The Syndicate of Money Changers in Lebanon on Friday welcomed measures announced by the Presidency and the central bank to rein in the dramatic fluctuations in the dollar exchange rate on the black market.

In a statement, the Syndicate said the move to return the currency exchange operations to “legitimate money changers” and to act against “the ghosts of the black market” will contribute to “stabilizing the dollar exchange rate after the confusion that affected all commercial sectors and aggrieved citizens.”

The Central Bank of Lebanon announced on Friday that it will allow local banks to conduct currency transactions similar to money exchange shops and will step in to control the uncontrollable exchange rate of the dollar, the presidency announced.

Asian and European stocks fell on Friday as the euphoria from the US Federal Reserve's upbeat economic outlook was eclipsed by fears the recovery will fan inflation and interest rate hikes sooner than anticipated.

Shops closing, companies going bankrupt and pharmacies with shelves emptying — in Lebanon these days, fistfights erupt in supermarkets as shoppers scramble to get to subsidized powdered milk, rice and cooking oil.

Like almost every other Lebanese, Nisrine Taha's life has been turned upside down in the past year under the weight of the country's crushing economic crisis. Anxiety for the future is eating at her.

Lebanese private company Pharmaline will import one million doses of the Russian coronavirus vaccine Sputnik V, the owner of the company said.

Google will invest more than $7 billion in the United States this year and create thousands of jobs, the tech giant's CEO said Thursday.

Turkey's central bank on Thursday sharply hiked its main interest rate to 19 percent to counter rising inflation and the dropping value of the lira.

Lebanese protesters briefly attempted to storm the economy ministry on Wednesday to denounce exploding prices of basic goods as the local currency collapses.

Around 20 protesters had gathered outside the ministry's Beirut headquarters a day after the Lebanese pound hit a new-low of 15,000 to the greenback, according to an AFP correspondent.

U.S. ride-hailing giant Uber won praise Wednesday from Britain's government and trade unions after granting UK drivers worker status with associated rights including a minimum wage, sparking hopes that more technology platforms will follow suit worldwide.

Caretaker Finance Minister Ghazi Wazni has confirmed that Lebanon will scale back food subsidies and gradually raise gasoline prices to save dwindling foreign reserves..