Category: Other
China shipping firm jumps 83 percent on Shanghai trading debut
SHANGHAI, June 26, 2007 (AFP) – China’s flagship shipping firm, COSCO Holding, jumped 83 percent on its trading debut in Shanghai Tuesday after raising net proceeds of 14.88 billion yuan (1.96 billion dollars). COSCO shares opened at 15.52 yuan on the Shanghai Stock Exchange, in line with broker estimates, against its initial public offering (IPO) […]
Sri Lanka drops controversial new tea export tax
June 26 (LBO) – A proposal to increase a tax on Sri Lankan tea exports to fund subsidies has been dropped after opposition from producers and exporters, a top official said.The government proposed increasing the export cess by two rupees to six rupees per kilo in response to demands from small holders to subsidise fertiliser […]
Different Jump
June 26, 2007 (AFP) – A Sri Lankan athletics coach participating in an international training programme has disappeared in Italy, a senior official said Tuesday in Colombo.Gayan Malika, a triple jump coach, went missing after flying to Italy for an athletics meet as part of a training programme sponsored by the International Olympic Council, the […]
Asia needs to innovate to compete with the globe
SINGAPORE, June 25, 2007 (AFP) – From China to Singapore, Asia must nurture a culture of innovation if the region is to emerge as a formidable global player, the World Economic Forum (WEF) on East Asia was told Monday. With the Cold War over, nations around the world are now in a race for knowledge, […]
Poverty, education must remain on Asian agenda: WEF
SINGAPORE, June 25, 2007 (AFP) – Poverty and education must remain on Asia’s agenda even as it forges ahead with high economic growth and focusses on tackling climate change, delegates to a regional economic forum heard Monday… While Asia is on a much stronger footing than it was during the economic crisis of a decade […]
Cheap cars allow Indians to jump off motorcycles
MUMBAI, June 24, 2007 (AFP) – Trading a motorcycle for a car in India has long been too expensive for many, but manufacturers plan to offer models at 3,000 dollars or less to attract new buyers, analysts say.The push by Nissan Renault, Tata Motors and Global Automobiles — a subsidiary of the Kolkata-based Xenitis group […]
Fishermen who caught submarine cables in police net
HANOI, June 24, 2007 (AFP) – Vietnam has made two more arrests after fishermen dragged up seafloor fibre-optic cables, threatening to sever the country’s global telecommunication links, a news report said Sunday.Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung has warned that the cable theft “directly affects Vietnam’s socio-economic development, national security and the country’s prestige in the […]
London Stock Exchange merges with Italian bourse
LONDON, June 23, 2007 (AFP) – The London Stock Exchange confirmed Saturday it was buying Milan’s Borsa Italiana for 1.6 billion euros (2.15 billion dollars) in shares, bolstering the LSE amid takeovers of European stock markets by US rivals. The industry’s globalisation has been accelerated by a move towards electronic trading platforms and away from […]
Sri Lanka tea trade urged to uphold ethical, professional standards
June 23 (LBO) – Two top Sri Lankan tea industry figures have urged the trade to make more efforts to maintain ethical and professional standards to avoid the danger of Ceylon tea earning a bad name. “Although prices have risen in the past two months we cannot be complacent,” he said, noting that forecasts say […]
” by printing money to 1.5 million percent inflation: US
LONDON, June 22, 2007 (AFP) – Zimbabwe’s government is “committing regime change on itself” with its failing economic policy which has sapped faith in the regime from the population, the US ambassador to Harare said in an interview published Friday. Mugabe however blames the woes on targeted sanctions imposed on himself and members of his […]
Sri Lanka tea trade wins demand on export tax usage
June 22 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s tea trade has won a greater say in how funds raised from a tax on tea exports are spent by the government, a senior industry official said. . Colombo Tea Traders’ Association (CTTA) chairman Tyeab Akbarally said the government had acceded to industry demands and agreed to give it […]
China to cut exports, boost consumption and relax exchange controls
BEIJING, June 22, 2007 (AFP) – A rise in the value of China’s currency will not in itself be enough to narrow the nation’s yawning trade surplus, a senior central bank official was quoted as saying in state media Friday.The licence scheme, know as qualified domestic institutional investors (QDII), has so far been restricted to […]