Finance Minister Ghazi Wazni BEIRUT (Reuters) – The Lebanese central bank has set an interest rate cap of 4% on dollar bank …

by thenational.ae -- Lebanese Prime Minister Hassan Diab on Thursday pledged not to run in the future parliamentary elections or support any candidates. Deputy Prime Minister Zeina Akar and the other 18 members of Cabinet also signed up to Mr Diab’s pledge not to run in the next election. The current administration is a departure in Lebanon where the bulk of ministers are usually also MPs. In recent years, discussions have been raised about having a government not also elected to parliament as it prevents one body overseeing the work of the other. However, many senior figures – including former prime minister and Future Movement head Saad Hariri or former foreign minister and Free Patriotic Movement head Gibran Bassil – served multiple times in both chambers. No elections are scheduled until 2022 although some have suggested that a vote should be held early given mass anger on the streets since October.

Mr Diab stated his Cabinet's plan to astain from standing on January 21. “There are no MPs [in the government], and no candidates for the next parliamentary elections," he said. His would be "a government of specialists that will only be held accountable to the language of science, reason and expertise and the interest of the nation," he added. Months of anti-government protests have rocked Lebanon, with demonstrators calling for a change in political leadership.

by bbc.com -- Japanese carmaker Nissan has filed a civil lawsuit against its former chairman, Carlos Ghosn. The suit, filed at Yokohama District Court, seeks an initial amount of $90m (£69.5m). The company said it aims "to recover a significant part of the monetary damages inflicted on the company by its former chairman". Mr Ghosn, who faces financial misconduct charges in Japan, said the firm's "manoeuvres" were continuing. He is currently in Lebanon after jumping bail in Japan.

He said in response to the lawsuit: "Nissan's manoeuvres continue: this complaint is made public on the eve of the Japanese group's financial results. "We note that after months of announcing damages of 35 billion yen, Nissan is now claiming 10 at the moment. Mr Ghosn's lawyers will react on the merits of the case once the content of the claim has been brought to their attention." Nissan said it expects the amount claimed in damages to "increase in future" as it seeks to recover fines it expects to have to pay to regulators because of Mr Ghosn's alleged misconduct. The company also said that it may pursue separate legal action over what it called "groundless and defamatory" remarks made by Mr Ghosn in a news conference he held in Beirut. At the conference, Mr Ghosn said: "My unimaginable ordeal is the result of a handful of unscrupulous, vindictive individuals."

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The International Monetary Fund stands ready to provide advice and technical assistance to Lebanon in its efforts to avoid a financial collapse, a spokesman for the global lender said, confirming the government had asked for help. “We stand ready to assist the authorities,” IMF spokesman Gerry Rice said in a statement. “Any decisions on debt are the authorities’, to be made in consultation with their own legal and financial advisers.”

by Arab news -NAJIA HOUSSARI - BEIRUT: Senior Lebanese politicians are expected to refuse to pay an external debt on time and are seeking technical assistance from the International Monetary Fund (IMF). Lebanese President Michel Aoun said: “The financial and economic crises that Lebanon suffers from can no longer be solved easily and have necessitated relatively harsh measures for the Lebanese, and the cost today is higher than before.” On Wednesday, Aoun warned that “everyone who reached out to the treasury will be tried according to the law before a special court specializing in financial crimes against public money.”