BEIRUT, Lebanon - Lebanon's total debt will not exceed $37 billion by the end of the year compared to $33 billion at the end of 2004, Central Bank Governor Riad Salameh said on Monday.

Salameh told Reuters that Lebanon was working on a programme to cut crippling budget deficits to zero in five years.

He forecast that growth would bounce back to 5-6 percent in 2006, depending on political stability, after the February killing of former Prime Minister Rafik al-Hariri shook the economy and hit growth this year. (Reuters)