Author: lbostgadmin
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NEW DELHI, May 8, 2008 (AFP) – India’s government on Thursday halted trading in futures contracts for key staple foods and for rubber as it battled to avoid an election drubbing due to high inflation.The government suspended futures trade in basic foods such as chickpeas, soybean oil and potatoes for four months, saying the move […]
Majority of economists mislead over commodity bubble: survey
WASHINGTON, May 8, 2008 (AFP) – A surge in food and energy prices is being driven by fundamental market conditions, rather than an investment bubble, according to a Wall Street Journal survey of economists published Thursday.Fifty-one percent of the respondents said demand from China and India was the prime factor in soaring energy prices, and […]
Wrong response aggravates Asia food crisis: ADB report
MANILA, May 9, 2008 (AFP) – Asia’s response to tightening global grain supplies has aggravated food price inflation and uncertainty, according to an Asian Development Bank report released here Friday.Export bans and price floors imposed by grain exporters including China, Pakistan, Vietnam and India “have increased price volatility and uncertainty in the international rice markets,” […]
Sri Lankan troops capture key rebel town: defence ministry
May 9, 2008 (AFP) – Sri Lankan government forces captured Friday a key guerrilla town in the north of the island killing 15 Tamil rebels, the defence ministry said. Two soldiers also died in the fierce fighting as government troops took Adampan town in Mannar district, the ministry said. There was no immediate comment from […]
Sri Lanka attack helicopters support army offensive
May 9, 2008 (AFP) – Helicopter gunships provided air cover Friday for ground troops advancing into rebel areas of northern Sri Lanka where at least 30 rebel guerrillas were killed, the defence ministry said.Airforce Mi-24 helicopters flew support as soldiers moved on Alankulam, in Mannar district, killing 15 rebels and injuring 20, a ministry statement […]
Thai police seize nearly 21,000 fake passports
BANGKOK, May 9, 2008 (AFP) – Thai police Friday seized nearly 21,000 fake passports and arrested 12 people in what they described as their biggest-ever bust of a counterfeiting ring, a senior official said.Most of the 20,904 documents seized were fake passports that not yet been completed, Lieutenant General Chatchawal Suksomjit, commander of Immigration police […]
Sri Lanka bomb kills eight in east: military
May 9, 2008 (AFP) – At least eight people were killed and many more wounded when a powerful bomb exploded late Friday in eastern Sri Lanka a day before local elections in the area, military spokesman said.The blast occurred inside a crowded cafe in Amapara town, a defence ministry statement said, adding that the target […]
‘s displaced
May 8, 2008 (AFP) – A United Nations agency Thursday appealed for 36 million dollars to feed thousands of Sri Lankans displaced by fighting between troops and rebels amidst galloping global commodity prices. The World Food Programme (WFP) now feeds more than a million Sri Lankans, of whom 400,000 have been internally displaced. “The World […]
Iraq, Sri Lanka, Pakistan on journo killer list: rights body
VIENNA, May 8, 2008 (AFP) – Ninety-three journalists were killed in 2007, almost half of them in Iraq, the International Press Institute media watchdog said in its annual press freedom review published Thursday.The figure was the second highest in a decade after 2006, which saw 100 journalists’ deaths, according to IPI figures. Forty-two journalists died […]
” consumers, US trails: study
WASHINGTON, May 7, 2008 (AFP) – Inhabitants of Brazil and India have the world’s most environmentally-sustainable lifestyle and Americans have the least, according to a new study tracking global attitudes towards consumption and the environment. The survey by the National Geographic Society establishes a “Greendex” — an index measuring the economic impact of consumer lifestyle […]
Nepal lifts ban on Everest as Olympic torch summits
KATHMANDU, May 8, 2008 (AFP) – Scores of climbers waiting on the southern Nepalese approach to Mount Everest will be allowed to proceed after the Chinese Olympic torch team made it to the roof of the world, officials said Thursday. “Mountaineers will be allowed to move towards the summit from Friday,” said Prem Rai, Nepal’s […]