Author: lbostgadmin
Obama sweeps Clinton in South Carolina with black vote
COLUMBIA, South Carolina, Jan 26, 2008 (AFP) – Senator Barack Obama routed Hillary Clinton in South Carolina’s Democratic presidential primary on Saturday, riding massive African-American support to a critical win in his bid to become the first black US president. With 98 percent of precincts reporting, Obama led the former first lady 55 to 27 […]
‘s mobile network: a big brother surveillance tool?
DAVOS, Switzerland, Jan 27, 2008 (AFP) – Serious concerns were raised in Davos last week about the ability of the Chinese government to spy on the country’s 500 million mobile phone users.The head of China’s biggest mobile phone company, which has more than 300 million subscribers, stunned delegates by revealing that the company had unlimited […]
US town sues Wall St. banks for housing misery; Fed, gets away
CLEVELAND, Ohio, Jan 27, 2008 (AFP) – Hit by America’s mortgage crisis, the midwestern city of Cleveland has launched a legal battle against major Wall Street banks it blames for the devastation of its housing market. Cleveland Mayor Frank Jackson has accused a group of 21 big banks and financial firms of triggering local housing […]
Market turmoil fuels new gold rush as paper money inflation comes to fore
SYDNEY, Jan 27, 2008 (AFP) – Turbulence on world stock markets has fuelled a new gold rush, sending high-tech traders in search of the same “barbaric” treasure mankind has lusted after for millennia. It was British economist John Maynard Keynes who called gold a “barbaric relic” early last century, but modern investors are showing the […]
Sri Lanka to scrap country-wide index after inflation jumps to 26.2-pct
Jan 25, 2008 (LBO) — Sri Lanka will scrap a country-wide price index that showed a record 26.2 percent inflation in November 2007, officials said.“By releasing several indices, or making public aware of several indices, problems have come up,” Sri Lanka’s statistics chief Suranjana Vidyaratne said. “Though we have done this as a technical subject […]
Sri Lanka sees build up of bipartisan support for inflation targeting
Jan 26, 2008 (LBO) — A senior opposition lawmaker in Sri Lanka has expressed support for inflation targeting, in a build up of bipartisan backing for legal changes needed to take the country towards low inflation.. “If you print money inflation is going to go up,” parliamentarian Kabir Hashim, an economic policy heavyweight in the […]
‘s Tamil Tigers should not walk out of talks half-way: envoy
WASHINGTON, Jan 25, 2008 (AFP) – Sri Lanka said Friday it could not return to the negotiating table with the Tamil Tigers unless there was a guarantee from the rebels that they would not walk away from the talks. The Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) must also be prepared to compromise on its demand […]
Sri Lankan ex-warlord jailed in Britain
LONDON, Jan 25, 2008 (AFP) – A former Sri Lankan Tamil guerrilla leader was jailed for nine months in Britain Friday after being found guilty of having false documents, the Home Office said.Vinayagamoorthi Muralitharan, also known as Colonel Karuna, was sentenced at Isleworth Crown Court in London after admitting the charge at a lower court […]
Sri Lanka journalist knifed, media rights bodies appalled
Jan 26, 2008 (LBO) – Media rights bodies have expressed outrage after a journalist attached to a state-run television channel was ambushed on his way home and knifed by two attackers. Lal Mawalage of the Rupavahini television channel had spoken live on behalf of employees when labour minister Mervyn de Silva stormed the newsroom with […]
Sri Lanka defence chief calls for ban on Tamil Tigers: report
Jan 26, 2008 (AFP) – Sri Lanka’s defence secretary has called for a ban on the Tamil Tigers and said the ongoing military campaign was aimed at destroying the rebels’ top leaders, a report said Saturday.Rajapakse, who is President Mahinda Rajapakse’s younger brother, said the military had started a campaign to capture rebel-held areas in […]
Banks may need another US$143 bln to deal with downgrades: study
PARIS, Jan 25, 2008 (AFP) – Major world banks might need to raise a further 143 billion dollars in capital to confront the impact of ratings downgrades to bond insurers, a study by Barclays Capital warned Friday.A downgrade to the bond insurer would therefore force banks, which have already revalued billions of dollars in assets […]
Davos looks ahead to a year of trading dangerously
DAVOS, Switzerland, Jan 26, 2008 (AFP) – World business leaders and political powerbrokers wrapped up their annual gathering in Davos on Saturday by revisiting the issue of global economic uncertainty that clouded this year’s event. “I would like to turn our moral compact into legally binding contracts. Then my advice to the developing world? Get […]