No final decisions yet on Budget
Lebanon, Economics, 10/3/1997

No final decisions concerning the 1998 budget were taken yesterday during the cabinet's meeting in Baabda. Indeed, the session, which is the second this week, centered around the measures that the government should take to improve tax collection and initiate administrative reforms. The revenues issue, including the increase in fuel prices, was not discussed and no definite numbers were announced.

Al-Safir newspaper reported, however, that according to its sources, the draft of the budget's project included LL 7 trillion for expenditures in 1998 against LL 4,66 trillion in revenue, LL 4,56 trillion to serve the national debt and LL 3,558 on salaries. The treasury deficit was reduced, after several rounds of discussion, to 37%.

The meeting, which lasted three hours and was presided over by president Elias Hrawi, started when Minister of State for Finance Fouad Seniora, handed the ministers a general summary of the 1998 budget plan and a table of each ministry's budget. The cabinet's session was preceded by prime minister Rafik Hariri's two visits to president Hrawi in Baabda. Seniora participated in the morning's meeting of the two leaders. The cabinet will hold another meeting tomorrow in Baabda.

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