All Blogs
Bottom End
Sept 26, 2007 (AFP) – High taxes and red tape are eroding confidence in Sri Lanka, one of the worst places to do business in South Asia, a study by the International Finance Corporation (IFC) showed Wednesday. The research which ranked 178 countries around the world on trade, taxation, business start-up costs, labour laws and […]
Split Order
WELLINGTON, Sept 26, 2007 (AFP) – The New Zealand government on Wednesday ordered the country’s dominant phone company Telecom to split into three units in a bid to level the playing field in the telecommunications industry.But investors took the latest news in their stride, with shares rising six cents at 4.36 New Zealand dollars by […]
Sri Lanka claims killing 13 Tamil Tigers
COLOMBO, Sept 26, 2007 (AFP) – Sri Lankan troops shot dead 13 suspected Tamil Tiger rebels in clashes across northern defensive lines, the defence ministry said Wednesday.Ten members of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) died Tuesday trying to inflitrate army defences in Vavuniya district, the ministry said in a statement. Four government troops […]
Sri Lanka says human rights criticism is neo colonialism
Sept 26, 2007 (LBO) – Sri Lanka has rejected criticism of its human rights record by Western countries saying it was being unfairly targeted in a campaign reminiscent of colonial era exploitation and domination. “Human rights must not be regarded as a new version of the White Man’s Burden,” Dayan Jayatilleka, Ambassador and Permanent Representative […]
Sri Lanka tells UN military campaign is to get Tigers to resume talks
Sept 26, 2007 (LBO) – Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapakse has told the United Nations that his government’s military campaign was aimed at convincing the Tamil Tigers they cannot achieve a military victory in their campaign for a separate state. Addressing the UN General Assembly at its headquarters in New York Tuesday, Rajapakse called on […]
Sri Lanka treasury yields up again
Sept 25, 2007 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s benchmark 3- month treasury yields went up 15 basis points to 18.20 with the cut-off pushing 18.30 percent dealers said, as authorities struggled to stabilize an economy hit by heavy government spending. Meanwhile 6-month yields went up 15 basis points to 17.47 percent and the 12-month went up […]
Apples and Oranges
Sept 25, 2007 (LBO) – The International Monetary Fund which has warned of further fallouts from the sub-prime crisis has called on credit evaluators to use a new rating scale to describe default risks of asset-backed securities. Now asset-backed debt products or securitized instruments use the same rating scale that is used from straightforward bonds […]
‘s level
Sept 25, 2007 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s tea production for August was higher than the same month last year but the island is still to fully recover from the disruption in harvesting caused by a strike and bad weather, officials said. The total production for August rose 11 percent to 24.2 million kg compared with […]
Last Week
Sept 25, 2007 (LBO) – The deadline for the repatriation of Sri Lankans working illegally in Oman without being fined ends on September 30, the Foreign Affairs Ministry said Tuesday. It said in a statement that relatives of workers in Oman without valid visas have been asked to inform their family members without delay of […]
Chat Tax
Sept 25, 2007 (LBO) – Mobile users in Sri Lanka would pay a new 10 percent tax on call charges from today, a senior treasury official said Tuesday. The tax bill authorizing the increase was signed into law by the Speaker of Sri Lanka’s parliament, yesterday, he said. The official said the government hopes to […]