The 2018 Global Innovation Index ranked Lebanon in 90th place among 126 countries around the world and in 10th place among 13 Arab countries. Lebanon also came in 30th place among 34 upper middle-income countries (UMICs) included in the survey. In comparison, Lebanon ranked in 81st place among 127 countries worldwide and in ninth place in the Arab world in the 2017 survey.

The index measures innovation in a broad sense and includes scientific, social and business innovation. It is a composite of 80 variables that are grouped in two sub-indices, the Innovation Input Sub-Index and the Innovation Output Sub-Index. The Global Innovation Index score is the simple average of the Input and Output Sub-Index scores. The survey rates the innovation level of each country on a scale from zero to 100, with a score of 100 reflecting the most innovative economy. The index is co-published by the INSEAD Business School, Cornell University and the World Intellectual Property Organization.

Globally, Lebanon has a higher innovation level than Botswana, Tanzania and Namibia, and is less innovative than the Dominican Republic, Sri Lanka and Paraguay. Also, it is more innovative than only Botswana, Namibia, Ecuador and Algeria among UMICs. Lebanon received a score of 28.2 points, which is below the global average of 36.7 points, the UMIC's average of 33.6 points and the Arab average of 30.9 points. Also, its score came below the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries' average of 35.4 points, but it was above the average of non-GCC Arab countries of 27 points. Switzerland has the highest innovation level worldwide, while Yemen is the least innovative country globally.

In its quarterly survey of the country risk level in 186 countries, the Euromoney Group ranked Lebanon in 101st place worldwide and in 11th place among 19 Arab countries in the second quarter of 2018. Also, Lebanon came in 29th place among 53 upper middle-income countries (UMICs) included in the survey. Lebanon's global rank regressed by four spots from the first quarter of 2018, while it regressed by one spot quarter-on-quarter regionally. The survey evaluates individual country risk by assigning a weighting to six categories that cover Political Risks, Economic Performance, Access to Bank Finance & Capital Markets, Debt Indicators, Credit Ratings, and Structural Assessment. A higher score reflects a lower country risk level. 

Globally, Lebanon had a lower country risk level than Kenya, Tanzania and Ethiopia, and a higher risk level than Gabon, the Dominican Republic and Egypt among economies with a GDP of $10bn or more. It also ranked ahead of Ecuador and Algeria, and came behind Gabon and the Dominican Republic among UMICs. Lebanon's global rank regressed by two spots on the Credit Ratings category in the second quarter of 2018 from the preceding quarter, and by one notch on each of the Political Risks and Structural Assessment categories, while it was unchanged on each of the Economic Performance, Debt Indicators and the Access to Bank Finance & Capital Markets factors. 

Lebanon received a score of 37.6 points in the second quarter of 2018, nearly unchanged from 37.8 points in the preceding quarter. Lebanon's score came below the global average score of 43.2 points and the average score of 38.9 points for UMICs and of 39.2 for Arab countries. Also, its score was lower than the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries' average score of 58.8 points, but it came above the average score of non-GCC Arab countries of 30.1 points.

Figures released by the Association of Automobile Importers in Lebanon show that dealers sold 17,208 new passenger cars in the first half of 2018, constituting a decrease of 5.4% from 18,198 cars sold in the same period of 2017. Individuals and institutional clients purchased 2,489 new cars in January, 2,256 new vehicles in February, 2,900 automobiles in March, 2,539 new cars in April, 2,862 vehicles in May and 4,162 new automobiles in June 2018.

Japanese cars accounted for 40% of total car sales in the first half of 2018, followed by Korean vehicles with a 30% share, European automobiles (19.7%), American cars (7.8%) and Chinese vehicles (2.7%). The sales of new Chinese cars jumped by 2.5 times in the covered period and demand for Japanese automobiles grew by 5.2% year-on-year. In contrast, demand for Korean vehicles regressed by 17.7%, the sales of European automobiles decreased by 11.3% and the number of American cars sold declined by 5.3% year-on-year in the covered period.

Kia is the leading brand in the Lebanese market with 2,813 passenger vehicles sold in the first half of 2018, followed by Hyundai with 2,322 new cars sold, Toyota (2,287), Nissan (1,864) and Renault (789). In parallel, car dealers sold 1,065 new commercial vehicles in the covered period, down by 26.6% from 1,450 commercial vehicles purchased in the first half of 2017. Overall, car dealers sold 18,273 new passenger cars and commercial vehicles in the first half of 2018, down by 7% from 19,648 cars sold in the same period of 2017.