News in Brief(28-5-2018)

Chinese banks' liabilities, assets rise

BEIJING, May 27: China's banking institutions saw their assets and liabilities continue to expand in April compared with a year earlier, according to the China Banking and Insurance Regulatory Commission. The institutions had combined assets of 248.6 trillion yuan (about 38.9 trillion U.S. dollars) as of the end of April, up 7.2 per cent year on year, the data show. Their total liabilities reached 228.5 trillion yuan, up 6.8 per cent. Commercial banks had a total of 192.4 trillion yuan in assets, up 6.4 per cent year on year, while their liabilities increased six per cent to reach 177.2 trillion yuan. — Xinhua

Myanmar-S'pore trade 28pc up in a year

YANGON, May 27: Trade between Myanmar and Singapore reached 3.8 billion U.S. dollars in the 2017-18 fiscal year which ended in March, up 833 million dollars or 28 per cent from the 2016-17 fiscal year, according to statistics of the Commerce Ministry Sunday. Of the total, Myanmar's import from Singapore amounted to 3.1 billion U.S. dollars. — Xinhua

Qatar bans goods from S Arabia-led countries

DOHA, May 27: Qatar has ordered shops to remove goods originating from a group of Saudi Arabia-led countries which a year ago imposed a wide-ranging boycott on the emirate, Doha officials said Saturday. A directive from the economy ministry ordered shops to immediately strip shelves of products from Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Bahrain and Egypt. — AFP

Interbank rate marks sharp rise in Kenya

NAIROBI, May 27: The Kenyan interbank rate increased sharply this week as large banks kept off transactions. The weighted average rate swelled by 1.32 per cent to 5.7 per cent at the end of Friday. "The rate increased from 4.38 per cent the previous week as small and medium banks concluded transactions at higher rates," said the Central Bank on Saturday. — Xinhua

Nigerian govt kicks off drives to collect more tax

LAGOS, May 27: Paying income tax used to be a joke in Nigeria which, no wonder, has the worst tax to GDP ratio in sub-Saharan Africa. Millions of people for the first time are now coughing up taxes as President Muhammadu Buhari's government conducts one of the country's most vigorous collection drives in years. The money is desperately needed. Widening Nigeria's tax base will help boost non-oil revenue in Africa's largest economy. — AFP