Category: Industry
High Stakes II
Oct 17, 2007 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s Aitken Spence conglomerate Wednesday defended its claim to have made the highest bid for Colombo port’s new container terminal in partnership with PSA Corp. An Aitken Spence spokesman said a statement by rival bidder Hutchison Port Holdings (HPH) was misleading and an attempt to change the rules for […]
Poor Health
Oct 17, 2007 (LBO) – Lanka Hospitals Corporation said its net loss for the first quarter of the 2008 financial year ended June 30 shot up 148 percent to 35.5 million rupees from 14.3 million in the same period last year. The Harry Jayawardene controlled company, which owns the Apollo Hospital, said in results reported […]
Sri Lanka tourism slumps throws thousands out of work
Oct 17, 2007 (LBO) – Five thousand experienced hotel workers are out of work due to the tourism downturn, according to the managers of Sri Lanka’s top hotel school who are now training people to find work abroad. Hotels are unable to hire new staff as tourist arrivals have fallen 22 percent in the first […]
Port Bids
Oct 17, 2007 (LBO) – The Sri Lanka Ports Authority (SLPA) Wednesday dismissed conflicting claims by rival bidders for a new terminal contract, saying they were inaccurate as bids were still being evaluated. “No one can claim to be the highest bidder,” said Nalin Aponso, deputy chief manager for communication and PR at the SLPA. […]
Sri Lanka apparel firm bags fair trade tag
Oct 16, (2007) A woven fabric processor of the Sri Lanka apparel giant Brandix has won fair trade certification, allowing the group to penetrate niche markets, the company said.Brandix Textiles had received the Fair Trade and Organic certifications from the Institute for Marketecology (IMO) of Switzerland. The Fair Trade and Organic certifications are an important […]
‘s Heathrow
LONDON, Oct 15, 2007 (AFP) – Two aircraft collided on the ground at London’s Heathrow Airport on Monday evening, an airport spokesman told AFP.“Heathrow Airport can confirm that two aircraft were involved in an incident on the ground earlier this evening,” the spokesman said. “There are no reported injuries and passengers are in the process […]
Sri Lanka seeks to lure visitors with local cuisine
Oct 16, 2007 (LBO) – Sri Lankan cuisine should be promoted as a new attraction for tourists that will give the local tourism industry a better edge and greater yields, officials with the tourism bureau say.Sri Lanka, with an array of different food items has ignored the qualities of food and has not paid enough […]
Minor Injuries
Oct 16, 2007 (LBO) – As global markets are going through a painful hangover from a US housing bubble, the head of a ‘big four’ accounting firm says Asia will remain largely unaffected. Jim Turley: I don’t think there is going to be a lasting effect of this on compliance cost because institutions that are […]
Bouncing Cheques
Oct 15, 2007 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s Central Bank said Monday that cheque returns were too high and warned customers that issuing cheques without funds was an offence. The total value of returned cheques in a day is “substantial”, amounting to over half a billion rupees, a bank statement said. Out of the total number […]
Unclaimed Prizes
Oct 15, 2007 (LBO) – Though 25,000 state workers are eligible to buy duty-slashed vehicles, less than half of those entitled have so far applied for a car, officials said.Long waiting lists at agents for popular brands as well as the high cost of new cars is said to be deterring public servants from cashing […]
High Stakes
Oct 15, 2007 (LBO) – Hutchison Port Holdings (HPH) Monday dismissed claims by a rival bidder to have made the highest bid to build and operate Colombo’s planned new container terminal. HPH, one of the world’s biggest port operators, said it rejected as “somewhat presumptuous and inaccurate,” claims by Sri Lanka’s Aitken Spence conglomerate that […]
Big Airbus
TOULOUSE, France, Oct 15, 2007 (AFP) – Airbus was to make the first delivery of its A380 superjumbo jet on Monday to Singapore Airlines, with elation and relief expected at a ceremony in southern France to mark the occasion. The heads of both companies were expected to hail a major advance in air travel as […]