Minister of Economy and Trade, Amin Salam, met on Wednesday with the Executive Director of the International Monetary Fund, Dr. Mahmoud Mohieldin, and the accompanying delegation, and discussed with his guests the current status of negotiations with the International Monetary Fund, in addition to the required future procedures and steps that must be taken for Lebanon to enter the IMF program.

Minister Salam was asked about what was attributed to him on fixing the dollar exchange rate at LBP 12,000, to which he responded: "There has been a misunderstanding. Allow me to clarify. Work on lowering the dollar exchange rate to LBP 12,000 is a personal estimation based on data the government is studying with the International Monetary Fund, the World Bank, and all concerned parties to help us reactivate the economy, allowing the exchange rate to be reduced to LBP 10-12,000. In any case, the positive data and expectations regarding economic indicators over the next eight months and the necessary measures, foremost of which is the success of our negotiations with the IMF, are the only thing capable of assisting the government in lowering the exchange rate. Therefore, what I mentioned about the rate of LBP 12,000 is subject to an intensive workshop."