The Ministry of Economy and Trade is responsible for economic matters and national stockpiling needs. These include the planning and coordination of, and implementation in, the fields of trade and the economy that encompass the following objectives:
Overall
- Monitoring developments and formulating national policies to enhance and facilitate trade, resolve stockpiling needs, protect the Lebanese consumer, whilst ensuring economic balance through planning, coordination and implementation.
- Joint cooperation with concerned ministries to promote economic opportunities and raise national prosperity.
- Organising and supervising the Lebanese economic sector in consultation with the sector’s senior leadership.
- Coordinating with the Chambers of Commerce and Industry and other commercial syndicates and associations, as mandated by law.
Competition
- Remaining vigilant of the situation of monopolies and further taking steps to promote commercial competition on a broad basis for the benefit of the economy as a whole and, for protecting the consumer in particular. This also includes screening price levels to identify fraudulent activity.
- Addressing weights, units and measurements issues, within the context of which taking measures to combat fraud, preparing monitoring reports focused on commercial announcements, as well as setting appropriate price ceilings and profit margins.
Foreign trade
- Planning for and implementing international trade agreements in partnership with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Emigrants.
- Undertaking economic studies, with a specific focus on foreign trade, balance of payments, from which statistics are derived and published.
- Monitoring and following up on issues related to the protection of trade, industrial, technical, artistic and literary ownership by implementing relevant international agreements and treaties.
- Issuing licenses for the import and export of goods through the Minister of Economy and Trade, based on the existing certification regime.
- Developing customs tariff solutions based on arising needs.
- Participating in domestic and international exhibitions, markets and commercial centres
Domestic consumption
- Facilitating the meeting of essential consumption needs, consistent with legal requirements.
- Following evolving stockpiling matters to ensure that domestic consumer needs for essential products are met, particularly during periods of scarcity, while working to create price stability in the context of a legal margin of profits, and making available relevant technical resources toward these ends.
- Monitoring issues concerning wheat and derivative products, as well as of goods related to and for those used in sugar production.