S&P Global Ratings affirmed Lebanon's long- and short-term foreign and local currency sovereign credit ratings at 'B-/B', and revised the outlook on the long-term ratings from 'stable' to 'negative'. It attributed the affirmation of the ratings to its expectation that deposit inflows to the banking system will increase given the formation of the government. Also, it anticipated that financial support from Qatar and potentially from Saudi Arabia, along with Banque du Liban's (BdL) servicing of the government's foreign currency debt, will remain sufficient to support the government's borrowing requirements and fund the country's external deficit over the next 12 months. It noted that the government's implementation of some of the crucial reforms that it included in the Ministerial Statement could strengthen depositor confidence. In addition, it pointed out that BdL plays a significant role in directing macroeconomic and financial policy, and assists in financing the fiscal deficit. It estimated that BdL's usable foreign currency reserves remain at a comfortable level and cover nine months of current account payments at the end of 2018. It said that the ratings also take into account Lebanon's wide fiscal and external deficits, high public debt levels, sectarian divisions and elevated regional security risks. 

S&P indicated that the outlook revision reflects the risk that a lack of material reforms to reduce the fiscal deficit may lead to a deterioration in investor confidence, which could weigh on non-resident deposit flows and foreign currency reserves, and constrain Lebanon's ability to service its foreign currency debt. It pointed out that the new government has shown willingness to act and to address the prevailing challenges, such as through the quick drafting of the Ministerial Statement that included several structural reform measures. It expected the government to finalize the 2019 budget in the coming two months, and to include some of the reforms that authorities submitted at the CEDRE conference. It pointed out that the timely implementation of fiscal and economic reforms could help avoid the deterioration in public finances and investor confidence. However, it considered that the implementation of reforms remains uncertain. Also, it considered that the international community could require more substantial fiscal consolidation than just reducing the fiscal deficit by 1% of GDP annually over the next five years, following the significant widening of the deficit in 2018. In this context, it expected the disbursement of the $11bn that the international community pledged at the CEDRE conference to be gradual and lower than the initially pledged amount, given that the funding is contingent on the implementation of reforms, including the reduction of public finance imbalances. Also, it expected economic activity to gradually improve in the coming years, supported by the government's Capital Investment Program and by the easing of tensions in Syria.

The International Republican Institute, in collaboration with the Lebanese Center for Policy Studies, issued its Lebanon Public Opinion Survey 2018, which examines the main economic, political, and security concerns of Lebanese citizens. The Institute indicated that the majority of Lebanese citizens are pessimistic about the direction of the country and recognize that governance is deteriorating on different levels. In fact, 95% of surveyed Lebanese considered that the country is heading in the wrong direction, but this degree of pessimism varies across income groups, as 22% of upper-income respondents were optimistic relative to 5% of low-income participants. Also, more than 50% of Lebanese citizens considered that the situation in Lebanon has worsened since the May 2018 parliamentary elections. Also, 77% of respondents reported challenging economic conditions, 56% cited a deterioration in their personal finances, 53% indicated that the country's reputation is worsening abroad, 53% said that the overall quality of living is deteriorating, and 39% reported security conditions to be worsening in Lebanon. In contrast, only 8% of participants saw an improvement in the country's situation, while 40% did not see any change in the status quo.

In parallel, the survey revealed that participants identified 34 different issues as the top problems facing Lebanon today. As such, corruption was the most widespread issue for 16% of respondents, followed by electricity for 15% of participants, employment and the cost of living for 10% of participants each, water for 6% of respondents, and poverty for 5% of participants. More generally, the survey indicated that 36% of respondents identified economic conditions as their primary concern, while 33% of participants noted that the country's infrastructure was their priority issue. Also, 8% of respondents said that social problems were their primary concern, while issues related to security and political conflict were highlighted by 7% of participants. 

The International Republican Institute is a non-profit, non-partisan organization committed to advancing freedom and democracy around the world. The survey was conducted in October 2018 on a sample of 1,200 respondents, distributed equally between genders, and who are representative of the confessional and geographical distribution of Lebanese citizens.

The World Justice Project's Rule of Law Index for 2019 ranked Lebanon in 89th place among 126 countries around the world and in sixth place among eight countries in the Middle East & North Africa (MENA) region. Lebanon also came in 32nd place among 38 upper middle-income countries (UMICs) included in the survey. Based on the same set of countries, Lebanon's global rank improved by three spots from the 2017-18 survey, while its rank among MENA countries improved by one spot year-on-year.

The index measures the implementation of the rule of law by aggregating 44 sub-factors into eight factors that are Constraints on Government Powers, Absence of Corruption, Open Government, Fundamental Rights, Order & Security, Regulatory Enforcement, Civil Justice and Criminal Justice. The scores and rankings of each factor and sub-factor are based on the results of an opinion poll of the general public and of a survey of legal professionals in each country. The scores range from zero to one point, with a score of one point reflecting the strongest adherence to the rule of law. The general population poll covers only the three major urban areas in each country. The Lebanon survey covered 1,000 participants in Beirut, Sidon and Tripoli.

Globally, the implementation of the rule of law in Lebanon is better than in the Philippines, Tanzania and Zambia, and is weaker than in El Salvador, Ecuador and Russia among economies with a GDP of $10bn or more. Also, the rule of law in Lebanon is more effective than only in Iran and Egypt in the MENA region. Lebanon received a score of 0.47 points in the 2019 survey, unchanged from the 2017-18 survey. Lebanon's score was lower than the global average score of 0.56 points, the UMICs' score of 0.53 points and the MENA region's average score of 0.5 points.