Khoury pursued a career in business, and by the 1960s had become one of the wealthiest men in Lebanon thanks to his investments in various sectors of the economy. Khoury's career began at the age of 20. He started out in the oil business, dividing his time between his home village and
Tripoli until, the beginnings of the 1930s, he moved permanently to
North Lebanon’s capital, where it was easier for him to run his business and broaden his contacts. He then shifted easily from trade to industry and conducted many successful partnerships with well-established businessmen in various fields, founding companies such as the Stephan and Khoury company (created with Joseph and Sayed Stephan of
Kfarsghab), the Kfoury–Khoury company (founded with Al Kfoury from
Khenchara,
Metn District), the "Al Ghazzal Transports" with Ghattas el-Murr, and Fadel Al-Ghandour from
Tripoli, among others.
La Kadisha Over the course of the 1920s, Khoury gained a thorough understanding of financial investment. In accordance with the traditional role played at that time by the
Lebanese diaspora in the country's economy, the young sheikh reinvested the money he received from his family abroad, including his great-uncle Abboud from
Senegal, in various local businesses. In this respect, his experience in the
hydroelectric company "La Kadisha" highlighted early on his innate talents as a businessman. The company had been founded in 1924 by prominent figures in
Bsharri, such as the Keirouz and Geagea families, with the
Maronite Archbishop of Tripoli,
Anthony Peter Arida, also playing an important role. Under the
French Mandate, the company had obtained the concession to provide electricity from the
Kadisha Valley to the rest of
North Lebanon. First introduced into the company through his uncle Abbas, Khoury quickly rose through its ranks, and in 1929, at the age of 22, was elected to the administrative council. In 1929, La Kadisha merged with the Abu Ali hydroelectric plant, the power concession for which had been granted to the Stephan brothers. On 10 August 1930, Khoury was re-elected to the new council. He gradually acquired a majority stake in the company, until on 14 May 1953, he bought the majority of shares owned by the French shareholders of the companies La Pyrénéenne and La Toulousaine. He then became president of the company. Khoury's years working in the administration of La Kadisha had a significant impact on his economic and political outlook. The economic thought of Albert Naccache, author of La Kadisha
hydroelectric project, was especially influential. Naccache advocated greater industrial development in Lebanon, contrary to the widespread ideology at the time that was influenced by the ideas of
Michel Chiha, according to which Lebanon was a "merchant republic" devoid of any raw materials. Naccache called for the establishment of a large network of hydroelectric power plants across the country that would be financed and managed entirely by Lebanese capital and executives. This experience gave Khoury a taste for industrial adventure and contributed to his grander vision for the national economy.
Agriculture Khoury's interest in agriculture also began at an early age, due to his rural upbringing. He started trading in agricultural products, beginning with
olive oil, which he sold through
North Lebanon before committing to the purchase and resale of flour and wheat to the whole of
Lebanon. From the late 1940s onward, he negotiated the cost price per kilogram of both flour and wheat with the Ministry of National Economy. His concern for the agricultural industry and the rural world was evident from the start of his parliamentary career: He was elected as head of the Commission of Agriculture and Food Supply for two consecutive terms in 1946 and 1947, as well as head of the Commission of Public Works in 1947. In the 1950s, Khoury became involved in the fight against the monopolization of
staple foods and rising prices and became one of the leading figures in the world of trade. He was often consulted by authorities in times of national emergency. During the
1958 Lebanon crisis, he belonged to the group of traders that sounded the alarm about the paralysis of commercial activity in the country, and publicly encouraged the unloading of boats in the Port of Beirut to avoid food shortages. In addition to his involvement in the wheat trade, Khoury also revolutionized sugar production in Lebanon. In 1963, in his capacity as representative of
sugar refiners, he advised
Prime Minister of Lebanon Rashid Karami on the measures to be taken to meet the country's sugar requirements for the following year. His suggestion was to encourage the production of
sugar beet, almost nonexistent in Lebanon at the time, in order to boost domestic output and allow the country to move towards self-sufficiency in sugar production. He was also one of the largest shareholders in the
Anjar sugar factory, playing a key role in the resolution of the sugar beet crisis that lasted from December 1964 to June 1965 and which saw the
Bekaa peasants clashing with the management of the factory itself. Khoury's stature and position as a prominent industrialist made him inclined to a traditional and benevolent social paternalism towards the peasants. To help Lebanese farmers and combat rural exodus, he was actively involved with the Banque de Crédit Agricole, Industriel et Foncier (BCAIF), founded in 1954, becoming chairman in 1958. During the banana crisis caused by the violent storm of 20 November 1964, which destroyed production for an entire season, Khoury offered long-term loans to banana growers in order to alleviate their difficulties.
