Author: lbostgadmin
” over worker attacks
Mar 17, 2008 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s state-run Rupavahini television station was running with a skeleton staff Monday after the management declared a ‘holiday’ overnight to avert a strike, union workers said. Sri Lanka Rupavahini Workers Union, whose president Anurasiri Hettige was attacked by club-wielding thugs last week, said only a few selected workers were […]
Sri Lanka says 33 killed in weekend fighting
COLOMBO, March 17, 2008 (AFP) – At least 31 Tamil Tiger rebels and two security personnel were killed in weekend clashes in Sri Lanka’s north, the defence ministry said Monday. Sri Lanka pulled out of a six-year truce with the LTTE in January, saying it had gained the upper hand militarily in the decades-long conflict. […]
Sri Lanka police gets hi-tech anti-terror boost from United States
Mar 17, 2008 (LBO) – The United States Department of State’s Bureau of Diplomatic Security will donate 220,000 dollars worth of antiterrorism equipment to Sri Lanka’s national police, a U.S. embassy statement said Monday. . “The purpose of the equipment is to sustain and enhance the critical capabilities of the security forces of Sri Lanka […]
‘Indies Bravo cleared to play against Sri Lanka
PORT OF SPAIN, March 16, 2008 (AFP) – Dwayne Bravo has been cleared to play for West Indies in the first Test against Sri Lanka, starting on Saturday in Guyana. Bravo was sidelined with a discomfort in his back for the sixth round of matches in the West Indies first-class championship, when his native Trinidad […]
” acts
WASHINGTON, March 16, 2008 (AFP) – In a rare Sunday action aimed at heading off fresh market upheaval, the Federal Reserve cut a key rate for direct loans to certain financial institutions and said it would offer immediate liquidity to the brokerage system.“Today’s moves by the Federal Reserve are the desperate acts of failing men. […]
JPMorgan Chase buys crisis-hit Bear Stearns for a song
WASHINGTON, March 16, 2008 (AFP) – US banking titan JPMorgan Chase said late Sunday it was taking over the crisis-hit investment bank and brokerage Bear Stearns for around 236 million dollars. President George W. Bush last month signed a 168-billion-dollar economic stimulus and the government and banks have backed a number of initiatives to help […]
Stocks plunge, oil and gold soars, in market turmoil
TOKYO, March 17, 2008 (AFP) – World markets saw another day of turmoil and investor jitters Monday as Asian shares plunged, oil hit a fresh high and the dollar fell to a new bottom after the near-collapse of US bank Bear Stearns. Dealers said an emergency cut by the US Federal Reserve to its discount […]
Europe must limit crisis damage amid stagflation threat: IMF chief
PARIS, March 17, 2008 (AFP) – The most urgent economic priority for European governments is to limit the damage from “the financial market crisis” amid threats of inflation and recession, the head of the IMF said here on Monday.Reforms could take different paths in different countries, and a consensus was needed, as had been achieved […]
Soft-pegged Gulf states in a fix over tumbling dollar
KUWAIT CITY, March 17, 2008 (AFP) – Oil-rich Gulf Arab states hit by high inflation are under pressure to revalue their currencies or drop the peg to the flagging US dollar, but de-pegging will come at a cost, analysts say.“If we want high oil prices we should not worry about the (high) price of tomatoes,” […]
Sri Lanka Allianz Insurance profit up, expands branch network
March 17, 2008 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s Allianz Insurance Lanka, a unit of German insurance giant Allianz SE, said pre-tax profit shot up 258 percent to 53.2 million rupees in the financial tyear ended December 31, 2007.The company said in a statement it made a net profit of 50 million rupees during the fiscal year […]
Telco Moves
March 17, 2008 (LBO) – India’s Mahanagar Telephone Nigam Ltd (MTNL) is looking for a joint venture partner to take up a 50 percent stake in Sri Lanka’s Suntel which it is negotiating to buy, India’s telecom regulator has said. The Department of Telecom (DOT) said in its annual report that MTNL wanted a joint […]
Banking Interest
Mar 18, 2008 (LBO) – Former Malaysian finance minister and entrepreneur Daim Zainuddin is hunting in Sri Lanka’s banking and energy sectors for opportunities, the business magnate said on a flying visit to Colombo. Daim said he is looking at either opening a bank or buying into an existing one, after coming to Sri Lanka […]