Author: lbostgadmin
Sri Lanka tea prices seen heading for correction
June 19, 2008 (LBO) – Sri Lankan tea prices appear to be heading for a correction with many grades from the estates easing at this week’s Colombo auctions where a larger volume was on offer, brokers said. “In fact the previous record for the period was 138 million kg in 2006 in which year Sri […]
Banking Synergy
June 19, 2008 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s Hatton National Bank (HNB) and DFCC Bank have set up a joint venture investment bank that they said would be better able to compete in local and regional markets. The joint venture called Acuity Partners (Pvt) Ltd., with an initial capital of 500 million rupees, will see the […]
Not Correct
HONG KONG, June 18, 2008 (AFP) – China has no plans to try and dominate the shipping lanes of the Indian Ocean, its ambassador to India said in Hong Kong Wednesday. “We don’t have such an intention to establish a chain to encircle India,” said ambassador Zhang Yan at a lunch held by the Asia […]
Sri Lanka economic statistics questioned
June 18, 2008 (LBO) – Rosy growth figures put out by government outfits are suspect, a Sri Lankan think tank has said, calling for the collection and analysis of socio economic data to be entrusted to independent authorities. The Point Pedro Institute of Development, said the outlook for the island economy is bleak given rising […]
Updated Firefox browser eyes world download record
SAN FRANCISCO, June 18, 2008 (AFP) – Mozilla on Tuesday released an improved version of its Firefox web browser that has gained popularity as a free alternative to Microsoft’s ubiquitous Internet Explorer.Mozilla said Firefox 3 promises Internet surfing that is fast, secure, and easy to customize because it is designed to adapt to people’s online […]
New US military contractor overbilling scandal in Iraq looms
WASHINGTON, June 18, 2008 (AFP) – A civilian Pentagon official in charge of the largest US military contract in Iraq was removed from his job in 2004 after refusing to pay one billion dollars to KBR Inc. because the company was unable to credibly justify its expenses, the New York Times reported Tuesday. KBR is […]
Lower costs drawing users to mobile Internet: industry
SINGAPORE, June 18, 2008 (AFP) – Lower costs are drawing more and more users to access the Internet via their mobiles, and opening up opportunities for advertisers, industry players said. Flat rates for data are becoming increasingly common, and mobile devices for accessing Internet content are more widely available, said Andre Levisse, of management consulting […]
Malaysia to probe link to Sri Lanka bomb plot: report
KUALA LUMPUR, June 18, 2008 (AFP) – Malaysia will help Sri Lanka track down a suspect believed to be involved in a Tamil Tiger bomb plot in Colombo, a report said Wednesday. Home Minister Syed Hamid Albar, who oversees internal security, said authorities would investigate a report about the arrest of six members of the […]
Heavy fighting kills 26 in Sri Lanka: defence ministry
June 18, 2008 (AFP) – Sri Lankan government forces and Tamil Tiger rebels engaged in heavy fighting in the embattled north, leaving at least 23 rebels and three soldiers killed, the defence ministry said on Wednesday.“Heavy fighting was reported from Navathkulama, Periyamadu, Kayamoddai, Palamodai and Koviltkunchukulam areas according to military reports,” the defence ministry said […]
Italian police arrest 33 Tamils on terror charges
ROME, June 18, 2008 (AFP) – Italian police Wednesday arrested 33 Sri Lankan Tamils charged with belonging to the outlawed Tamil Tigers group fighting a separatist insurgency against the government in Colombo, an official said.Twenty-eight people were arrested in a series of raids on the mainland, suspected of membership of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil […]
Cricket Online
June 18, 2008 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s national cricket team captain Mahela Jayawardena has gone online with information technology company Cryptodyne to communicate with the island’s youth and raise funds for a cancer hospital project. “The most important thing for me was to communicate with younger kids,” Jayawardena told LBO at the inauguration of his […]
Ocean Outlook
June 18, 2008 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s Chamber of Construction Industry is pressing for the setting up of an institutional and legal framework to exploit the island’s offshore resources. “It appears that our economic survival will depend on our ability to exploit our offshore resources,” said Dakshitha Thalgodapitiya, chief executive of the Chamber of Construction […]