In its assessment of the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on food-price inflation in the Middle East & North Africa (MENA) region, the World Bank indicated that prices in Lebanon have surged across all food categories between February 14 and May 28, 2020. The Bank assessed the change in food prices in 19 countries in the MENA region across five main food categories that are carbohydrates, dairy, fruits, meats and vegetables. 

The price of onions in Lebanon rose by 26% between February 14 and May 28, constituting the highest increase in the price of this item in the MENA region. Lebanon, along with Qatar and the UAE, were the only countries in the region that posted double-digit increases in the price of onions. In comparison, the price of onions posted an average growth of 6% in the region. Also, the price of potatoes in Lebanon surged by 23.5% in the covered period, representing the highest growth rate in the price of this vegetable regionally, and compared to an average increase of 3.5% regionally. Lebanon, along with Libya and Yemen, were the only countries in the region that posted increases of above 10% in the price of potatoes. 

In parallel, the price of rice in Lebanon grew by 18% between February 14 and May 28, the highest price increase of this product in the MENA region. Lebanon and Yemen were the only countries in the region that posted a rise of more than 10% in the price of rice. In comparison, the price of rice increased by an average of 4% in the region. Further, the prices of bananas and apples in Lebanon rose by 13.6% and 10.3%, respectively, during the February 14-May 28 period, the highest price surge of these fruits regionally, compared to average increases of 2% and 2.4%, respectively, in the MENA region. Lebanon and Yemen were the only countries that posted double-digit increases in the price of bananas, while Lebanon was the only country to register a rise of more than 10% in the price of apples.

In addition, the price of eggs in Lebanon surged by 16.1% and the price of lettuce rose by 14.6% since February 14, the second highest growth rate in the price of these food products regionally. Also, the price of bread grew by 14% and that of oranges grew by 9.4%, the third highest price surge in the region for such products. In addition, the price of fresh or frozen cattle meat rose by 12.7% in the covered period, the third highest price increase among MENA countries; while the price of cheese grew by 11.8%, the second highest price increase regionally. Further, the price of fresh or frozen chicken surged by 7.3% and the price of processed liquid milk rose by 1.8% since February 14, both representing the fifth highest price increases in the MENA region for such products.

In its quarterly survey of the country risk level in 174 countries, the Euromoney Group ranked Lebanon in 163rd place worldwide and in 17th place among 18 Arab countries in the first quarter of 2020. Also, Lebanon came in 50th place among 52 upper middle-income countries (UMICs) included in the survey. Lebanon's global rank deteriorated by 36 spots, the steepest decline globally, while its regional rank dropped by six notches from the fourth quarter of 2019. The survey evaluates individual country risk by assigning a weighting to five categories that cover Political Assessment, Economic Assessment, Structural Assessment, Access to International Capital Markets, and Debt Indicators. A higher score reflects a lower country risk level.

Globally, Lebanon had a lower country risk level than Cuba, Laos and Sudan, and a higher risk level than Guinea, Equatorial Guinea and Venezuela among economies with a GDP of $10bn or more. It also ranked ahead of Equatorial Guinea and Venezuela among UMICs. Lebanon's global rank dropped by 61 spots on the Access to International Capital Markets category, by 30 notches on the Economic Assessment indicator, by 26 spots on the Structural Assessment category and by 19 notches on the Political Assessment indicator, while it was unchanged quarter-on-quarter on the Debt Indicators category.

Lebanon received a score of 24.05 points in the first quarter of 2020, down from 35.23 points in the preceding quarter. Lebanon's score came well below the global average score of 47.53 points and the average score of 43.44 points for UMICs and of 41.5 for Arab countries. Also, its score was lower than the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries' average score of 60.39 points and the average score of non-GCC Arab countries of 32.05 points. Further, Lebanon's score declined by 47.6% on the Economic Assessment category, by 43.3% on the Access to International Capital Markets category, by 23.1% on the Political Assessment category, and by 11.5% on the Structural Assessment indicator, while it was unchanged on the Debt Indicators category from the fourth quarter of 2019.