Category:
Iceland and Norway resume whale meat exports to Japan
REYKJAVIK, June 2, 2008 (AFP) – Iceland and Norway resumed whale meat exports to Japan this year after an 18-year interruption, industry representatives from both Scandinavian countries said.“Iceland and Norway resumed exporting whale meat to Japan,” Gunnar Bergmann Jonsson, president of the Icelandic association representing Minke whale hunters, told AFP. “We (Iceland) have exported to […]
WTO says no point in further talks on industrial products access
GENEVA, June 2, 2008 (AFP) – The WTO’s chief negotiator on freeing up access for industrial products said Monday he sees no point in further talks until member states are ready to compromise over tariffs and other key sticking points. The 152 members of the WTO need to “work among themselves to bridge their positions […]
Well Well
SINGAPORE, June 3, 2008 (AFP) – Oil prices eased in Asian trade Tuesday on continuing concerns over global energy demand, dealers said.“On the supply side, we are urging all oil producing countries to open oil markets to foreign investment, which would support faster and more efficient growth,” he said in a speech in the oil-rich […]
Sri Lanka flood death toll rises; 250,000 displaced
June 3, 2008 (AFP) – The death toll from a week of torrential rain across Sri Lanka has risen to 17 and more than 253,000 people have been driven from their homes, the island’s disaster management centre said Tuesday.Sri Lanka depends on the monsoons for irrigation and power generation but they frequently cause loss of […]
Sri Lanka will not try forcible curbing of fuel use: minister
June 3, 2008 (LBO) – Sri Lanka will not try to impose laws on productive sectors of the economy to curb oil use, but is aiming to cut energy use in the state sector by about 20 percent, a government minister said. Siyambalapitiya said the trains, state buses and the military consumed substantial amounts of […]
Sri Lanka stocks weaken further
June 2, 2008 (LBO) – Sri Lanka stocks closed 0.43 percent lower Monday, dragged down by the fall in prices of index-heavy shares like John Keells Holdings and Sri Lanka Telecom, brokers said. The All Share Price Index (ASPI) closed 0.43 percent (10.95 points) lower at 2,527.41 points while the Milanka Index shed 0.53 percent […]
Foreign Deposits
June 2, 2008 (LBO) – Sri Lanka has allowed commercial banks to raise deposits from foreigners for their domestic banking units, from June 02, the Central Bank said. Analysts say the ability to raise more deposits (borrow abroad) may fill the dearth of dollars in the banking system which has helped create an interest rate […]
Regional Push
May 02, 2008 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s central bank said financial institutions would have to open two branches outside the fast growing Western province to be allowed to open one in the area, which also contains the capital, Colombo. “Further, increased availability of bank branches and other outlets would enable people in the regions to […]
Lease Rate
June 02, 2008 (LBO) – Fitch Sri Lanka has lifted the credit watch on Commercial Leasing Company (CLC), following a take-over, and confirmed its ‘A-(lka)’ rating with a ‘stable’ outlook. CLC was taken over by Lanka Orix Leasing Company (LOLC) last month and was put on credit watch on May 16. The resolution of the […]
Rating Code
June 02, 2008 (LBO) – A new code of conduct for rating agencies has been published by a grouping of securities regulators after the sub-prime credit collapse, which is also applicable in Sri Lanka, an official said. The International Organization of Securities Commissions (IOSCO) of which the Securities and Exchange Commission of Sri Lanka (SEC) […]
Sri Lankan hurt in Bangladesh hotel blast
DHAKA, June 1, 2008 (AFP) – Two explosions rocked a hotel in central Dhaka late Sunday, injuring 16 people and sparking a large fire, police said. A Sri Lankan man, who was staying on the hotel’s 6th floor, was badly burned over 90 percent of his body when the blast occurred at about 9:30 pm […]
Airlines to lose $2.3bn this year, says industry body
ISTANBUL, June 2, 2008 (AFP) – Air travel industry body IATA predicted Monday that airlines would lose 2.3 billion dollars this year dramatically reversing an earlier prediction of profits nearly twice this figure. “Oil skyrocketing above US 130 per barrel has brought us into uncharted territory.Add in the weakening global economy and this is yet […]