Author: lbostgadmin
Local Lube
July 18, 2008 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s diversified Laugfs Holdings has introduced lubricants to the local market, working capture 30 percent share in two years, top officials said. The lubricants were launched through the subsidiary of Laugfs Holdings, Laugfs Lubricants Limited. “As a fully Sri Lankan company, we are proud to enter a market which […]
Media group says Sri Lanka journalists harassed
July 18, 2008 (AFP) – Journalists covering Sri Lanka’s war with Tamil Tiger rebels are being harassed despite a government pledge to take action to protect the press, a rights group said Friday. The Free Media Movement (FMM) reported eight incidents of threats and intimidation, just two weeks after a ministerial committee was formed to […]
” despite higher growth
WASHINGTON, July 17, 2008 (AFP) – The IMF on Thursday lifted growth forecasts modestly for the world including the United States but said the global economy is in a “tough spot” due to rising inflation amid a slowdown. Global output is expected to climb 4.1 percent in 2008, up from its April projection of 3.7 […]
Oil rallies after falling 15 dollars in three days
LONDON, July 18, 2008 (AFP) – Oil prices rallied on Friday after three days of heavy falls that pulled the market down by 15 dollars on worries over economic growth and slowing demand, traders said. New York’s main oil contract, light sweet crude for August delivery, won back 2.39 dollars to 131.68. London’s Brent North […]
Sri Lankan air force jets bomb rebel arms supply boats
July 18, 2008 (LBO) – Sri Lankan air force jets bombed three large Tamil Tiger rebel “logistics vessels” off the northeastern Mullaithivu lagoon early Friday morning. Air force officials told LBO the rebels were trying to unload heavy weapons off their Mullaithivu jungle stronghold. Two of the rebel boats were destroyed in the air strike […]
Woman would-be suicide bomber caught in Afghanistan: officials
GHAZNI, July 18, 2008 (AFP) – Police arrested a woman and a 13-year-old child they alleged were suicide bombers planning to kill a provincial governor in central Afghanistan, officials said Friday. President Hamid Karzai pardoned the boy and handed him over to his parents. The pair were arrested late Thursday as they were fixing explosives […]
‘s Maskeliya to mechanise tea estates
July 19, 2008 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s Maskeliya Plantations is planning to introduce more mechanisation in its tea fields and factories to reduce dependence on a costly and troublesome labour force.The company has changed planting methods to make mechanised harvesting easier in the future, Maskeliya Plantations chairman Sena Yaddehige has said. The company, part of […]
Foreign Tap
July 18, 2008 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s state-run People’s Bank has started a new foreign exchange deposit scheme after the island’s central bank relaxed rules allowing domestic banking units to accept deposits from abroad. “The aim here is to open up investment opportunities to non residents interested in investing in Sri Lanka, thereby gaining value […]
Downgraded
July 18, 2008 (LBO) – Fitch Ratings Sri Lanka has downgraded Seylan Bank’s national long term credit rating by one notch to ‘BBB+(lka)’ and its subordinated debentures also by a notch to ‘BBB(lka)’. Both ratings are still in the investment grade category. At the new level, Fitch Ratings said the outlook was ‘Stable’. Fitch gave […]
Lure of gold leaves Olympics prone to doping cheats
LONDON, July 17, 2008 (AFP) – The Beijing Olympics will see the biggest anti-doping effort in history but the omens for a drug-free Games are not good.Alongside steroids and the blood-booster EPO, testers have promised developments in tracing substances such as human growth hormone, which are undetectable with standard testing methods. The chairman of the […]
Videogames getting more social
LOS ANGELES, July 17, 2008 (AFP) – Videogame makers are riding the social-networking wave with a flood of soon-to-be-released titles that let friends play online as teams and even create their own characters.The world’s big three console makers — Microsoft, Nintendo and Sony — are providing frameworks for players to connect with hardware and software […]
Asia ready for WTO deal but not at any price: analysts
TOKYO, July 17, 2008 (AFP) – Asia’s economic giants, under pressure to yield ground in key global free trade talks next week, are ready to open their markets to spur growth, but not at any cost, analysts said. Many of the region’s economies rely heavily on foreign trade to power their growth and the breakdown […]