Category: Industry
Historic Rescue
NEW YORK, September 17, 2008 (AFP) – The US Federal Reserve announced Tuesday it would make an unprecedented 85-billion-dollar rescue loan to save insurance giant American International Group from bankruptcy amid fears of a catastrophic meltdown on financial markets. The move came after federal officials reportedly tried but failed to persuade private firms over the […]
Global Link
Sept 17, 2008 (LBO) – Sri Lankan investors in Vietnam could bank at a new fully owned branch in the country after authorities gave the go ahead to incorporate a local unit in the country, the banking group’s Colombo office said. “We feel that this is strategically important for the local investors and corporates who […]
Leasing Trends
Sept 17, 2008 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s People’s Leasing Company (PLC) said net profit rose seven percent to 803 million rupees in the year ending March 31, 2008 and that it was diversifying its business to include ship finance. To receive instant alerts from LBO on your Dialog mobile type ‘lbo’ and send to 678 […]
Port Race
Sept 16, 2008 (LBO) – Sri Lanka is hoping to call fresh bids for a container terminal concession in an expanded port in Colombo in October, a government minister said, after an earlier bidding round was abandoned partway through the process. A breakwater to expand Colombo port is now being built with Asian Development Bank […]
Bunker Losses
Sept 15, 2008 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s John Keells Holdings says its bunkering unit lost 20 million rupees (184,000 US dollars), because it was unable to remove all oil stocks by a court deadline of September 12, after it was ordered to vacate a tank farm.The company said oil stocks valued 45 million rupees (416,000 […]
Credit Shuffle
Sept 15, 2008 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s state-run petroleum utility Ceylon Petroleum Corporation (CPC) is covering overdue government accounts with an Iranian credit, but its finances are too fragile to cut prices, a top official said.Iran has given the CPC a rolling credit to cover four months of imports interest free and another three months […]
Sri Lanka Taj unit gets new manager
Sept 15, 2008 (LBO) – India’s Taj Group says it has appointed a new manager to the 120-room Taj Airport Garden Hotel in Seeduwa, north of the Sri Lankan capital Colombo, which is one of three hotels run by the group in the island. Mathew C Thomas has taken over as general manager from Sanjay […]
Latest Blow
WASHINGTON, September 15, 2008 (AFP) – US investment giant Lehman Brothers announced its bankruptcy early Monday as the Federal Reserve and major global banks moved to shore up financial market shaken by the housing and mortgage crisis.The Wall Street Journal warned in an editorial Monday that Americans should brace themselves for “a very rough Monday.” […]
New Printing
FRANKFURT, September 15, 2008 (AFP) – The European Central Bank (ECB) and the Bank of England (BoE) poured billions into money markets on Monday to ensure sufficient liquidity in the wake of the collapse of Lehman Brothers.He said he thought the Fed would try to avoid this step, which would be a “reversal of the […]
Pricing Politics
Sept 14, 2008 (LBO) – Sri Lankan fuel users are suffering from the lack of a transparent price formula and severe politicization of pricing that had sometimes caused high inflation and balance of payments troubles in the island. Diesel users are mostly commercial enterprises and super rich sections of society including politicians who are allowed […]
Bunker Move
Sept 14, 2008 (LBO) – Lanka Marine Services (LMS), a unit of John Keells Holdings selling bunkers in Colombo port, has moved out most of its stocks from a tank farm by the court ordered deadline of September 12, a media report said.The Sunday Times quoting sources at Sri Lanka’s revenue office said, it had […]
Sri Lanka power utility to start net metering
Sept 11, 2008 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s power distributors are to start net metering, where customers would be able to generate small amounts of renewable energy, ‘export’ to the national grid, and only pay for the ‘net’ amount of electricity used.A note to cabinet said the proposal would encourage customers to generate their own electricity […]