Lebanon's rate of inflation is forecast to rise to seven per cent by the end of the year because of Israel's summer offensive, Lebanon's central bank governor has said.
"It was caused by a general rise [in consumer prices] caused by the [Israeli] blockade and the dangers of moving from one place to another," Riad Salameh said.
"We cannot consider that there are structural changes in [consumer] prices in Lebanon because of the rise that occurred during the war."
Kamal Hamdan, an economist, said: "The monetary policy that succeeded in past years to stabilise prices is still effective."
Hamdan also said: "The forecast figure is accurate and it is a worrying figure, when we bear in mind that inflation was at less than 0.5 per cent in 2005 and at less than two per cent in 2004."
The Israeli military onslaught on Lebanon and its eight-week blockade during the summer increased Lebanon's public debt to $41bn, according to official figures.
Immediate material damage to infrastructure alone was estimated at about $3.5bn, according to official figures.