All Blogs
‘ tag ripped by IMF
December 22 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s exchange rate regime has been re-classified to a managed float from free float after violating International Monetary Fund articles and heavy official intervention, the IMF has said. Though fiscal prudence still seems to be out of reach, analysts say Sri Lanka’s central bank has started to tighten monetary policy […]
IMF asks Sri Lanka to pay close attention on economic reforms, amidst high inflation
December 22, 2006 (LBO) – The International Monetary Fund Friday asked Sri Lanka to go slow on hiring public servants and pay more attention to reduce inflation, implement public sector reforms and ensure subsidies are targeted better. In its annual country report, the IMF said Sri Lanka’s quest for 7-8 percent growth hinges on improved […]
S&’s B+ rating; negative outlook remains on war fears
December 21, 2006 (LBO) – International rating agency Standard & Poor’s Thursday retained Sri Lanka’s B+ rating, but warned the island needs to make headway to tackle reforms and make a tangible progress in settling its long running separatists conflict. In April S&P downgraded Sri Lanka’s credit outlook to negative from stable, amidst an escalation […]
New wage deal for estate workers to hike production costs by 23%: analysts
December 21, 2006 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s newly minted wage deal for estate workers is expected to hike cost of sales by up to 23 percent for plantation companies with high exposure to tea, analysts said Thursday. Plantation companies and estate worker trade unions agreed on a daily wage of 260 rupees on Tuesday, followings weeks […]
Tough Action
December 21 (LBO) – Trade unions of telco giant Sri Lanka Telecom have threatened to go on strike together with other public sector unions, if a wage dispute is not settled by December 28. Unions representing about 6000 non-executive workers at the state telecom giant have demanded a 17.5 percent wage hike for non-executive grades, […]
Digital Certification
December 21, 2006 (LBO) – Sri Lanka has started to digitize the issue of birth, marriage and death certificates, which has cut processing time to as little as ten minutes, officials said. Mooted by the Information Communication Technology Agency or ICTA last year, the project has already digitized around 2.2 million birth certificates belonging to […]
‘s global footprint deepens in 2006
BEIJING, Dec 21, 2006 (AFP) – From the oil fields of Africa to the living rooms of American homes and Asia’s shopping malls, virtually every part of the world felt the impact in 2006 of China’s ongoing, spectacular transformation. China’s successful courting of Africa during the year, which resulted in a strengthened alliance of some […]
Rising sea levels engulfing Indian world heritage islands
KOLKATA, Dec 21, 2006 (AFP) – Rising sea levels have submerged two islands in the Sunderbans, where tigers roam through mangrove forests in the Ganges River delta, and a dozen more islands are under threat, scientists say. A six-year study of the impact of future climate change on the world natural heritage site that India […]
Sri Lankan children abducted as rebels admit conscription mistake
COLOMBO, Dec 21, 2006 (AFP) – Armed men have kidnapped 16 boys and three girls in eastern Sri Lanka, a pro-rebel website reported Thursday, as Tiger guerrillas admitted a “mistake” in conscripting 21 others. The Tamilnet.com website said members of the breakaway Tiger faction known as the “Karuna group”, which is allegedly backed by the […]
Sri Lanka arrests Tigers escaping with fleeing civilians
Dec 21, 2006 (AFP) – Sri Lankan troops have arrested 15 Tamil Tiger rebels who pretended to be civilians fleeing the embattled eastern region ahead of a major military offensive, officials said Thursday. The men were detained while the security forces screened some 22,000 civilians who fled the Vakarai area in the eastern district of […]