Category: Other

WASHINGTON, Nov 14, 2007 (AFP) – Hong Kong’s de facto central bank on Wednesday dismissed suggestions that the Hong Kong dollar, which is at present pegged to the US dollar, be repegged to the Chinese yuan currency. It is impractical and does not make economic sense, Eddie Yue, the deputy chief executive of the Hong […]

NEW DELHI, Nov 14, 2007 (AFP) – Former Test captains Brian Lara and Inzamam-ul Haq were on Wednesday confirmed to play in India’s rebel Twenty20 league following a goof-up over players’ lists.The names of Lara and Inzamam, touted as star attractions of the Indian Cricket League (ICL), were missing when the six teams for the […]

SAN FRANCISCO, Nov 13, 2007 (AFP) – A globe kept by Adolf Hitler in his Eagle’s Nest compound and retrieved from the rubble after the end of World War II sold Tuesday for 100,000 dollars to an art collector and entrepreneur. The globe sat for 62 years in John Barsamian’s dusty attic in Oakland but […]

DUBAI, Nov 13, 2007 (AFP) – Dubai-owned Emirates airline, already the largest carrier in the Middle East, has reinforced its position as regional market leader with multi-billion-dollar orders at the Dubai air show. Emirates’ buying spree is in step with the ambitious plans of the city-state to establish itself as a regional hub for travel, […]

LONDON, Nov 13, 2007 (AFP) – The Commonwealth on Monday gave Pakistan a 10-day deadline to restore its constitution and lift other emergency measures or face suspension from the 53-nation grouping.The ultimatum came after emergency talks among the Commonwealth Ministerial Action Group (CMAG) in London to decide how to respond to President Pervez Musharraf’s declaration […]

BEIJING, Nov 13, 2007 (AFP) – China’s consumer price index, the main gauge of inflation, rose 6.5 percent in October year-on-year, the government said Tuesday, as Premier Wen Jiabao promised to stabilise prices.The figure was up from 6.2 percent in September, and the same as the 6.5 percent in August, then the highest level in […]

DHAKA, Nov 13, 2007 (AFP) – Bangladesh on Tuesday launched an investigation after the country’s Internet link was sabotaged, disrupting communications nationwide for most of the day.Officials said cables were also severed twice last week causing massive disruption to businesses in the impoverished country. “We are investigating the cable cutting incident which took place today […]

LONDON, Nov 12, 2007 (AFP) – Foreign ministers will Monday debate a possible suspension of Pakistan from the Commonwealth at an extraordinary meeting in London after President Pervez Musharraf imposed a state of emergency last week. Although Musharraf met a key demand of his critics by announcing Sunday that elections would be held by January […]

LONDON, Nov 12, 2007 (AFP) – The European Union appears to be “sleepwalking into a vast financial commitment” with its troubled Galileo satellite network, and a rigorous cost-benefit analysis must be produced on the system, a British parliamentary committee said Monday.In a report into the network, the House of Commons Transport Committee said it had […]

TOKYO, Nov 12, 2007 (AFP) – Asian stocks were rocked by another large sell-off Monday with Tokyo hitting a 15-month low, battered by a weak dollar and growing fears over the fallout from the US subprime loan crisis, dealers said. They said the Chinese central bank’s latest move to try to cool the economy had […]

DUBAI, Nov 12, 2007 (AFP) – Saudi Arabian billionaire Prince Walid Bin Talal on Monday ordered an Airbus A380, making him the first private buyer of the next generation super jumbo aircraft.Prince Walid, one of the world’s richest men, inked the deal for the “flying palace” at a ceremony with executives from the European aircraft […]