BEIRUT: Lebanon's free-falling currency hit a new record low Friday, trading at 19,150 to the dollar on the black market, as the country's political and economic crises deepened.

Exchange dealers said they were selling the dollar for LL19,200 and buying it for LL19,100, compared to LL18,200-LL18,100 on Thursday.

The pound has lost over 90 percent in street value since late 2019, pushing more than half the population under the poverty line. In recent weeks the crisis has worsened dramatically as citizens grapple fuel, electricity, food and medicine shortages, as the cash-strapped government lifts subsidies on essential goods.

The latest plunge came as Prime Minister-designate Saad Hariri looked set to step down within days in light of continued obstruction by President Michel Aoun and MP Gebran Bassil of his efforts to form a new government to enact reforms.

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