Singapore bank lending rises in July

SINGAPORE (Reuters) - Singapore' total bank lending rose in July from the previous month, helped by increases in general commerce loans and lending to financial institutions, central bank data showed on Wednesday. Loans and advances by domestic banks in the city-state amounted to S$597.2 billion in July, data from the Monetary Authority of Singapore showed, up from S$590.5 billion in June. Lending to the general commerce sector rose to S$59.7 billion from June's S$56.4 billion, while loans to financial institutions rose to S$75.8 billion from S$67.7 billion. Housing and bridging loans in July rose to S$187.7 billion from June's S$187.2 billion. In July 2015, housing and bridging loans amounted to S$181.6 billion. For details of the latest monthly statistics, see www.mas.gov.sg (Reporting by Masayuki Kitano; Editing by Shri Navaratnam)