Bank of America Merrill Lynch estimated credit to the resident private sector in Lebanon to be equivalent to 104.2% of GDP at the end of June 2018, which is higher than the ratio of 102.2% in Asia, and significantly higher than the Emerging Europe, the Middle East & Africa region's (EEMEA) ratio of 43.7% of GDP and Latin America's ratio of 41.5% of GDP. Lebanon has the fifth highest credit-to-GDP ratio among 66 emerging markets with available figures, the highest such ratio among 52 economies in the EEMEA region and among 12 Arab countries included in the survey.

In addition, it estimated the non-performing loans (NPLs) ratio in the Lebanese banking sector at 5.4%, lower than the EEMEA's NPLs ratio of 7.8%, and compared to NPLs ratios of 2.8% for Latin America and of 1.7% for Asia. The Lebanese banking sector, along with the Armenian banking system, has the 25th lowest NPLs ratio among 47 banking sectors, the 13th lowest such ratio among 34 economies in the EEMEA region and the second lowest among three Arab countries with available figures.

In parallel, it noted that foreign claims reported to the Bank for International Settlements (BIS) against Lebanese banks are equivalent to 4.3% of Lebanon’s GDP, compared to a ratio of 3.4% of GDP for Asia, of 1.8% of GDP in Latin America and of 0.9% of GDP for the EEMEA region. The Lebanese banking sector has the 10th highest ratio of foreign claims of BIS-reporting banks among 68 banking sectors, the seventh highest ratio among 53 economies in the EEMEA region and the fourth highest among 13 Arab countries.

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 third quarter of 2018. Also, Lebanon came in 29th place among 53 upper middle-income countries (UMICs) included in the survey. Lebanon's global and regional ranks were unchanged from the second quarter of 2018. 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, Ecuador and Angola, and a higher risk level than Gabon, Egypt and the Dominican Republic among economies with a GDP of $10bn or more. It also ranked ahead of Ecuador and Jamaica, and came behind Gabon and the Dominican Republic among UMICs. Lebanon's global rank improved by one spot on the Structural Assessment category in the third quarter of 2018, while it was unchanged on the Credit Ratings, Political Risks,  Economic Performance, Debt Indicators, and the Access to Bank Finance & Capital Markets categories. 

Lebanon received a score of 37.6 points in the third quarter of 2018, unchanged from the preceding quarter. Lebanon's score came below the global average score of 43.2 points and the average score of 38.8 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 Lebanese Franchise Association (LFA) show that the LFA's Retail Sales Indicator of consumer goods & services in Lebanon declined by 9.5% in the first half of 2018 from the second half of 2017, and increased by 0.9% from the first half of 2017. Also, the indicator regressed by 13.1% from 2012, which is the base year that the LFA uses to calculate its indicator.

The consumer goods covered by the indicator are fashion & clothing, cosmetics, household goods, sports & hobbies, luxury items, and food & beverages. The indicator for the food & beverages category grew by 27.8% in the first half of 2018 from the same period last year, and increased by 2.7% for household goods in the covered period. In contrast, the sales indicator for the sports & hobbies goods regressed by 11.7% year-on-year, followed by fashion & clothing (-10.7%), luxury items (-9.85%), and cosmetics (-4.6%). Further, the retail sales indicators for four out of six categories of consumer goods were lower than their base year level by margins from 35.7% to 57%.

In parallel, the consumer services segment consists of hospitality, tourism, and medical services. The retail sales indicator for medical services increased by 6.1% in the first half of 2018 from the same period last year, while it regressed by 5.2% for hospitality services and by 0.8% for tourism services during the covered period. Also, the retail sales indicator for hospitality services decreased by 12% from its 2012 base year level, while the indicator for tourism services regressed by 0.8%.