Hot drinks in Lebanon recorded strong value growth in 2025, with consumption patterns increasingly shaped by pricing pressure and uneven recovery across regions. Coffee continues to anchor everyday rituals and out-of-home occasions, while tea is gaining incremental traction on health cues despite weaker innovation and limited local scale. Import dependence keeps costs exposed to global commodity and packaging inflation, pushing consumers towards lower-priced brands and unpackaged herbal alternat

Soft drinks consumption recovers unevenly as dollarisation, and infrastructure constraints reshape demand

Economic freedom has deteriorated and corruption remains endemic, whilst the planned departure of peacekeeping forces could worsen the security situation. Helped by a significant fall in inflation, the economy is slowly recovering, but unemployment is high. Food insecurity is increasing and refugee numbers are sizeable, but marked urbanisation could support the consumer market. Mobile subscribers could grow strongly and e-commerce is more entrenched than some peers, but innovation is lacking.

Staple foods in Lebanon started to see recovery in 2025, despite a very challenging year in 2024 for some businesses as high prices of flour, wheat and oil made producing products such as bread very expensive. In addition, in many cases high bread prices were pushed onto the consumer, which in some parts of the country made things financially difficult for lower-income households. However, despite price fluctuations, some growth was apparent in 2025, although stock piling decreased (which impact

Cooking ingredients and staples began to recover in 2025, despite a very challenging year in 2024 for many businesses. During 2024, numerous farms in the south of the country were destroyed as the ongoing Israel-Hamas war spilled over into Lebanon, severely affecting Lebanese businesses near the border. Olive oil producers were particularly hard hit, with bombing attacks destroying olive groves, production facilities, and storage infrastructure. This significantly reduced olive oil availability

Value sales of consumer health are expected to rise in 2025 despite the fact that economic conditions remain challenging. Lebanese people have always been happy to self-medicate on the advice of a pharmacist and for this reason there has always been robust demand for a wide range of consumer health products. Nonetheless, Lebanon continues to suffer serious economic, social, and political issues, which are expected to restrain further increases in consumer health sales.

Despite the challenging situation in Lebanon, sales of snacks have seen steady growth in 2024 and 2025. This growth has been supported by diaspora remittances and a recovery in tourism and hospitality. Sales of snacks were impacted by the spillover effect from the Israel-Hamas war in 2024 and this had a particularly big impact on tourism with the Lebanese diaspora concerned about returning to the country due to the security situation. However, this has been less of an issue in 2025 with tourism

Retail value sales of dairy products and alternatives are set to rise in current terms in Lebanon in 2025. Despite all the negative trends affecting Lebanon, including economic and financial collapse but also the presidential vacuum and political instability, the packaged food market started to see a recovery in 2022 and into 2023. Some positive trends driven by diaspora remittances, private sector recovery, tourism and hospitality indicators were supporting the recovery.

This report assesses the business environment in Lebanon, focusing on the regulatory environment, stability of the financial system, FDI intake, labour market flexibility and skillset, trade openness, mobility infrastructure, ICT adoption and innovative capabilities. Companies can evaluate these factors to understand the strengths and weaknesses of a country’s business environment for better strategic investment decisions.

The report examines the economic landscape of Lebanon and provides information on major monetary indicators, foreign trade and government finance. The economy contracted in real terms in 2024, dragged down by lack of enough private consumption, less government spending and investments. Furthermore, a global economic slowdown, increasing geopolitical tensions and economic fragmentation as well as tight financial conditions pose risks to the country’s economic outlook.

The number of households is set to increase moderately, while the average household size will remain unchanged in Lebanon over 2024-2029. Couples with children will remain the dominant household type but the fastest household expenditure growth is forecast to be recorded by single person households. In addition, the share of households living in urban areas is projected to expand to 90.9% by 2029.

Insight into income, wealth and expenditure of consumers and households is vital in helping businesses make strategic decisions with regards to which country (or even which region within a country) to enter, which consumer segment to target, which products or services to market, and at which price point. Other factors such as the size and expansion of the middle class and income inequality are also important in helping companies gauge the potential of a country market.

Despite all of the negative trends affecting Lebanon, including the country’s economic and financial collapse, but also the presidential vacuum and political instability, the market started to see a recovery in 2022 and into 2023. This was driven by an increase in diaspora remittances, a private sector recovery, and positive tourism and hospitality indicators all of which supporting the recovery of alcoholic drinks sales in Lebanon. However, this recovery came to somewhat of a standstill in Octo

Tobacco saw volume sales rise in Lebanon in 2024. Despite the global trends in smoking habits, which are generally declining, smoking prevalence in Lebanon remains very high with little effort to limit or reduce smoking. There are no awareness campaigns, or they are very few and very limited, and the price of tobacco remains very affordable compared to some other countries and compared to Europe and the US.

Lebanon continued to be impacted by elevated inflation in 2024 which led to a sharp rise in the cost of living. High unemployment and a lack of trust in the local currency and the local banking system also continued to undermine consumer confidence which negatively impacted spending on non-essential purchases. Additionally, the spillover effect from the Israel-Hamas war in the south of Lebanon also harmed the local economy.

The population of Lebanon is predicted to increase by 14.0%, due to changes in net migration and natural change, standing at a total of 6.6 million citizens by 2040. Demographic changes, economic conditions and social trends are all contributing to negative net migration. Lebanon’s birth rate is also expected to fall between 2024 and 2040. By 2040, the largest cohort of people will be middle-aged (aged 45-64).

Tissue and hygiene saw strong growth in current value terms in Lebanon in 2024, but this was due to high inflation and rising prices rather than an increase in demand with sales declining in retail volume terms. A number of factors were behind the drop in volume sales including the country’s declining disposable income, economic challenges, and Lebanon’s declining birth rate.

Home care saw volume sales decline in Lebanon in 2024. Demand remained under pressure from a contracting population due to a high rate of emigration, and the reluctance of cash-strapped consumers to spend on products that were seen as non-essential. Within the context of the socioeconomic crisis, this meant that most consumers stuck to the absolute basics. Consumers also shifted to multi-functional products that were see as offering good value for money, such as multi-purpose surface cleaners.

This report covers the retail sector in frontier markets in the Middle East and North Africa. Euromonitor International’s definition of the region includes the following countries