Category: Industry
Mobile Football
May 12, 2009 (LBO) – Sri Lankan football fans now have the option to have interactive gaming sessions, download content and view English premiership football club Manchester United (MU) matches on the go with Bharti Airtel connections. An agreement signed between Bharti Airtel and MU would give Bharti users in India, Sri Lanka and Seychelles […]
Bootleg Ware
May 12, 2009 (LBO) – Software piracy in the Asia-Pacific region continued to grow last year with Sri Lanka the second worst offender, a study said Tuesday, AFP news agency reported. The piracy was driven by the rapid growth in computer sales and the availability of bootleg programmes online. AFP said the annual survey by […]
Intact Core
May 12, 2009 (LBO) – Fitch Ratings Lanka said it has confirmed the ‘AA+(lka) national long-term rating of Commercial Bank, Sri Lanka’s largest private bank, with a stable outlook. It said in a statement the rating reflects the bank’s sustained strong financial profile amongst local commercial banks. Fitch has also confirmed Commercial Bank’s individual rating […]
Sri Lanka apparel exports holding up
May 11, 09 (LBO) – Sri Lankan apparel exports are slowing as demand slumps with recession but a weaker rupee and continuing duty free access to Europe enable exporters to remain competitive, a senior official said.Rohan Masakorala, secretary general of the Joint Apparel Association Forum, an industry body, said the industry would have been in […]
Profit Outlook
LONDON, May 11, 2009 (AFP) – Global banking giant HSBC said on Monday that profits were rising strongly on the basis of first-quarter data and it saw “robust” growth in China and India, while remaining cautious for the year. First-quarter pre-tax profits were “well ahead” of the figure for the same period of last year, […]
Learning Centre
May 09, 2009 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s Institute of Technological Studies (ITS) which has formed a partnership with a foreign partnership to start a medical college says its output will be readily absorbed in to healthcare sector.ITS head E M S Edirisinghe, who is also the president of the Oasis, a private hospital says there […]
Bank Chase
May 9, 2009 (LBO) – Two Sri Lankan financial firms, Lanka Orix Leasing Company and Sampath Bank are most likely to have submitted bids for a one-third stake in Seylan Bank, market sources said. The successful bidder would have to inject at least 5.7 billion rupees to the bank in return for a 33 percent […]
Higher Margins
May 08, 2009 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s Nations Trust Bank (NTB) said group net profit for the March quarter rose 25 percent to 180 million rupees from a year ago.The bottom line was boosted by higher interest income as well as earnings from bond and forex trading although loan growth has slowed. NTB said in […]
Sri Lanka gambling on monsoon onset to avoid power cuts
May 8, 2009 (LBO) – Sri Lanka has not yet discussed power cuts, a senior government minister said as hydro storage at the country’s state run power utility ran towards a critical level which may trigger compulsory load shedding. CEB now has an installed thermal capacity of 1250MW and 1,100MW of hydro capacity. However the […]
Labour Rights
May 08, 2009 (LBO) – Sri Lankan labour unions have signed co-operation agreements with unions in Bahrain, Jordan and Kuwait to protect migrant workers™ rights, the International Labour Organisation (ILO) said.The agreements, based on an ILO model, are the first of their kind covering Asian migrant workers active in Arab states. The ILO said it […]
Swiss Re back to profitability in first quarter
ZURICH, May 7, 2009 (AFP) – The world’s biggest reinsurer Swiss Re said Thursday it made a profit of 150 million francs in the first quarter, returning to profitability after posting its biggest annual loss in 2008. “We are pleased to report that Swiss Re was able to return to profit in the first quarter […]
Digital Future
WASHINGTON, May 7, 2009 (AFP) – Old Media squared off against New Media on Wednesday as a US Senate panel examined the future of journalism in the digital age. The demise of the newspaper industry took center stage as a Texas newspaper publisher, a former Baltimore Sun reporter, a top executive from Google and the […]