All Blogs
Sri Lanka troops shell Tiger targets amid lull in Jaffna
Aug 23, 2006 (AFP) – Sri Lankan troops fired rockets and artillery at suspected Tamil Tiger positions in the island’s northeast Wednesday amid a lull in fighting in the northern peninsula of Jaffna, the military said.More than 60,000 people have been killed in the Tamil separatist conflict in the past three decades. Troops in the […]
Sri Lanka relief ship sails for Jaffna after loading delays
Aug 23, 2006 (AFP) – A Sri Lankan cargo ship has finally started a delayed two-day voyage with food aid for thousands stranded by fighting in the embattled Jaffna peninsula, aid agencies said Wednesday.The ship left the port of Colombo late Tuesday under the Red Cross flag with aid for some 350,000 people cut off […]
Sri Lanka fighting set for long haul: analysts
Aug 23, 2006 (AFP) – Sri Lanka’s latest fighting could drag on despite international pressure as the government and Tiger rebels seek the military upper hand before entering peace talks, officials and analysts say.The bloodiest battles in four and a half years since a truce came into effect has claimed heavy losses on both sides, […]
Breaking Barriers
August 22, 2006 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s long-suffering fund management industry is working with market regulators to promote closed-end funds and give an exit route to investors by listing units on the Colombo Stock Exchange, a senior official said Tuesday. In 2004, the Securities & Exchange Commission unveiled a new code for mutual funds which […]
Big Step
August 22, 2006 (LBO) – Commercial Bank of Ceylon Tuesday posted a 69 percent rise in group profits for the six months to June boosted by growth in net interest income and foreign exchange gains. Sri Lanka’s most profitable commercial bank said group post tax profits advanced 68.8 percent to 1,475.1 million rupees over the […]
Four conferences in Sri Lanka cancelled on security fears
August 22, 2006 (LBO) – Four global conferences to be hosted by Sri Lanka later this year have been cancelled on security fears, though the island is confident it can woo at least half a million tourists by December. The events, including a textile conference, were to host at least a thousand people, Prathap Ramanujam, […]
Sri Lanka rubber prices fall behind India, Thailand
August 22, 2006 (LBO) – Rubber prices in Sri Lanka have been dropping since July, following stiff competition from regional producers like Thailand and India. “Thailand being one of the biggest suppliers of rubber in the region has had better volumes from their crops, resulting in a drop in Sri Lanka’s rubber price,” Damitha Perera, […]
Still Stuck
August 22, 2006 (LBO) – Sri Lankan manufacturers of vegetable oil vanaspati say unsold shipments are stuck in Indian ports and in local factories after New Delhi unilaterally capped duty free imports. Exports earnings, the association says, are in the region of 700,000 dollars a day. Some 200 containers are stuck in Indian ports since […]
‘s economic woes
HARARE, Aug 22, 2006 (AFP) – Zimbabwe converted to a new currency Tuesday in a move aimed at stemming runaway inflation but analysts said it would do little to halt a downward spiral in the southern African country’s economy.The Reserve Bank slashed three zeros from its currency on July 31 and set a 21-day ultimatum […]
Battle for Jaffna kills 646: Sri Lanka military
Aug 22, 2006 (AFP) – At least 159 Sri Lankan soldiers were killed and 485 were wounded while resisting a Tamil Tiger offensive against the northern peninsula of Jaffna, the military said Tuesday.During the 11-day offensive, the rebel Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) lost at least 487 of their fighters, military spokesman Prasad Samarasinghe […]