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Sri Lanka trade deficit narrows in first half 2007, oil imports down
August 16, 2007 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s trade deficit has narrowed 12 percent and oil imports had fallen 8 percent in the first half of 2007, the central bank said. Exports had grown 12.9 percent to 3.56 billion dollars while imports grew only 3.9 percent narrowing the trade deficit from 1.79 billion dollars to 1.58 […]
Sri Lanka rolls over Rs12bn in bills, short end in demand
August 15, 2007 (LBO) – Sri Lanka rolled over 12 billion rupees of treasury bills heavily weighted towards the short end with yields edging up marginally, the government’s debt office said.Three-month bills edged up four basis points to 17.45 percent while 6-months remained flat at 17.12 percent and 12-month bills were at 16.89 percent. The […]
Sri Lanka tourist arrivals down 20% in July
August 15, 2007 (LBO) – Foreign visitors to Sri Lanka have fallen 20 percent in July with arrivals in the first seven months falling 24 percent, the country’s tourist promotion office said. Sri Lanka has been slapped by travel advisories while a worsening conflict and reports of human rights violations and killings of aid workers […]
Mobile Action
August 15, 2007 (LBO) – Bharti Airtel was aiming to launch commercial operations in Sri Lanka early next year investing 200 million dollars in the island, the Indian telecom giant said Wednesday. About 60 percent of Sri Lanka’s mobile market is controlled by Dialog Telekom, a unit of Telekom Malaysia. The rest is shared between […]
European stocks follow Asian markets down
LONDON, Aug 15, 2007 (AFP) – Europe’s main stock markets tumbled again on Wednesday as investors were gripped by concerns over a potential global credit crunch sparked by the troubled US home loan sector. The American markets turned lower in the wake of a media report about a troubled investment fund, Sentinel Management Group. Global […]
Asian stocks tumble as global selloff drags on
TOKYO, Aug 15, 2007 (AFP) – Most Asian stock markets suffered another mauling in early trade on Wednesday after an overnight slump on Wall Street dashed hopes of an end to recent turmoil sparked by US mortgage woes. The latest wave of selling came despite recent efforts by the world’s major central banks to restore […]
Myanmar loses a battle in fuel price controls and rationing war
YANGON, Aug 15, 2007 (AFP) – Myanmar’s military government secretly doubled key fuel prices early Wednesday, stranding bus operators and commuters across the country’s economic hub Yangon as drivers struggled to tank up.Official media made no mention of the increase, the first in two years, and station operators were at a loss to explain the […]
Saudi boss kept Sri Lankan maid prisoner for 10 years: report
RIYADH, Aug 14, 2007 (AFP) – A Sri Lankan housemaid in Saudi Arabia pleaded in a call to a newspaper to be rescued from her employer she says has kept her imprisoned for the past 10 years, the Saudi newspaper reported on Tuesday. The Arab News said it received the cry for help from Anista […]
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Aug 15, 2007 (AFP) – A Sri Lankan minister Wednesday described a top UN official as a “terrorist” after accusing him of supporting the country’s separatist Tamil Tiger guerrillas.Highways Minister Jeyaraj Fernandopulle said John Holmes, the UN undersecretary general for humanitarian affairs, who ended a four-day tour of Sri Lanka last week, was helping the […]
” in Sri Lanka
Aug 14, 2007 (AFP) – Hundreds of people disappeared in Sri Lanka in the past year and more than 5,700 such cases from the past three decades were under UN review, rights group Amnesty International said Tuesday. Since 2006, hundreds of people have reportedly been abducted by the security forces or armed groups in areas […]