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Figure 2.13 Trade disruption; the effect ofthe war on trade flows.
For the Republic, the interruption in the trend of deteriorating visible trade déficits
was due to a réduction in domestic demand. Perhaps nothing is more demonstrative
of the loss of purchasing power and the loss of confidence than the shrinking trade
deficit (Figure 2.14), despite the impact of a growth in domestic exports (Figure
2.13). Many imports in the initial stage of the recovery represented the replacement
of fixed and movable investment assets and Lebanese consumption, rather than the
restoration of domestic consumer confidence.
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