Fuel prices fall, gas rises: household budgets caught between two bills
Fuel prices fell in the latest pricing round: the 95-octane petrol canister dropped to 2,802,000 lira from 2,825,000 lira and the diesel canister to 2,614,000 lira from 2,692,000 lira, while the household gas cylinder rose to 1,383,000 lira from 1,333,000 lira. In the currency market, the lira held at around 89,600-89,700 against the dollar on the parallel market, according to Bank Audi's weekly report, which also noted that Banque du Liban's gold and foreign currency reserves fell by about $2,256 million in the first nine months of 2026. On incomes, public administration employees await a decision on the transport allowance, while Prime Minister Nawaf Salam said a large part of the spending increase in the 2027 budget is allocated to correcting salaries. Services remain the most pressing file as the electricity crisis persists, with power plants covering only about a third of demand, according to Samir Geagea.
Prices and living costs
Fuel prices dropped in the latest pricing round: 95-octane petrol to 2,802,000 lira (from 2,825,000 lira), 98-octane to 2,820,000 lira (from 2,843,000 lira), and diesel to 2,614,000 lira (from 2,692,000 lira). By contrast, the 10-kg household gas cylinder rose to 1,383,000 lira from 1,333,000 lira, meaning cooking and heating became more expensive while transport became cheaper. Media reports indicate the restaurant sector is under pressure from contraction and inflation and faces a wave of closures, while apple growers warn of an unsold harvest, rising costs and no buyers.
The lira, banks and deposits
The lira held at around 89,600-89,700 against the dollar on the parallel market, according to Bank Audi's weekly report, with the official rate steady at 89,500 lira and the euro at 100,293 lira compared with 100,308 lira previously. Banque du Liban's gold and foreign currency reserves fell by about $2,256 million in the first nine months of 2026, Eurobond prices declined along the yield curve, and the Beirut bourse dropped 2.6% after four weeks of gains. In a step related to deposits, Banque du Liban announced an independent "deposit recovery account" to which funds recovered through court rulings or settlements are transferred exclusively, earmarked for repaying deposits.
Salaries, wages and work
Public administration employees are awaiting a state decision on the transport allowance, with a demand to adopt ten litres per working day in line with actual fuel prices. The head of the public administration employees' association, Raed Hamadeh, said the finance minister told them the necessary directives had been received and that a real study is under way ahead of a decision in the very near future. Prime Minister Nawaf Salam said the Lebanese economy grew 4.2% last year but the war halted that path, with a projected 6.4% contraction this year, and that a large part of the spending increase in the 2027 budget is allocated to correcting salaries. At the Lebanese University, contract professors staged a sit-in demanding that their full-time status file be approved.
Services
Electricity remains the top daily burden: Lebanese Forces leader Samir Geagea said Lebanon lacks sufficient generation capacity and that power plants cover about a third of demand, while higher fuel oil prices reduced supply hours; he called for a dynamic tariff linked to production cost to lower generator bills for citizens. Separately, about 600 prisoners continued their food and medicine strike for a 28th day against the freezing of the general amnesty law, with critical cases rising to 72 and four inmates transferred from Roumieh prison to Al-Azouniyeh hospital after being confirmed with tuberculosis. On transport, Lebanon's first electric train was launched in the town of Barbara in Jbeil district under the "Barratrain" project on part of the old coastal railway, with a gradual start of three trips.
Public finances, the state and reforms
According to an Anadolu Agency report, the cost of the 2023 and 2026 wars exceeded $20 billion and may surpass $27 billion, with 97,000 housing units fully destroyed, GDP falling to $28 billion and inflation rising to 17% in 2026. On the reform track, a workshop between the Public Prosecution and the Internal Security Forces on parallel financial investigations and asset tracing began in Beirut as part of efforts to move Lebanon off the "grey list", while market participants await the resumption of IMF negotiations. On the external file, two articles examined Lebanon's signing to link the ports of Beirut and Tripoli to the India-Middle East-Europe Economic Corridor (IMEC), and the financing of Hezbollah, which Washington denied through State Department spokesman Tommy Pigott.
What to watch
- The state's decision on the transport allowance for public administration employees, and the fate of the demand for ten litres per working day.
- The resumption of IMF negotiations and its potential impact on salaries and deposits.
- The impact of the US-Russian agreement to supply more than 300,000 tonnes of diesel immediately and 500,000 tonnes in November on local diesel pricing.
- Lebanon's path off the "grey list" and the electricity file, including the proposed tariff linked to production cost.