Industry and commerce Khoury was one of the pillars of Lebanese industry during the second half of the 20th century, and he was a keen supporter of investment of Lebanese capital in the industrial sector, which he advocated as a means of increasing the national income and curbing unemployment. He was also president of the Association of Industrialists from 1965 to 1975, and called for the establishment of a Ministry of Industry. Khoury's first industrial ventures were in the electricity sector. He invested at an early stage in the La Kadisha company, and in 1948 founded another
hydroelectric company, Al-Bared, with two other partners . Through these two companies, Khoury helped to solve the electricity crisis that plagued Lebanon between 1952 and 1954. He proposed linking Beirut to the networks of Qadisha, Nahr el-Bared and
Nahr al-Jaouz to overcome the power cuts in the capital, with Al-Bared handling the operation. In an effort to strengthen the energy sector, he demanded in 1956 a government loan of
£L5 million to La Kadisha in order to avoid an increase in electricity tariffs. Khoury was also involved in the cement industry. In 1963, he became a shareholder in the Lebanese Cement Company, founded in 1929 by the
Maronite Patriarchate in
Chekka, having supplied its factories with electricity through the Al-Bared company since 1956. In 1952, through several companies founded in conjunction with various business partners from
Tripoli Khoury helped establish a
free zone in the
Port of Tripoli, building port facilities and warehouses and supplying the necessary machinery for the transfer of goods. This expanded the port significantly, as well as strengthening
North Lebanese industry in general. He then founded several import–export companies with his partners to encourage trade and transit operations, which inevitably led him to become more closely involved in the
maritime transport sector. He became a ship owner and founded the Maritime Boutros S. El-Khoury Agency in the 1960s. Khoury also invested in numerous other areas, founding or co-founding over 50 companies both in
Lebanon and abroad. Sectors to which he contributed included aluminum and
pressed wood production, the
petroleum industry, the drinks industry (notably
juices and
sparkling water), the
hospitality industry (hotels), the insurance sector, and the land and real estate industry.
Banking Suleiman Frangieh. Khoury's involvement in the Lebanese banking sector contributed to the emergence of the "Golden Age" in the domestic banking industry in the 1950s. He became one of the main figures of the Lebanese banking sector, alongside people like Pierre Edde,
Hussein Al Oweini and Philippe Takla. In addition to his role in the BCAIF, which played a leading role in the economic affairs of the country, he also participated in the establishment of many banking institutions, including the project "Bank Al-Ahli Al-Mahjar", which never took shape but whose purpose was to link the capitals of the diaspora to those of the motherland. Following the same principle, the
BLOM Bank (Banque du Liban et d’Outre-Mer) was created a year later in 1951. The Sheikh was one of its founders, also serving as its vice-president. BLOM Bank remains one of the leading banks in
Lebanon. He was also one of the founders of Al-Madina Bank, established in 1982. He was a shareholder in the Bank of Industry and Labor and invested momentarily funds in Al-Mahjar Bank and Bank of the Mediterranean (Banque de la Méditerranée) in the 1980s. The success of BLOM attracted Arab and foreign capital to the institution. In May 1960, Khoury secured a US$5 million loan for the BCAIF, largely through his personal negotiations with Hart Perry, director of the American Bank Institution known as the Credit Fund. Also through the BCAIF, he led similar negotiations on behalf of the Lebanese government to obtain a US wheat loan in 1964, efforts which resulted in the agreement of a $17 million deal in July 1966. The Sheikh also maintained relations with leading personalities in the international banking community, including
David Rockefeller, adviser to the
World Bank. In his capacity as chairman of the BCAIF's board of directors, Khoury also worked closely with the Lebanese government in efforts to alleviate problems in the banking sector. In 1964, he chaired the banking consortium that regulated the resolution of the "Land Bank" crisis. He was also involved in the 1966 project to establish a Development Bank, for the financing of industrial and tourism projects. Additionally, he was a key figure in the resolution of the "Intra-banking crisis" of 1968, during which Lebanon's
central bank, the
Banque du Liban (BDL), asked the BCAIF to handle the management and liquidation of 10 banks in distress.
Contribution to social dialogue Khoury's role in the Lebanese business world gave him a decisive voice in the dialogue that emerged between trade unionists and managers in the second half of the 1960s. As a representative of the industrialists, he was commonly invited by the ruling class to participate in the settlement of social crises. While usually chosen to represent the employers in these discussions, Khoury often adopted a conciliatory position, reflecting his role as a mediator in both politics and business. On the question of wage increases in the private sector, demanded by unions as early as November 1964, Khoury welcomed the adoption in January 1965 of the wage increase law, which in his opinion guaranteed continued cooperation between employers and workers, as well as increasing living standards. Khoury was also committed to improving worker productivity, providing funds for
vocational training and collaborating with the Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs on the modernization of the
Dekwaneh accelerated vocational training center. Khoury's conciliatory tendencies did not outweigh his
economic liberalism, however, and while he was sensitive to worker well-being, he believed that the state should also work in the interests of employers in order to improve the whole economic sector. He remained a proponent of
free trade, which also led him to defend the interests of industrialists and capitalists. During the fruit crisis of June 1966, he condemned the measures of the Union of Farmers—defended by
Kamal Jumblatt and the leftist parties—as an attempt to
nationalize the fruit industry. ==Political activity==