Category: World

DHAKA, July 1, 2007 (AFP) – Hundreds of textile factories in Bangladesh have failed to meet a government deadline to pay their workers even a paltry minimum wage of 25 dollars a month, an industry body said Sunday.Of the country’s more than 2400 garment factories, over 400 were still ignoring the rule on June 30, […]

KATHMANDU, June 30, 2007 (AFP) – Nepal’s central bank governor and another top official have been suspended after being charged with corruption involving the embezzlement of public funds, an official said on Saturday.The charges against Nepal Rastra Bank Governor Bijaya Nath Bhattarai and Executive Director Surendra Man Pradhan were laid by an anti-graft body tasked […]

WASHINGTON, June 28, 2007 (AFP) – The head of the International Monetary Fund, Rodrigo Rato, said Thursday he will step down in October for personal reasons, casting a cloud over the major internal reform effort he launched.The IMF chief’s announcement comes as the 185-nation financial institution faces criticism that it serves the interests of wealthy […]

HONG KONG, June 28, 2007 (AFP) – HSBC and Standard Chartered confirmed Thursday they were among banks targeted in a crackdown by China’s foreign exchange regulator on speculative capital inflows. The two banks said they had recently been inspected by the State Administration of Foreign Exchange (SAFE) and had taken action to ensure they complied […]

TEHRAN, June 26, 2007 (AFP) – Angry Iranian youths attacked a petrol station in the capital Tehran on Tuesday, burning a car and pumps after the government announced it was going to begin rationing fuel, witnesses said.However, problems in distributing the cards have delayed implementation of the rest of the plan. Pumping gas into the […]

HARARE, June 27, 2007 (AFP) – Accountant Shawn Kureva was left cursing his decision to delay buying cement at a Harare hardware store until he had compared prices elsewhere in inflation-ravaged Zimbabwe. “(The) Chronicle can reveal that the British and United States goverments, after failing to incite public revolt against the government of Zimbabwe are […]

LONDON, June 27, 2007 (AFP) – Prime Minister Tony Blair resigned Wednesday, after a decade in power, handing over power to party rival Gordon Brown who has vowed to impose his own style on Britain. “I spoke to him about this on Friday night when he told me that he was going to take it […]

WASHINGTON, June 25, 2007 (AFP) – The US Securities and Exchange Commission watchdog has added a link to its website listing dozens of mostly foreign companies it said Monday had disclosed interests in “countries known to sponsor terrorism.” The list of international companies includes Australian, British, German, French and Japanese groups including HSBC Holdings, Unilever […]

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) […]

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, […]

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 […]

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 […]