January - March 2001
NEWCOMERS to the CITY CENTER


With construction practically completed, Audi Bank is expected to move by mid-year to its new headquarters in Beirut city center.
On March 28, Gulf Finance and Investment inaugurated its offices in building 229 Foch street.
Banca di Roma is preparing to move its headquarters to Maarad street in June.
Decorating works precede the moving of MEPA Insurance Companies into the UFA Assurance building in Martyrs' Square. The group is relocating from Paris to Beirut in July.
Among distributors establishing regional offices in Beirut city center, UDV will conduct its Levant, North Africa and Cyprus operations from Hiba al-Maarad building in Maarad street.

The art gallery Compagnie des Arts was opened in the city center this quarter in Yousef El Rami street off Foch street.

In Maarad street, Le Ragueneau restaurant, on street level in building 286, has a terrace overlooking the planned Hadîqat As-Samah.

On the first and second floors of the building, decoration works prepare for the opening of Café Met, a New York-style café with a similar view.

By end August, La Maison du Café will be installed in Beyhum street off Foch street.
Woolnough;s men's shoes, just opened in Maarad street, and Mario Bruni women's shoes, soon opening in Yousef El Rami street, are joining such outlets as Pointure in the Lazarieh complex, Vienna Shoes in the Atrium building and Rock Shoes in Weygand street.
Rectangle Jaune fashion shop is opening this summer in building 157 Saad Zaghloul street.
The year started downbeat, with SOLIDERE shares reaching new lows near the quarter end: US$53/8 for share A and US$51/2 for share B. This reflected disappointment at the delay in issuing the awaited decrees necessary for SOLIDERE reconstruction projects, added to the general malaise regarding the economy.
Improved prospects regarding the decrees and the economy limited the losses at quarter-end. Share A closed at its low of US$53/8, 19% lower than the previous quarter closing. Share B closed above its low, at US$6, 18.6% below the previous quarter closing price.
Trading activity was at its highest in more than two years, as 1,449,330 shares exchanged hands during the quarter.