The General National Congress (GNC) has voted to temporarily close Libya's border crossings with several of its neighbours as the new government attempts to address serious security problems in the south.

The new Minister of Economy last week met visiting a business delegation from Italy, as well as the Canadian and Spanish ambassadors to Libya.

The Libyan Export Promotion Centre (LEPC) invites Libyan exporters to attend a training course in Morocco later this month.

The Ministry of Finance says it is currently drafting Libya's 2013 budget, although its Undersecretary claims the initial budgets drawn up by most ministries were "exaggerated" and should be reduced.

The 2012 edition of Transparency International's Corruption Perceptions Index (CPI) ranks Libya joint 160th out of 174 countries, a slight improvement from its previous report and level with Laos and the Democratic Republic of Congo.

Figures from the Central Bank of Libya (CBL) show that annual inflation was 8.9% in June, having fallen steadily during the first half of 2012, but consumer prices remain substantially higher than pre-war levels.

A Benghazi-based employee of the Audit Bureau, which was set up last year to review the finances of government institutions, was assaulted last week in the most recent of a series of attacks on the institution.

The local council in Al Bayda, in north-east Libya, says it has started work on schools, water infrastructure and street maintenance.

Central Bank figures show that state finances were in surplus during the first 10 months of 2012, but revenues remain below the levels forecast in the 2012 budget.

Official figures show that the public-sector wages and price subsidies accounted for more than half of total state expenditure in Libya during the first 10 months of 2012. 

The head of the Audit Bureau, which was set up in late 2011 to review the finances of government institutions, has handed in his resignation after a series of threats and break-ins.

Libya earned LD55.7bn ($44.2bn) in oil revenues between January and October this year, according to official figures.

The local council of Zliten has awarded a number of infrastructure contracts to Libyan companies.

French and Italian ministers visited Tripoli last week, with both countries seeking to bolster trade and investment ties after unfreezing Libyan state assets.

The outgoing prime minister, Abdelrahim al-Keib, has announced the launch of a new Marriage Support Fund to be managed by the Ministry of Social Affairs.