Category: Other
‘s Hapugastenne estate profit soars on high tea prices, asset sales
August 27, 2007 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s Hapugastenne Plantations said net profit for the June quarter shot up 472 percent to 170 million rupees with the bottom line being boosted by high low grown tea prices and profit from asset sales. Revenue for the quarter was up 39 percent to 705 million rupees, according to […]
Victims tell how Hyderabad laser show crowd was struck by bombs
HYDERABAD, India, Aug 26, 2007 (AFP) – Romanna was bleeding and in shock after being wounded in a series of terror blasts that rocked this southern Indian city late Saturday, killing 36 people and injuring 60. A string of explosions went off in an auditorium packed with families watching a laser show, while other blasts […]
” as blasts kill 42
HYDERABAD, India, Aug 26, 2007 (AFP) – Indian security forces launched a manhunt Sunday for those behind twin bombings in the southern city of Hyderabad that killed 42 people, with officials pinning the blame on Islamic militants.More than 50 others were injured in the blasts late Saturday, which ripped through a packed street restaurant in […]
Wall Street steadies, but more to come
NEW YORK, Aug 24, 2007 (AFP) – Wall Street found its footing over the past week after the market’s drubbing earlier this month, as investors pondered whether the storm over housing and a related credit squeeze was over. Despite a strong rebound in the week to Friday, analysts said they expect nervous trading ahead with […]
Blasts in south India kill 28 people in suspected terror attack
HYDERABAD, India, Aug 26, 2007 (AFP) – Two near-simultaneous blasts tore through the Indian city of Hyderabad late Saturday, killing at least 28 people in what a state official said was a suspected terror attack.Prime Minister Manmohan Singh condemned the blasts in Hyderabad and voiced his deep concern, the Press Trust of India reported. One […]
China pledges investment to tackle pollution
BEIJING, Aug 25, 2007 (AFP) – China will invest more than 1.33 billion yuan (176 million dollars) to clean up the environment after decades of frantic economic growth, state media said Saturday. The money will be earmarked mainly for monitoring and reducing pollutant emissions, and for a new system of emission trading, the China Daily […]
‘s Tata confirms interest in Land Rover, Jaguar
NEW DELHI, Aug 24, 2007 (AFP) – The head of India’s Tata conglomerate confirmed Friday that his group was interested in bidding for luxury British car brands Jaguar and Land Rover, in an interview with an Indian news channel.Last month, Indian news reports said that two Indian automakers — Tata Motors and the Mahindra group […]
Shell accuses Argentina of discrimination in fuel battle
BUENOS AIRES, Aug 24, 2007 (AFP) – Anglo-Dutch oil company Royal Dutch/Shell, whose top executives are under threat of arrest, accused the Argentine government of “discrimination” in a page-wide advert published Friday in leading newspapers.“The discrimination Shell is being subjected to is inadmissible,” said company president Juan Aranguren in the statement, adding that the firm […]
Venezuela consolidates Zimbabwe path
CARACAS, Aug 24, 2007 (AFP) – Lawmakers Friday launched a national campaign for constitutional reform to consolidate President Hugo Chavez’s power and socialist agenda that a weak and splintered opposition seems powerless to stop.With Chavez loyalists taking up all 167 seats of the single-chamber legislature, the constitutional reform is assured passage before it is put […]
Dollar falls against euro on ECB rate expectations; yen slips
NEW YORK, Aug 23, 2007 (AFP) – The dollar traded mainly lower Thursday as the euro gained ground on heightened expectations of an interest rate hike next month by the European Central Bank.But the greenback firmed against the yen, which came under selling pressure after the Bank of Japan held its key benchmark lending rate […]
‘s Ceylon Tea Services reports slow down in tea bag exports
Aug 24, 2007 (LBO) – Tea bag exporter Ceylon Tea Services Ltd., part of the Dilmah brand group, said net profit fell 7.1 percent to 152 million rupees for the quarter ended June 30, 2007. Revenue fell 1.2 percent to 738 million rupees in the same period, according to interim results. The company is one […]
No more live sex-changes on Chinese TV
BEIJING, Aug 24, 2007 (AFP) – China has banned a blood-spattered genre of reality TV shows where patients undergo sex-change operations and cosmetic surgery live in front of mass audiences.It is estimated that one million Chinese undergo plastic surgery every year, according to state media reports.The “exhibitionist” programmes serve the sole purpose of boosting viewer […]
