Category: World

BEIJING, Jan 10, 2008 (AFP) – China and five other countries have agreed to collaborate on a train service between Asia and Europe that is expected to transport cargo twice as quickly as by sea, Chinese state media said Thursday. Under an agreement signed on Wednesday by China, Mongolia, Russia, Belarus, Poland and Germany, the […]

NEW DELHI, Jan 10, 2008 (AFP) – India’s Tata Group unveiled Thursday the world’s cheapest car costing 2,500 dollars amid predictions the no-frills vehicle could revolutionise how millions in India and elsewhere travel.The launch of the Tata Nano was a landmark in the history of transportation, claimed 70-year-old tycoon Ratan Tata, the head of the […]

WASHINGTON, Jan 8, 2008 (AFP) – The global economy is expected to slow to a modest 3.3 percent growth pace this year, but the pace could worsen if the United States slips into recession, the World Bank said Tuesday. Despite financial turmoil unleashed by a meltdown in the US mortgage market, global growth slowed in […]

COLOMBO, Jan 9, 2008 (AFP) – Police in the Maldives said Wednesday they arrested four more people in connection with an unsuccessful attempt to kill the Indian Ocean archipelago’s president. Maumoon Abdul Gayoom, who has ruled Maldives with an iron fist since 1978, escaped assassination while touring the atoll’s northern islands on Tuesday thanks to […]

BRUSSELS, Jan 7, 2008 (AFP) – The European Union on Monday called on the Sri Lankan government to offer “substantive devolution” to Tamil rebels as fierce fighting, renewed since Colombo scrapped a ceasefire, claimed more victims.The Slovenian EU presidency voiced deep regret at the Sri Lankan government’s decision to end the truce with the rebel […]

Jan 8, 2008 (AFP) – The president of the Maldives, Maumoon Abdul Gayoom, escaped an assassination attempt Tuesday, a senior minister told AFP. “The president was greeting people when a young boy pulled out a knife and tried to stab him in the stomach,” Information Minister Mohamed Nasheed said by telephone from the island capital […]

Jan 08, 2008 (LBO) – Maldives president Maumoon Abdul Gayoom was saved by a 15-year old youth as he was stabbed by a man who had a knife concealed inside a national flag, a report said. The boy Mohamed Jaisham was treated for injuries to his hand, Minivan News, an online news service from the […]

TEHRAN, Jan 7, 2008 (AFP) – President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said Monday he was seeking a 17 percent spending increase in the budget for the next Iranian year, amid concerns the government’s expansionary policies are stoking inflation.Unveiling his budget plan to parliament, Ahmadinejad argued that ordinary people in OPEC’s number two oil producer needed to see […]

BEIJING, Jan 7, 2008 (AFP) – China defended the role of sovereign wealth funds, responding to fears that its own fund, China Investment Corp, might destabilise global markets, state media said Monday.It is in charge of 200 billion dollars — roughly one seventh of China’s forex reserves — and could potentially see even more funds […]

January 07, 2008 (LBO) – The Republic Island of Maldives will resume international flights with state-run Island Aviation Services due to fly to the Indian city of Trivandrum later this month, officials said.Island Aviation Services (IAS), a domestic carrier, will operate daily schedule flights from January 25, using a turboprop DeHavilland Cananda ‘Dash8′ aircraft between […]

SINGAPORE, Jan 6, 2008 (AFP) – Singapore will Wednesday open an ultra-modern new 1.2-billion-dollar airport terminal that industry analysts say will reinforce the city-state’s position as a regional aviation hub.Terminal 3, which boasts a five-storey vertical garden with waterfalls, will receive its first passengers just months after a new terminal opened in Hong Kong and […]

ALGIERS, Jan 5, 2008 (AFP) – The high price of oil will continue until the end of March 2008, the president of OPEC said Saturday.“The surge in price will probably endure until the end of the first quarter of 2008, before stabilising during the second quarter,” the Algerian Energy Minister Chakib Khelil — who is […]