Category: Other
‘s Bharti Airtel sees 100-million mobile subscribers
NEW DELHI, May 15, 2009 (AFP) – India’s top mobile phone company Bharti Airtel announced Friday it had crossed the 100-million subscriber mark and expected to double that number within the next three years. The New Delhi-based company announced a 26 percent jump in net profit for last year to 84.69 billion rupees (1.68 billion […]
Congress set to return to power in India
NEW DELHI, May 16, 2009 (AFP) – India’s ruling Congress-led alliance was set to return to power after taking a clear and commanding lead Saturday in vote counting from the country’s marathon general elections.Congress spokeswoman Ambika Soni said party leaders and their allies would meet later in the day to discuss how they would go […]
Sri Lanka tea prices fall as crop increases
May 15, 2009 (LBO) – Sri Lankan tea prices fell at the Colombo auctions this week but brokers said there was better demand for the increased volumes on offer.They said that despite the generally lower prices some well-made teas fetched record prices. Tea industry officials said production had recovered from the effects of drought earlier […]
Sri Lanka Kelani Valley Plantations in the red
May 14, 2009 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s Kelani Valley Plantations, part of the Hayleys group, said it made a 46 million rupee loss in the March quarter compared with a net profit of 157 million rupees a year ago. It said in a stock exchange filing that sales fell 43 percent to 490 million rupees […]
Sri Lanka rubber meeting told to brace for fall in demand
May 13, 2009 (LBO) – Demand for natural rubber and rubber products will fall this year with the decline in sales of tyres and vehicles, a rubber expert told an international conference in the Sri Lankan capital Colombo. But demand will recover next year or the year after as the global economy recovers although at […]
‘s election marathon at the finishing line
NEW DELHI, May 12, 2009 (AFP) – Millions of voters cast their final ballots Wednesday in India’s marathon election, with analysts predicting the emergence of a shaky coalition government that will struggle to survive a full term.The fifth and final phase of voting in seven states wraps up the world’s largest democratic exercise that began […]
‘s vote marathon ends
NEW DELHI, May 13, 2009 (AFP) – Voting in India’s marathon elections ended Wednesday, with exit polls giving the ruling Congress party and its allies a slight edge over the opposition bloc led by the Hindu nationalist BJP. Neither grouping was seen as getting close to the 272 seats required to secure a parliamentary majority. […]
UN says more than 100 children dead in Sri Lanka conflict
May 11, 2009 (AFP) – The UN condemned on Monday the killing of civilians in Sri Lanka at the weekend as a “bloodbath” in which more than 100 children died, as the government and rebels traded blame for the attacks. Sri Lanka’s government believes its soldiers are on the verge of defeating the Liberation Tigers […]
Australia intercepts 12th refugee boat
SYDNEY, May 11, 2009 (AFP) – The latest in a steady stream of refugee boats was intercepted off Australia Monday, officials said, fuelling controversy over the government’s softer line on asylum seekers. It was the 12th suspected people-smuggling ship to be stopped in Australian waters or to have made landfall since January, which have brought […]
Regional Link
May 10, 2009 (LBO) – India is one of the world’s most dynamic economies and attractive markets with which Sri Lanka continues to have strong relations by reason of proximity and history. India’s relations with Sri Lanka have, for the most part, been friendly and are probably the best that it enjoys with its non-micro-state […]
British actress runs absolutely fabulous Gurkha campaign
LONDON, May 9, 2009 (AFP) – British actress Joanna Lumley’s best-known role used to be as a boozy fashionista in hit comedy “Absolutely Fabulous”, but now she is dominating TV screens as a formidable campaigner for Gurkha soldiers.Lumley — leading a campaign for all Nepalese fighters in Britain’s army to be allowed to settle here […]
Japanese takeover of Indian drug firm costly pill to swallow
NEW DELHI, May 8, 2009 (AFP) – Japanese drugmaker Daiichi Sankyo is finding its acquisition of Ranbaxy difficult to digest after US regulatory setbacks and big losses reported by the Indian generics player.Daiichi Sankyo announced its 4.6-billion-dollar acquisition for a 64 percent stake in India’s biggest generic drugmaker by sales last June to gain entry […]