Syria

Political crisis affects economy, industry

Damascus recently signed a significant agreement with a Russian company to explore Syrian offshore oil and gas. The contract covers a 2,190 square-kilometer surface area. It is a 25- year deal that includes several stages. The value of prospection and exploration is $100 million. Funding will come from Russia, yet it will recoup its production expenses if oil and gas is discovered in commercial quantities. Oil production, which represents an essential resource for Syria’s economy, has declined by 90% since the outbreak of the revolution. Foreign trade has witnessed a sharp decline since the beginning of the crisis up till the first quarter (Q1) of 2014, at a rate of 95% of exports and 88% of imports. The value of the total Syrian exports, including oil and commodities, dropped to $94.7 million in the first quarter of 2013 compared to $1,901 million during the same period of 2011, recording a decline of 95%. The total Syrian imports also fell by 88% during the same period, from about $4,115 million in the first quarter of 2011 to about $818 million in the first quarter of 2013. The value of the 2014 budget amounted to 1.39 trillion pounds and the credits investment plan of industrial enterprises decreased to 1.625 billion in 2014 compared to 2.152 billion pounds in 2013. The amount of 1.297 billion pounds was allocated for renovations, along with 11.3 million pounds for new projects. It is reported that the Syrian industry losses reached $ 2.2 billion last year. The index f DSE closed yesterday lower by 5.17 points from the meeting which preceded the last day in January, closing with a value of 1,174.10 points, and the rate of change is negative by 0.44% as a result of trading 25,205 shares spread over 35 deals worth trading of total value of 4.074 million pounds. The shares of Bank of Syria and Overseas rose 2.31% (equivalent to 5,970 traded shares) by a value of 1.132 million pounds. The shares of Qatar National Bank - Syria fell by 1.99% as a result of trading 8,000 shares, reaching a value of 984 thousand pounds. The share of Syria International Islamic Bank shut down by a drop of 2% following a trade of three thousand shares worth 405,000 pounds.