The Friends of Syria, a grouping of some 114 countries supporting the Syrian opposition, formally recognised on Wednesday 12 December the National Coalition for Syrian Revolutionary and Opposition Forces as “the legitimate representative” of the Syrian people.

Syria ranked 144th out of 174 countries in an annual survey measuring the levels of corruption around the globe.

The number of Syrian refugees registered with the United Nations crossed the half a million mark last week according to UNHCR, the UN refugees agency.

The diplomatic presence of western countries in Syria reduced further this week as several EU member countries announced the reduction or suspension of their presence in Damascus.

Kharafi National, a large engineering company, is withdrawing from the Syrian market, according to a local media outlet.

The government has banned the export of 106 mainly food products in order to prevent any shortages in the local market and limit inflation.

A leading Syrian opposition figure has estimated the cost of rebuilding the country at up to USD 60 billion.

The number of Syrian refugees formally registered or under registration with the United Nations has increased to 458,287 as of November 26.

The European Union announced on Monday that it was recognising the newly-formed National Coalition for Syrian Revolutionary and Opposition Forces as “legitimate representatives of the aspirations of the Syrian people.”

Syria fell seven ranks in the annual survey of the World Bank assessing the ease of doing business.

Updated November 11: Around 20,000 Syrians fled their country over the week-end in what was the highest exodus of refugees since the beginning of the uprising.

Syria and North Korea signed yesterday a number of bilateral agreements in the economic, environment and telecommunication fields.

Syria’s inflation rate recorded a new height in August to stand at 39.50 percent on an annual basis.

Trade between Turkey and Syria, once buoyant, continued to fall in the third quarter of this year.

The Syrian minister of finance has said that his government was studying three options to finance its surging fiscal deficit, including borrowing from Russia and printing money.