Caretaker Labor Minister Mustafa Bayram announced Friday that the daily transport allowance for private sector employees has increased to LBP 95,000.

The amendment to the transport allowance has been signed by President Michel Aoun, Prime Minister-designate Najib Mikati and Bayram.

Global oil demand will rise more than previously forecast this year as heatwaves and soaring gas prices are prompting countries to switch fuels for power generation, the International Energy Agency said Thursday.

Stock markets were mostly higher on Thursday after new U.S. data suggested that inflation could indeed be slowing in the world's biggest economy, raising hopes of less aggressive Federal Reserve monetary policy.

It's not too late for a road trip: The U.S. average price of gasoline at the pump has finally fallen below $4.00 a gallon, providing a bit of relief for Americans struck by massive inflation at almost every turn.

Caretaker Prime Minister and PM-designate Najib Mikati on Thursday announced that the Iraqi government has agreed to a request from him for extending the supply of Lebanon with fuel for another year with the same terms and conditions.

The fuel will go to the cash-strapped national electricity company Electricite du Liban (EDL) to power some of its plants.

The head of the Federation of Syndicates of Banks Employees in Lebanon, George al-Hajj, announced Thursday that the employees will not declare a strike in response to the hostage crisis at Federal Bank’s Hamra branch.

“All that we want is for this incident to end peacefully,” al-Hajj said.

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz pledged his government won't leave citizens freezing or unable to pay their energy bills but acknowledged Thursday that his country faces considerable challenges in the coming months.

Rising fuel costs sparked by Russia's war against Ukraine have put severe financial strain on many in Germany and beyond, raising concerns about a possible winter of discontent.

The Finance and Budget Parliamentary Committee on Wednesday approved amendments to the law related to the $150 World Bank loan aimed at buying wheat, the National News Agency said.

The approval of two articles was however postponed until Thursday’s session, NNA added.

Falling gas prices gave Americans a slight break from the pain of high inflation last month, though the surge in overall prices slowed only modestly from the four-decade high it reached in June.

Consumer prices jumped 8.5% in July compared with a year earlier, the government said Wednesday, down from a 9.1% year-over-year jump in June. On a monthly basis, prices were unchanged from June to July, the smallest such rise more than two years.

Oil shipments from Russia through a critical pipeline to several European countries should resume soon after a problem over payments for the transit was resolved, Slovakia's economy minister said on Wednesday.

Russian state pipeline operator Transneft said Tuesday it halted shipments through the southern branch of the Druzhba oil pipeline, which flows through Ukraine to the Czech Republic, Slovakia and Hungary.