by Dana Halawi

BEIRUT, Dec. 29 (Xinhua) -- Kassem Haidar, owner of a lingerie shop in Hamra, one of the most popular shopping streets in Lebanon's capital Beirut, was waiting for people to enter his shop, browse his collection and select a few items as gifts for the holidays of Christmas and New Year.

But Haidar's wish is far from coming true as the economic crisis in Lebanon has led to a tremendous negative impact.

The continuous erosion of the country's foreign currency reserve has weakened the Lebanese pound significantly, crippling people's purchasing power.

"This is the worst year ever as we haven't seen any customers during this festive season. But we cannot blame people since most of them can barely afford to secure their basic needs," Haidar told Xinhua.

The ongoing economic crisis, in addition to the COVID-19 pandemic, has driven thousands of companies out of business and more people out of their jobs.

Fouad Rizk, owner of a shoe shop in Hamra, said that tens of shops have closed in the area due to the economic crisis and more shops are expected to close in 2021.

Many shops can be seen closed now in Hamra. Those who are lucky enough to keep their stores open do not have much business to do. Instead, they just stand outside their stores talking to neighbors to kill time.

Rizk said one important reason for the sluggish festival season is that people are unable to withdraw their deposits from banks.

Lebanese banks imposed since the last quarter of last year some unofficial restrictions on withdrawals from banks accounts due to a shortage in foreign currencies, especially the U.S. dollar.

Mohammad Rayyes, owner of a clothes shop in Hamra, told Xinhua that banks' restrictions prompted people to focus their spending more on basic needs.

"So, some shops' owners can no longer cover their expenses," he said.

Adnan Rammal, representative of the trade sector in the Economic and Social Council, told Xinhua that the trade sector in Lebanon has been facing its worst days ever and with at least 40 percent of shops closed all over the country, causing the lay-off of around 120,000 people in this sector.

Clothes, shoes, furniture, household appliances, cars, and mobiles were among mostly affected businesses, said Rammal.

For around 30 years, the fixed exchange rate of the Lebanese pound to the U.S. dollar helped Lebanon maintain average annual inflation at about 3 percent. But since the start of 2020, Lebanon's currency depreciated sharply and made imports much more expensive.

Furniture and household equipment registered the highest price surge at 695 percent in October while the cost of food and non-alcoholic beverages rose by 441 percent from last year, according to the official consumer price index.

Clothing and footwear were nearly 468 percent more expensive, while prices at restaurants and hotels rose by almost 589 percent. Enditem

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