Author: lbostgadmin
UN Call
December 11, 2009 (AFP) – A top United Nations envoy asked Sri Lanka on Friday to release detained Tamil Tiger child soldiers and urged the authorities to re-unite them with their families.The government allowed tens of thousands of civilians held in the IDP camps to go in and out freely from December 1, but aid […]
Fake
BANGKOK, December 11, 2009 (AFP) – Thai authorities have arrested five people for producing and smuggling more than 300 fake EU passports and other official European documents, officials said Friday.“He (Fathi) confessed that he had trafficked stolen passports into Thailand more than 20 times,” the statement said. The DSI said Thailand is a known hub […]
Sri Lanka in push for solar energy
Dec 12, 2009 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s renewable energy promotion agency is in a new drive to push larger solar power plants connected to the national grid in Sri Lanka though the technology is still relatively expensive.In rural Sri Lanka small off-grid plants are being sold by a number of private firms and solar hot […]
VW starts production of first Indian-made Polo
NEW DELHI, December 12, 2009 (AFP) – Volkswagen, Europe’s biggest carmaker, began production of its popular mass-market Polo hatchback in India on Saturday and said it aimed to grab up to 10 percent of the rapidly growing market. But the Polo is seen by analysts as a key model for Volkswagen to penetrate the market […]
Rating Trend
Dec 11, 2009 (LBO) – Fitch Ratings Lanka confirmed the long-term rating of BB+(lka) and a stable outlook for Trade Finance and Investments (TFI) Limited, a firm specializing in three wheeler vehicle finance. Provision coverage for NPLs was 21 percent at end of the first half 2010 on account of 75 percent of NPLs falling […]
Sri Lanka business says worker training key in former war zone
Dec 11, 2009 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s former war zones in the north and east need vocational training to raise worker productivity, corporate leaders have told a visiting American diplomat.Better water supply and cold storage facilities to bring fresh produce to markets were also critical requirements, they told US Assistant Secretary of State Robert Blake […]
Oil Bids
Dec 11, 2009 (LBO) – Sri Lanka is ready to calls for bids for oil exploration in more blocks in the island’s north-west as well as the south, Petroleum Resources Minister A H M Fowzie said.Fowzie said oil and gas discoveries on the Indian side of the Mannar Basin meant there was a better chance […]
Indian navy rescues coastguard abducted on Sri Lanka trawler
NEW DELHI, December 11, 2009 (AFP) – The Indian navy on Friday rescued two coastguard personnel abducted earlier this week by Sri Lankan fishermen, a spokesman said.Navy spokesman P.V.S Satish said the two were among 14 coastguard officers who had boarded seven Sri Lankan trawlers found fishing in Indian waters on Tuesday. They had been […]
India sticks with stimulus despite good growth
NEW DELHI, December 11, 2009 (AFP) – India’s car sales are racing ahead, mobile phone sales are booming and share prices have rocketed, but policy makers are signalling a go-slow approach to ending economic stimulus and hiking rates.Even with inflationary pressure returning, central bankers and the government are suggesting only a gradual roll-back of stimulus […]
Knowledge Drive
Dec 11, 2009 (LBO) – Asia’s drive towards a knowledge economy is being helped by expanding and cheaper telecoms but fresh evidence-based policy interventions could speed this up, regulators and academics said at a policy forum in Colombo. Avoiding Miss-steps “The biggest contribution from research is not what is adopted, but what is not adopted,” […]
Offshore Edge
Dec 11, 2009 (LBO) – Sri Lankan, which is trying to attract more information technology outsource business, said a recent survey shows an increasing number of British small and medium enterprises (SMEs) are considering outsourcing work. One in five British SMEs are considering offshoring in 2010 as they seek to reduce labour costs to enable […]
Rate Rap
Dec 11, 2009 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s Central Bank has asked banks to sharply reduce interest rates charged on credit cards, saying they had enough room to do so as interest rates in general had fallen.The Central Bank said in November that Treasury bill yields have fallen 947 to 950 basis points at primary auctions […]