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Ride high food prices to cut subsidies, boost production: OECD
PARIS, June 29, 2008 (AFP) – Industrialised countries should seize the opportunity of high world food prices to cut subsidies for farm production, the OECD advises in a review of agriculture policies.Published as the World Trade Organization gears up for an attempt to break through agriculture, subsidies and other issues blocking a world trade deal, […]
‘s tough or mundane tasks
WASHINGTON, June 29, 2008 (AFP) – One woman outsourced the breaking off a relationship.A man sought bidders to clean his ears, and found someone highly qualified. Both turned to a new breed of US company that harnesses the worldwide web to get someone else to take on the difficult and tedious tasks in life or […]
Sri Lanka 302-7 with Sangakkara century
KARACHI, June 29, 2008 (AFP) – Kumar Sangakkara hit a steady century to help Sri Lanka post a challenging 302-7 against Pakistan in a Super League match in the Asia Cup at the National Stadium here on Sunday.The swashbuckling left-hander scored a 110-ball 112 to lift his team after they were sent into bat by […]
Sri Lankan spin star targets one-day record
KARACHI, June 29, 2008 (AFP) – Sri Lanka’s spin wizard Muttiah Muralitharan said his immediate target at international level is to overhaul Pakistani bowler Wasim Akram’s world record of one-day wickets.“I want to take 30-odd wickets to get to Wasim’s world record in one-day cricket and try out for 1,000 wickets in Tests,” Muralitharan said […]
Sri Lanka to motivate youth in policy reform
June 29, 2008 (LBO) – Sri Lanka is planning to recognize youth involved community development, in a bid to encourage young people to come forward and contribute to policy reform, an official said.The Young Community Leaders (YCL) award scheme is organized by Sri Lanka’s Banadaranaike Institute for International Studies (BCIS). The YCL awards which will […]
Sri Lanka says another 46 killed in fresh fighting
June 28, 2008 (AFP) – Sri Lankan security forces killed at least 44 Tamil Tiger rebels for the loss of two of their own soldiers in fresh ground battles in the island’s embattled north, the defence ministry said Saturday. The rebels from the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) were killed in separate clashes on […]
‘s national carrier slaps fuel surcharge
June 28, 2008 (AFP) – Sri Lanka’s national carrier, Sri Lankan Airlines, will re-introduce a fuel surcharge to cover rising jet fuel costs, the airline said Saturday. “Sri Lankan Airlines has re-introduced the fuel surcharge for travel and ticketing effective July 1,” the airline said. It said flights between Sri Lanka and Southeast Asian countries […]
Beijing city hikes minimum wage as inflation soars: report
BEIJING, June 28, 2008 (AFP) – China’s capital Beijing is to raise its minimum salary by 10 percent in a bid to help the worst-off cope with rising inflation, state media said Saturday. Beginning from July 1, the minimum monthly salary for city employees will rise from 730 to 800 yuan (106 to 116 dollars), […]
Powerful earthquake in Indian Ocean, no tsunami threat
PORT BLAIR, June 28, 2008 (AFP) – A powerful 6.3-magnitude earthquake struck off India’s Andaman islands in the Indian Ocean on Saturday, the US Geological Survey said. The Andaman and Nicobar chain of 536 islands, 58 of them inhabited, was badly hit by the 2004 tsunami, with hundreds dead and more than 3,000 still officially […]
Global waste meeting fails to break impasse: delegate
NUSA DUA, June 28, 2008 (AFP) – A conference in Indonesia on the international waste trade ended without breaking a 14-year impasse over the sale of hazardous waste across borders, the host’s delegate said Saturday.The five-day conference on the resort island of Bali ended late Friday with a coalition of countries again stalling the ban […]