Lebanon’s currency continues to tank amid monetary chaos

BEIRUT (AP) — Lebanon’s national currency has further collapsed, trading on the black market at nearly 20 times its value two years ago, worsening inflation and people’s despair. The Lebanese pound was trading at 27,000 to the dollar on the black market Monday, hitting a new low in its downward trajectory that began in October 2019 as the Lebanese economy went into a tailspin. The currency is officially pegged at 1,500 pounds to the dollar. The economic collapse has been described as one of the worst in the world in over 150 years. Inflation and prices of basic goods have skyrocketed in Lebanon, which imports more than 80% of its basic goods.