All Blogs
Sri Lanka vets go on strike over elephants
August 17, 2010 (AFP) – Sri Lankan wildlife veterinarians have gone on strike to protest at the alleged mishandling of elephant conservation which has resulted in an increase in deadly attacks, a union leader said Tuesday. “There is no proper management of wild elephants who are being pushed into narrow habitats as the government allows […]
‘ travel
VANCOUVER, August 17, 2010 (AFP) – Canadian authorities are investigating whether Sri Lankan rebels financed the passage of nearly 500 Tamil refugees to Canada last week, officials said Monday before the start of detention hearings. Public Safety Minister Vic Toews, speaking to The Globe and Mail daily in an article Monday, said passengers were charged […]
Sri Lankan stocks close up 1.48-pct
Aug 16, 2010 (LBO) – Sri Lankan stocks rallied for the second straight day, Monday, in low volume trading, while there was renewed retail buying interest on ‘penny’ shares, brokers said. The All Share Price Index closed at 5,191.30, was up 1.48 percent (75.51 points) Monday, while the Milanka index of more liquid stocks rose […]
Foreign Policy
HAMBANTOTA, August 15, 2010 (AFP) – A China-funded port in Sri Lanka will be a symbol of Colombo’s non-partisan foreign policy, the president said Sunday amid Indian concerns over Beijing’s interests in the region. President Mahinda Rajapakse marked a key milestone in the construction of the 1.5 billion-dollar port in the southern Sri Lankan town […]
Combined Entity
Aug 16, 2010 (LBO) – Fitch Ratings has withdrawn the ratings of six Sri Lankan Regional Development Banks (RDBs) upon their merger and upgraded those of two which it said reflects its views on the rating of the merged bank. The merged entity with an asset base of 42 billion rupees as at end-June 2010 […]
Housing Profits
Aug 16, 2010 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s Housing Development Finance Corporation (HDFC) Bank group June 2010 quarter profits fell 96 percent to 5.3 million rupees from a year ago owing to lower revenues and higher finance costs, interim results showed. HDFC group’s gross assets rose 6.7 percent to 15.1 billion rupees. The state-owned HDFC Bank […]
Sri Lanka KumbukRiver named among top 20 spectacular hotels
Aug 16, 2010 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s KumbukRiver has been included in a list of the world’s top 20 most unusual hotels, just announced by an international portal dedicated to the unusual and the audacious, a statement said. The list includes Dubai’s landmark Burj al Arab and the Galactic, the first-ever hotel in space, the […]
Sri Lanka losing Arab market, tea exporter warns
Aug 16, 2010 (LBO) – A top Sri Lankan tea exporters has warned that Ceylon tea was losing market share to international brands in key Middle Eastern markets to which shipments from the island have fallen. Ceylon Tea Services chairman Merrill J. Fernando said the tea industry needs a stable policy, direction and expertise if […]
Supermarket Sweep
Aug 16, 2010 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s largest supermarket chain Cargills (Ceylon) group June quarter profits rose 92.3 percent to 312 million rupees from higher sales, better margins and lower finance costs, a stock exchange filing said. Group revenues rose 20.6 percent to 8.94 billion rupees from a year ago while sales cost rose at […]
Electronic Snooping
SAN FRANCISCO, August 16, 2010 (AFP) – Clashes between the maker of Blackberry smart phones and India, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates are the latest rounds in a cat-and-mouse game pitting authorities against technologies racing beyond their grasp. “Governments can go to the extreme of simply banning such technologies, but the economic ramifications […]