Sri Lanka agri-business call for easier land access

Nov 10, 2009 (LBO) – A top Sri Lankan farming firm has called for easier access to land for commercial agriculture in the quest to transform subsistence farmers into viable agri-businesses. Samantha Ranatunga, chief executive of the listed Chemical Industries (Colombo), said improvements in the legal, regulatory and policy environment were needed to promote private […]

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MARKAPAR, November 9, 2009 (AFP) – In a rural Maoist stronghold in central India, off limits to the police and government officials, people are queuing for photos they hope might save their lives.Indian security forces are set to launch a major offensive against Maoist rebels whose insurgency has escalated across the country, posing a challenge […]

‘s fast-growing telecom sector dials up trouble

NEW DELHI, November 8, 2009 (AFP) – India is still adding a staggering 15 million new mobile phone connections a month but the world’s fastest-growing cellular market has hit rough waters.A cut-throat price war is hammering down call charges, putting pressure on telecom companies’ earnings and share prices, and threatening a bruising shakeout in a […]

Wider Net

NEW YORK, November 6, 2009 (AFP) – Law enforcement officials in New York announced Thursday charges against 14 people in a widening probe into the largest ever alleged hedge-fund insider trading scheme on Wall Street.US Attorney Preet Bharara and New York’s assistant FBI director Joseph Demarest said the accused took part in insider trading schemes […]

Sri Lanka Tata unit shrugs off wage hike cost

Nov 06, 2009 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s Watawala Plantations said September quarter group net profit fell 78 percent to 9.4 million rupees from a year ago but commodity prices were seen strong with a global economic recovery.The firm, a unit of India’s Tata group, said in a stock exchange filing that sales during the September […]

Sri Lanka seeks to turn subsistence farming into agri-business

Nov 06, 2009 (LBO) – Sri Lanka needs to develop and maintain consistent policies and provide appropriate support infrastructure to change subsistence farmers into commercially successful agri-businesses, an expert said.“The most important thing the government can do is to ensure consistent policies on agriculture, land, trade and investment,” said Anoma Ariyawardana of the Faculty of […]

Protection Deal

Nov 05, 2009 (LBO) – Sri Lanka and Kuwait has signed an Investment Promotion & Protection Agreement (IPPA) Thursday between the island’s envoy to the country and a senior finance ministry official of the Gulf state, the foreign ministry said. Sri Lanka’s foreign ministry quoted the undersecretary to the Kuwaiti ministry of finance Khalifa M […]

Ship Link

VANCOUVER, November 3, 2009 (AFP) – Several of a group of 76 Sri Lankan asylum seekers picked up off the Canadian coast last month have ties to the Tamil Tiger rebels and could pose a security risk, officials said Tuesday.The Canadian government told an immigration hearing that the “Ocean Lady” freighter used to transport the […]

Sri Lanka wage hike sends listed estate into the red

Nov 04, 2009 (LBO) – Sri lanka’s Kelani Valley Plantations (KVPL) said a wage hike wrested by estate labour unions has sent it into the red in the September 2009 quarter. The company, which has been recovering from a severe drought earlier in the year, said that it made a loss of 217 million rupees […]

US Quizz

November 1, 2009 (AFP) – Sri Lanka called on US authorities to drop plans to interview the island’s military commander over allegations of war crimes against ethnic Tamil rebels, an official said Sunday. The Colombo government held “very high-level” talks to prevent General Sarath Fonseka, currently visiting Oklahoma, from being quizzed over his conduct during […]

Legal Seminar

Oct 31, 2009 (LBO) – A seminar on the implications on Sri Lanka’s the new company law featuring senior legal experts targeted at educating director, chief executives, senior managers and corporate lawyers will be held on November 05. Its organizers Legal & Financial Advisory Services, a legal consultancy, and Marketing Services, a marketing consultancy, say […]

Sri Lanka to import rice to buffer price spikes

Oct 30, 2009 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s government, which is ideologically committed to domestic rice production, will import 50,000 metric tons of rice as a buffer against an ‘artificial shortfall’, a senior minister said. But analysts say because prices are kept high and fertilizer is subsidized through heavy government interventions, farmers have no incentive to […]

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