Category: Industry
Short Changed
Nov 01 (LBO) – Sri Lanka™s consumer watchdog is stepping up raids in shops and supermarkets to weed our creative pricing and other offences, as Sri Lanka™s cost of living soars. Consumer prices in Sri Lanka went up to 17.2 percent in October from 15.4 percent in September, driven upwards by higher prices of cigarettes, […]
Post Office Banking
Nov 1, 2006 (LBO) – Banking giant HSBC tied up with Sri Lanka’s General Post Office on Wednesday to widen customer access to general banking facilities. Hong Kong and Shanghai Bank customers will be able to access their accounts through 15 General Post Offices (GPOs) which will offer cash and cheque deposits, credit card services […]
‘ Play
KUALA LUMPUR, Nov 1, 2006 (AFP) – Piracy declined globally this year, but Chittagong in Bangladesh was now the world’s most dangerous port, with a rise in piracy there and in some other key hotspots, a watchdog said Wednesday.The International Maritime Bureau (IMB) recorded 174 attacks on the high seas in the first nine months […]
‘ Association announces new awards
Oct 31, 2006 (AFP) – The Sri Lanka Cricketers’ Association (SLCA) on Tuesday announced an awards scheme for the country’s leading domestic and international players.“A lot of countries have such awards.This is something that we’ve been thinking of seriously and want to initiate,” Pramodaya Wickaramasinghe, president of the SLCA, told AFP. “Domestic cricket has been […]
Nest Egg
October 31, 2006 (LBO) – Sri Lanka is toying with the idea of starting a provident fund for migrant workers in an attempt to give countrymen a form of saving to live after retirement. Over 1.5 million Sri Lankans, who work and reside overseas, have remitted 1.539 billion dollars to the country during the eight […]
Aviation Debut
Oct 31, 2006 (LBO) – Sri Lanka plans to throw open the aviation corridor along the southern and eastern coast of the island for commercial traffic from next month, officials said Tuesday. As part of the ‘Ruhunu Open Skies’ policy which kicks off from Nov 19, authorities also plan to open up the skies for […]
Great Asian failures cause World Cup jitters
MOHALI, India, Oct 30, 2006 (AFP) – The failure of the four Asian teams to make the semi-finals of the Champions Trophy indicated trouble lay in store at the World Cup, experts said Monday. India joined Pakistan and Sri Lanka on the sidelines after being thrashed by world champions Australia by six wickets here Sunday […]
Peeping Toms
SYDNEY, Oct 30, 2006 (AFP) – New high-tech advances were making Internet crimes against children easier for paedophiles to commit and more difficult to detect, experts told a conference in Australia Monday.Faster broadband, DSL and cable connections have contributed to an increase in paedophile activity on the Internet, the 19th Computer Facilitated Crimes Against Children […]
Still Grounded
Oct 30, 2006 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s first budget airlines to fly international routes are struggling to get off ground, with approvals pending from Sri Lanka’s Civil Aviation Authority (CAA). Meanwhile, the country’s Civil Aviation Authority denied knowledge of a government sponsored budget carrier, which according to weekend media reports, hopes to start up operations. […]
Ponzi Track
Oct 29 (LBO) – Police have sought advice from the Attorney General on how to proceed in getting international help to track down two Indian nationals who ran a Ponzi-style pyramid scam in Sri Lanka. The unit was recently disbanded under controversial circumstances sometime after it caused the arrest of several Goldquest activists with the […]
Firm Hand
Oct 28 (LBO) – Rating agency Fitch Lanka affirmed DFCC Vardhana Bank’s AA-(lka) national long term rating on Friday, on the strength of parent company DFCC Bank. The principal factor supporting the rating of DFCC Vardhana Bank (DVB) is the strong implied support assumed to be available from its parent, DFCC Bank, Fitch Ratings Lanka […]
IRB scraps Asian World Cup qualifiers in Sri Lanka
TOKYO, Oct 27, 2006 (AFP) – The International Rugby Board has axed Colombo as the venue of the final Asian qualifying round for next year’s World Cup due to security problems, the Japan Rugby Football Union said Friday. The IRB will decide a new host city for the November 19-25 qualifying round for the finals […]