Logistics services in Lebanon.

Lebanon logistics overview: modes, trade and gateways

Logistics services in Lebanon connect sea, air, rail, and road options along a short Mediterranean coastline of about 225 km. Containerized cargo moves mainly through the ports of Bayrut and Tarabulus, supported by a merchant marine fleet of about 51 vessels, including bulk carriers, container ships, general cargo ships, oil tankers, and other types.

Air freight uses Beirut Rafic Hariri International Airport for scheduled cargo and passenger services. There are about 8 airports overall. Around 401 km of rail exists, and trucks connect production and consumption areas to ports and the borders with Israel and Syria. Exports are about 4.6 billion USD while imports are about 21.7 billion USD, so inbound logistics volumes are much larger than outbound.

Freight forwarders in Lebanon work around a maritime and air network centered on Beirut and other key ports such as Sayda, Selaata, Sidon/zahrani Terminal, and Tarabulus. Container throughput is about 760,000 TEU and liner connectivity is measured by an LSCI of about 41.6, with major global shipping lines like CMA CGM, COSCO, Evergreen, HMM, Hapag-Lloyd, MSC, Maersk, ONE, and Arkas having offices in Beirut or other local cities.

When choosing freight forwarders in Lebanon, shippers can look at experience with the main trade lanes to partners such as the UAE, Egypt, Turkey, Iraq, the USA, Switzerland, China, Greece, and Italy. The overall Logistics Performance Index is about 2.72, with customs at about 2.38 and logistics competence at about 2.47, both below the world median. Forwarders strong in documentation and handover can help offset these weaker scores, especially for high-value flows in jewelry, cars, diamonds, scrap iron, gold, refined petroleum, packaged medicine, and garments.

FCL and LCL shipping from and to Lebanon is structured around several seaports along the Mediterranean. Bayrut (LBBEY) is a large port with cargo pier depths of about 10.5 m and rail access, acting as the primary container hub. Tarabulus (LBKYE) is a medium port with deeper cargo berths of about 17.1 m, while Sidon/zahrani Terminal (LBZHR) and Saydå (LBSAY) are very small ports, both rail connected.

Lebanon handles about 760,000 TEU of container traffic, ranked 81st of 168 globally, and has an LSCI score around 41.6, ranked 36th of 169 worldwide. Major lines including CMA CGM, COSCO, Evergreen, HMM, Hapag-Lloyd, MSC, Maersk, ONE, and Arkas operate offices locally, giving shippers options for both FCL and LCL services on standard regional and global routes.

Air freight in Lebanon moves mainly through Beirut Rafic Hariri International Airport (BEY), which provides scheduled international connections. In total, the country has about 8 airports, though only one handles scheduled services.

Air cargo volume is about 34.4 million tonne-km. Air makes sense for Lebanon’s high-value exports and imports such as jewelry, diamonds, gold, cars, packaged medicine, and garments, especially where short transit times or higher reliability are needed relative to sea or land routes.

Lebanon has about 401 km of railway, with historical rail connections at coastal ports such as Bayrut, Tarabulus, Sidon/zahrani Terminal, and Sayda. These ports combine sea access with rail links on a short coastline of about 225 km. Road freight shares borders with Israel over 81 km and Syria over 403 km, supporting overland trade alongside maritime exports and imports through Beirut and other coastal locations.

Customs clearance in Lebanon is handled by the Lebanese Customs Administration. The country has been a member of the World Customs Organization since 1960 but is not a member of the WTO. Average applied tariffs are about 2.83 percent.

The LPI customs score is about 2.38 compared with a world median of about 2.6, while the overall LPI is around 2.72. Time to export and import is short at about 1 day each. For most shipments, shippers should prepare at least a commercial invoice, packing list, and transport document to start clearance with Lebanese Customs.