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Sri Lanka Central Bank shows first signs of ending loose monetary policy
November 30 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s Central Bank showed the first signs of ending its loose monetary policy after shunting the country into a balance of payments crisis and driving consumer inflation to 19.8 percent in November, as credit to government from the monetary authority climbed towards a billion dollars. In an unusual move, the […]
‘s inflation hits 19.8% as Central Bank credit climbs to Rs 100 bn
November 30, 2006 (LBO) – Consumer prices in Sri Lanka shot up to 19.8 percent in November from 17.2 percent in October, the Census & Statistics Department said Thursday, as Central Bank credit to government climbed to 100 billion rupees, and real interest rates were pushed further into negative territory. Economists had been predicting that […]
‘s Commercial Bank raises debt to fund expansion; meet new regulatory guidelines
November 29, 2006 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s Commercial Bank of Ceylon is coming out with a debt issue to meet Central Bank’s new capital requirement and fund ongoing credit expansions, officials said Wednesday. The island’s biggest private bank in terms of assets, is issuing a 1.5 billion rupee debenture with tenures ranging from 5-10 years. […]
Humble Philippine peso coin worth more abroad than at home
MANILA, Nov 29, 2006 (AFP) – With a face value of less than two US cents the humble Philippine one peso coin may be worth next to nothing at home but in metal-hungry China it spells big bucks. There is virtually nothing that can be bought with these coins and de la Cruz says that […]
Maldives and India keeps Sri Lankan leisure operators afloat
November 29, 2006 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s top hotel groups are increasingly relying on their Maldivian operations and investments into India for survival, as an escalation in violence deters visitors here “The projection for Sri Lanka is rather poor at least for the next few months. If the security situation improves hopefully, things will certainly […]
‘s new budget aims to salvage ruined economy
HARARE, Nov 29, 2006 (AFP) – Zimbabwe’s Finance Minister Herbert Murerwa walks the tightrope Thursday when he unveils the national budget of a food-hungry country groaning under record inflation and a ruined economy.Murerwa has the unenviable task of trying to stem 1,070.2 percent inflation and a free-falling currency in an economy which has shrunk by […]
Tamil Tigers isolated in bid for own state in Sri Lanka
Nov 29, 2006 (AFP) – A rebel bid for an independent Tamil state in Sri Lanka has run into outright international rejection with the United States leading calls for new peace talks and an end to bloodshed. A second round of peace talks this year collapsed in Geneva last month over the government refusal to […]
Food aid reaches besieged Sri Lanka town amid lull in fighting
Nov 29, 2006 (AFP) – A convoy of food on Wednesday reached 40,000 people trapped by weeks of heavy fighting in the island’s restive east as artillery exchanges died down, a relief official said. The first 20 trucks out of more than 100 vehicles arrived at the rebel-held town of Vakarai bringing food and medical […]
Independence-seeking Tigers already run shadow state
Nov 29, 2006 (AFP) – The Tamil Tigers have renewed a campaign to partition Sri Lanka, but the guerrillas already have a surreal separate “state” of their own.The Tigers usually sign off their communications with “thirst of the Tigers is Tamil Eelam”. But a former Sri Lankan defence minister said it was not a state […]
Horrible Dream
November 29, 2006 (LBO) – Indian fuel retailer Lanka IOC Ltd sank deeper into the red posting a 605 million net loss during the quarter ending Sept., as it is yet to collect billions of rupees from the Sri Lankan government for selling fuel below costs. A unit of the Fortune 500 Indian Oil Corp. […]