Informed political sources have expressed concern that the Lebanese currency could witness a new freefall after the May 15 parliamentary elections.

“The central bank is still intervening to prevent a price deterioration and to keep (the dollar exchange rate) within LBP 25,000 to LBP 30,000, based on a request from some influential officials who want to keep the dollar under control, so that any surge does not affect the choices of voters” in the parliamentary elections, the sources told al-Joumhouria newspaper in remarks published Monday.

The World Bank approved a $150 million soft loan for food security in crisis-hit Lebanon to stabilize bread prices during the coming months, the economy minister said Monday.

Amin Salam told reporters that the loan has a very low interest rate but the minister did not make the rate public. He used the term soft loan indicating a below-market rate of interest.

World stocks followed Wall Street lower Friday as fears spread that U.S. interest rate hikes to fight inflation might stall economic growth.

London and Frankfurt opened lower. Shanghai, Hong Kong and Sydney declined. Tokyo gained as trading resumed after a holiday.

Elon Musk has strengthened the equity stake in his $44 billion offer to buy Twitter with commitments of more than $7 billion from a diverse group of investors including Silicon Valley heavy hitters like Oracle co-founder Larry Ellison.

A regulatory filing Thursday also said that Musk is in talks with others for additional funding, including former Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey, the social media platform's second-largest individual stakeholder after Musk.

In lush fields southwest of Paris, farmers are joining Europe's fight to free itself from Russian gas.

They'll soon turn on the tap of a new facility where crops and agricultural waste are mashed up and fermented to produce "biogas." It's among energy solutions being promoted on the continent that wants to choke off funding for Russia's war in Ukraine by no longer paying billions for Russian fossil fuels.

European diplomats were locked in difficult negotiations Friday to agree a new package of sanctions against Russia, with Hungary opposed to a ban on Russian oil imports.

Negotiators expect the talks to continue until Sunday, but remain hopeful of a compromise.

German national carrier Lufthansa said Thursday that ticket prices could rise as the cost of energy soars following the Russian invasion of Ukraine. 

Inflation in Turkey soared to nearly 70% in April, official data showed Thursday, as skyrocketing prices eat away at earnings and put even basic necessities out of reach for many households.

The Turkish Statistical Institute said consumer prices rose by 69.97% in April compared with the previous year, the biggest year-over-year increase since 2002. The annual inflation rate was up from 61.14% in March.

OPEC and allied oil-producing countries decided Thursday to stick to a modest increase in production, even as Europe's proposed phaseout of Russian oil threatens to yank millions of barrels off a global market already thirsty for crude.

At an online meeting, the alliance known as OPEC+ — which includes non-member Russia — stayed with its road map to gradually open the oil taps, agreeing to add 432,000 barrels per day in June. The plan is to make those regular increases to restore cuts made in 2020 during the worst of the pandemic recession.

President Nicolás Maduro and other high-ranking Venezuelan officials have met with the oil minister of Iran to discuss cooperation in energy matters and efforts to defeat economic sanctions imposed by the U.S. and its allies.

Officials from both oil-producing nations ratified agreements in this week's meetings in Venezuela, according to a statement from that country's Petroleum Ministry. Iran's delegation was led by Oil Minister Javad Owji.