Moody guarded over Jayasuriya return

LONDON, May 12, 2006 (AFP) – Sri Lanka coach Tom Moody gave a cautious welcome to the prospect of veteran opener Sanath Jayasuriya coming out of Test retirement to join the squad ahead of this month’s second Test against England. soon as possible,” Sri Lanka’s chief selector Asantha de Mel said in Colombo on Thursday. […]

‘s inflation rate crosses 1,000-percent threshold

HARARE, May 12, 2006 (AFP) – Zimbabwe said on Friday its inflation rate had crossed the landmark 1,000-percent threshold, arguably the highest in the world, with economists expressing pessimism about any major improvement soon. The Central Statistical Office said the year-on-year inflation rate in April was 1,042.9 percent, up 129.3 percentage points from March, in […]

Violence, oil cast shadow on Sri Lanka

May 11 (Dow Jones)–The course of Sri Lanka’s peace process has become crucial to the country’s economy, as high oil prices threaten double-digit inflation. High oil prices may also force the central bank to hold back an anticipated cut in interest rates, which could have spurred the economy and offset some of the pressure caused […]

New Wing

May 11 (LBO) – The government has given state oil giant Ceylon Petroleum Corporation the go ahead for a feasibility study to double capacity at its Sapugaskanda refinery. “We have got Cabinet approval for a feasibility study as well as a million dollars to fund the study,” M H M Fowzie, Minister for Petroleum Resources […]

Breaking Ground

May 11 (LBO) – Sri Lanka began construction of it first coal power plant on Thursday in Norachcholai on the island’s West Coast, amidst protests by environmental lobbies. The 300 Megawatt plant is being built at a cost of 455 million dollars, largely funded by a 20-year concessionary loan from the China Export and Import […]

Sri Lanka vows to crack down on killings to save peace bid

May 11, 2006 (AFP) – Sri Lanka has vowed tough action to stem a wave of killings following the latest Japanese bid to save faltering peace efforts, diplomats and government officials said Thursday.The Sri Lankan government assured Japan’s special peace envoy Yasushi Akashi that it will halt excesses and end the “culture of impunity,” a […]

Tigers sink two navy gunboats: monitors

May 11, 2006 (AFP) – Sri Lanka’s Tamil Tiger rebels sank two navy gunboats in separate incidents and were firing at a ferry transporting some 700 troops, a spokesman for the Scandinavian truce monitors told AFP.“They are now attacking Pearl Cruiser and are putting the lives of our monitors in danger,” Olafsdottir said, adding that […]

Sri Lanka resumes air strikes as Tigers sink gunboats

May 11, 2006 (AFP) – Tamil Tiger rebels sank two Sri Lankan navy gunboats in sea battles on Thursday and attacked a ferry transporting 700 soldiers, Scandinavian truce monitors said, as the military hit back with air strikes.The military called in jets to bomb suspected Tamil Tiger positions after the sinkings at two locations along […]

Air strikes on Sri Lanka rebels after sea battle leaves 45 dead

May 11, 2006 (AFP) – Sri Lanka’s military hit back with air strikes on Thursday after a fierce sea battle with Tamil Tiger rebels left at least 45 dead, according to the navy, and punched another hole in a flimsy three-year truce.In January, suspected Tamil Tiger rebels blew up another Dvora gunboat, killing 15 sailors, […]

‘s Jayasuriya heads for England

May 11, 2006 (AFP) – Veteran batsman Sanath Jayasuriya will join his Sri Lanka team-mates in England later this week after reversing his decision to quit, chief selector Asantha de Mel said on Thursday. The left-hander, 36, will arrive in England well ahead of the second Test in Edgbaston from May 25 and stay for […]

Archaeologist sweats as fierce sun savages Taj Mahal

AGRA, India, May 11, 2006 (AFP) – An Indian archaeologist is praying for a respite from a heat wave engulfing the Taj Mahal town of Agra, warning that heavy dust in the dry air could permanently scar the marble monument to love.Temperatures hovered this week at 45 Celsius (115 degrees Fahrenheit) in the city, 200 […]

World Bank finds explosive rise in carbon trading

WASHINGTON, May 10, 2006 (AFP) – The global market for carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions — an innovative offshoot of the Kyoto pact on global warming — has shown explosive growth, the World Bank said Wednesday.But in a new report, the World Bank also noted that recent events in the European Union’s Emissions Trading System (ETS) […]

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