Category: Other
Sri Lanka leader says arable land sown with terrorist mines
June 04, 2008 (FAO) Food production in Sri Lanka has been affected not only by high oil prices, bad weather and storage and distribution problem but by terrorism as well, the island’s president Mahinda Rajapaksa has said.Addressing the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) conference on food security in Rome, Rajapaksa called on the UN organisation […]
Bernanke worried about dollar, toughens inflation message
WASHINGTON, June 4, 2008 (AFP) – Federal Reserve chairman Ben Bernanke signaled Tuesday that the US central bank is worried about the dollar, saying the sagging currency has led to “unwelcome” inflation pressures.“We may see somewhat better economic conditions during the second half of 2008, reflecting the effects of monetary and fiscal stimulus, reduced drag […]
” education
OAKLAND, June 4, 2008 (AFP) – A private San Francisco area university dedicated to the study of the cannabis industry is giving a whole new meaning to higher education. At Oaksterdam University — so called after the nickname locals have given to Oakland — students learn how to grow, harvest and cook marijuana, as well […]
Malaysian petrol price to jump 40 percent: PM
KUALA LUMPUR, June 4, 2008 (AFP) – Malaysia said petrol prices will jump 40 percent from Thursday, as it moves to cut the spiralling cost of subsidies despite the prospect of public outrage. Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi said the price hike could suppress economic growth and drive up inflation as high as 5.0 percent […]
Sri Lanka rains, floods affect low country tea crop
June 03, 2008 (LBO) – Floods caused by heavy rains in southern Sri Lanka have disrupted cropping on tea plots but no serious shortfall is anticipated unless the rains continue, trade officials said. “Lasting damage is not anticipated unless earthslips cover tea bushes.” He said he expects floods to subside in 2-3 days unless the […]
WTO says no point in further talks on industrial products access
GENEVA, June 2, 2008 (AFP) – The WTO’s chief negotiator on freeing up access for industrial products said Monday he sees no point in further talks until member states are ready to compromise over tariffs and other key sticking points. The 152 members of the WTO need to “work among themselves to bridge their positions […]
Iceland and Norway resume whale meat exports to Japan
REYKJAVIK, June 2, 2008 (AFP) – Iceland and Norway resumed whale meat exports to Japan this year after an 18-year interruption, industry representatives from both Scandinavian countries said.“Iceland and Norway resumed exporting whale meat to Japan,” Gunnar Bergmann Jonsson, president of the Icelandic association representing Minke whale hunters, told AFP. “We (Iceland) have exported to […]
As prices rise, Americans turn to coupons, home-grown veg
WASHINGTON, June 3, 2008 (AFP) – Amid skyrocketing fuel and food prices, consumers in the United States are hitting the breaks on spending and even discovering the merits of home-grown food. With petrol prices inching toward four dollars a gallon — up 25 percent in just five months — and domestic food inflation up 6.3 […]
” noises
WASHINGTON, June 3, 2008 (AFP) – Federal Reserve chairman Ben Bernanke said Tuesday the central bank is “attentive” to the sagging dollar and would look at steps “to guard against risks” to inflation from a weak currency. Bernanke, speaking via satellite to a monetary conference in Barcelona, Spain, offered a mixed assessment of US economic […]
Rating Code
June 02, 2008 (LBO) – A new code of conduct for rating agencies has been published by a grouping of securities regulators after the sub-prime credit collapse, which is also applicable in Sri Lanka, an official said. The International Organization of Securities Commissions (IOSCO) of which the Securities and Exchange Commission of Sri Lanka (SEC) […]
Brazil says biofuel production not to blame for food prices
SAO PAULO, June 2, 2008 (AFP) – With its prodigious farm exports and its major industry making ethanol from sugarcane, Brazil is seeking to show that in the food versus biofuel debate at least in its case the two can co-exist. President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva has challenged critics who claim biofuel production is […]
‘s forex reserves hit 1.76 trillion dollars: report
SHANGHAI, June 2, 2008 (AFP) – China’s foreign exchange reserves rose to 1.76 trillion dollars at the end of April, state media reported Monday, reaching a level higher than the rest of Northeast Asia’s combined.“This (figure) seems to suggest the inflow of hot money is speeding up,” the newspaper quoted Logan Wright, an analyst with […]