5 months of imports. These ratios reflect the BDL’s strong ability to defend the currency peg and meet demand for foreign currencies.
EXCHANGE RATES
Source: Bank Audi’s Group Research Department
11Week 30 July 16 - July 22, 2012
JULY 16 - JULY 22, 2012
WEEK 30
EUROBONDS INDICATORS
Source: Bank Audi’s Group Research Department
The banking shares captured the lion’s share of activity, accounting for 70.6% of the total trading value. Bank Audi’s “listed” share price retreated by 0.2% to US$ 5.69. Bank Audi’s GDR price increased by 0.6% to US$ 6.24. BLOM’s GDR price increased by 1.9% to US$ 7.85. Bank of Beirut’s “listed” share price remained unchanged at US$ 19.00. Byblos Bank’s “listed” share price rose by 2.0% to US$ 1.53. Solidere shares accounted for 29.0% of the total trading value. Solidere “A” share price surged by 4.0% to US$ 13.90, and Solidere “B” share price went up by 4.7% to US$ 13.94. As to industrial stocks, Holcim’s share price fell by 8.7% to US$ 15.52.
All in all, the Beirut Stock Exchange’s performance was similar to that of other emerging markets, as reflected by a 0.9% rise in the S&P Emerging Market Composite Index. Yet, it performed better than other Arabian markets, as reflected by a 0.2% decrease in the S&P Pan-Arab Composite Index.
AUDI INDICES FOR BSE
Sources: Beirut Stock Exchange, Bank Audi’s Group Research Department
_____________________________________________________________________________BOND MARKET: RELATIVE STABILITY IN SPREADS WEEK-ON-WEEK
The Eurobond market saw a foreign offer at the beginning of the week that was met by a local demand. Yet, a calm and cautious mood started to sway over the market towards the end of the week on the backdrop of the latest regional political and security developments.
The average yield contracted slightly by four basis points to 4.62%, while the average spread remained relatively stable at 371 basis points due to a decline in Lebanese and international benchmark yields. For instance, the five-year US Treasury yield decreased from 0.63% last week to 0.59% this week on concern a US$ 122 billion bank rescue plan for Spain approved by European Finance Ministers may not be enough to halt the sovereign debt crisis. As to the cost of insuring debt, Lebanon’s five-year CDS spread ranged between 470 and 490 basis points this week as compared to 460-485 basis points last week.
12Week 30 July 16 - July 22, 2012
JULY 16 - JULY 22, 2012
WEEK 30
INTERNATIONAL MARKET INDICATORS
Sources: Bloomberg, Bank Audi's Group Research Department
___________________________________________________________________________DISCLAIMER
The content of this publication is provided as general information only and should not be taken as an advice to invest or engage in any form of financial or commercial activity. Any action that you may take as a result of information in this publication remains your sole responsibility. None of the materials herein constitute offers or solicitations to purchase or sell securities, your investment decisions should not be made based upon the information herein.
Although Bank Audi Sal Audi Saradar Group considers the content of this publication reliable, it shall have no liability for its content and makes no warranty, representation or guarantee as to its accuracy or completeness.
