Best Prices

Sept 08, 2008 (LBO) – Sri Lanka cellco Mobitel, a unit of fixed access carrier Sri Lanka Telecom is readying to call proposals to buy international bandwidth from cheaper suppliers, because its parent was too expensive, an official said.“We are not happy with the prices they extend to us,” Mobitel chief executive Suren Amarasekera told […]

Sri Lanka stocks remain unchanged, Monday

Sept 08, 2008 (LBO) – Sri Lanka stocks closed flat Monday with power and energy sector dominating trade, provisional data from the Colombo Stock Exchange showed. Heavyweight Dialog Telekom closed flat at 11.00 while state operator Sri Lanka Telecom closed flat at 45.00. The John Keells Holdings share lost 2.25 to close lower at 95.00. […]

‘s inflation tops 27-pct

TEHRAN, September 7, 2008 (AFP) – Iran’s inflation hit 27.6 percent in the calendar month of Mordad that ended August 21, the central bank said Sunday, as Iranians were again battered by rising prices of basic foodstuffs and goods. The consumer price index (CPI) in urban areas increased by 27.6 percent compared to the same […]

White House race a cliffhanger as home stretch looms

WASHINGTON, September 7, 2008 (AFP) – The historic, twisting, cliffhanger White House race is swinging into an eight-week sprint to the finish, with John McCain and Barack Obama locked up in the polls and bare knuckle-rhetoric flying. Whatever happens, the face of American politics is about to be remade. Democrat Obama, 47, would be the […]

McCain backs government takeover of mortgage giants

ALBUQUERQUE, September 6, 2008 (AFP) – Republican presidential hopeful John McCain backed a government takeover of two mortgage giants Saturday while his Democratic rival warned that taxpayers should not bail out their shareholders. Asked whether Freddie Mac and Fanny Mae — which underwrite millions of US mortgages — should be placed in a conservatorship, McCain […]

Sri Lanka steels for bloodier battles as monsoon rains set in

September 7, 2008 (AFP) – Sri Lankan troops have moved closer to dismantling the Tamil Tigers’ de facto state after months of heavy clashes with the rebels, but the battles ahead could be even bloodier, officials and analysts say.Monsoon rains expected to intensify in the coming weeks could bog down tanks and make artillery less […]

Pathbreakers II

Sept 07, 2008 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s educational reality series, Pathbreakers by ETV has planned its second season named ‘Aspirations Conquest’ with a tie up with Aspirations Education centre, the organizers said. The show will consist of 11 episodes that will telecast over the months of October, November and December in the year 2008. In […]

Lending Trends

Sept 07, 2008 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s Union Bank has reported strong loan growth in the six months ending June 30, bucking the industry trend, although net profit fell marginally, according to published results and a bank statement. To receive instant alerts from LBO on your Dialog mobile type ‘lbo’ and send to 678 Performing […]

”’ inflation in new trouble, as Thailand dumps core

Sept 06, 2008 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s ‘core’ inflation index, which is claimed to be responsive to central bank action, continued to edge up in August, even as ‘headline’ inflation fell amidst tight policy, and Thailand got ready to scrap core inflation targeting.A statement from the statistics unit of Sri Lanka’s central bank said a […]

Fighting inflation best way to deal with financial crisis: ECB chief

FRANKFURT, September 5, 2008 (AFP) – A monetary policy based on fighting inflation is the European Central Bank’s best weapon against volatile commodity prices and the ongoing financial crisis, ECB president Jean-Claude Trichet said on Friday.“We are committed to deliver price stability and will do what’s necessary to deliver price stability,” Trichet told a conference […]

Sri Lanka says another 24 Tigers killed in new fighting

September 6, 2008 (AFP) – At least 24 Tamil Tigers were killed in fresh fighting as Sri Lankan troops struggled to dismantle the guerrillas’ mini-state in the island’s embattled north, the government said Saturday.The rebels were killed Friday in three separate battle areas, the defence ministry said in a statement, adding that one government trooper […]

Oil prices at US$108 after US inventory data

LONDON, September 4, 2008 (AFP) – Oil prices fell on Thursday as the market digested the latest weekly snapshot of US energy stockpiles which recorded a bigger than-expected drop. New York’s main contract, light sweet crude for delivery in October, slipped 50 cents to 108.85 dollars a barrel. Brent North Sea crude for October dropped […]

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