Category: World

Oct 03, 2007 (Vimasuma.com) Former Sri Lanka captain and opener Marvan Attapattu would not be included in a forthcoming tour of Australia, chief selector Ashantha de Mel said. “We were informed at about 5.00 pm by fax that Marvan would not attend a meeting with cricket officials,” de Mel told Vimasuma.com “It is not possible […]

SYDNEY, Oct 2, 2007 (AFP) – The founders of Lonely Planet guidebooks said Tuesday that they decided to sell the “backpackers’ Bible” to BBC Worldwide because they wanted to “move on” and have more time for travel.Tony and Maureen Wheeler founded the hugely successful publishing business 34 years ago when they compiled a list of […]

PARIS, Oct 2, 2007 (AFP) – Annual inflation in the 30 industrialised members of the OECD fell to 1.8 percent in the year to August from 2.0 percent in July 2006, the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development said Tuesday.In Japan, prices were down by 0.2 percent in August compared with a year earlier after […]

Oct 2, 2007 (AFP) – An air ambulance arrived in the Maldives Tuesday to evacuate a British honeymoon couple wounded in a weekend bomb attack, a minister said. The plane, chartered by the Maldivian government, will airlift Christian and Jennifer Donelan, both 32, to Britain, where they will undergo further medical treatment, Tourism Minister Mahamood […]

LONDON, Oct 1, 2007 (AFP) – Jewels that once previously belonged to Anita Delgado, a Spanish dancer who became the fifth wife of a wealthy Indian maharaja, are to be auctioned in London, auction house Christie’s said Monday. The eight pieces of jewellery, described by Christie’s as consisting predominantly of art deco pieces, will be […]

JAKARTA, Oct 2, 2007 (AFP) – Indonesia issued a tsunami warning to coastal areas along its west Sumatra island Tuesday after a 6.4-magnitude quake struck offshore, the meteorology office said. . .

FRANKFURT, Oct 2, 2007 (AFP) – The European Central Bank is keeping an eye on inflation but the chances it will raise its base lending rate Thursday are nil owing to the soaring euro and signs the eurozone economy is slowing down.In Britain, the Bank of England was also expected to hold rates steady, two […]

Oct 01, 2007 (LBO) – Union Bank has got a 420 million rupee capital infusion from Saudi Arabia that will help it meet new Sri Lankan Central Bank regulations for capital by the end of 2009. Prince Faisal Al Faisal, the grandson of King Faisal of Saudi, placed the investment in the last week of […]

WASHINGTON, Oct 1, 2007 (AFP) – The United States reaffirmed last year its leadership in world arms trade, cornering nearly 42 percent of the market as the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan prompted a weapons shopping spree among neighboring nations, according to a congressional report set to be released Monday. But the overall volume of […]

BANGKOK, Oct 1, 2007 (AFP) – Thailand’s inflation rate in September rose to 2.1 percent year-on-year due to a spike in food prices and rising fuel prices, the Commerce Ministry said Monday. Thailand’s economy is expected to grow just over four percent in 2007, ranking among the lowest in Southeast Asia. The September figure was […]

Oct 01, 2007 (LBO) – The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is helping Maldives probe a blast in the capital that injured 12 tourists Saturday, the US embassy in Colombo said Monday. The embassy said it was “shocked and saddened” to learn of the incident. “We condemn without reservation this senseless act of violence,” the […]

Oct 1, 2007 (AFP) – The Maldives has arrested 10 suspects and is seeking outside help to investigate a bombing that wounded 12 foreign tourists in the first such attack on the holiday paradise, officials said Monday. The country appeared to have been largely spared religious fundamentalism although political tensions have flared periodically since an […]