Category:
Sri Lanka bans felling coconut trees to battle prices
December 20, 2010 (AFP) – Sri Lanka’s government on Monday banned the felling of coconut trees as the island battled a severe shortage of nuts — a dietary staple — and ordered imports for the first time. Coconut development minister Jagath Pushpakumara said the government had outlawed the cutting down of coconut trees in a […]
Chemical Move
Dec 20, 2010 (LBO) – Qatar Petrochemical Company (QAPCO) has opened an office in Sri Lanka to which it supplies ethylene and polyethylene products mainly to the plastic industry, company officials said. QAPCO’s global marketing network comprises of 28 offices and six regional warehouses. “We’ll be marketing low density polyethylene to the Sri Lankan industry,” […]
Garment scraps head for Western living rooms at Christmas
HATIBANDHA, December 19, 2010 (AFP) – Every year, Bangladesh’s garment sector produces billions of dollars worth of high-street clothes for major western brands — and generates mountains of fabric offcuts in the process. While an informal recycling sector has sprung up to deal with the scraps of leftover jeans and T-shirts churned out by the […]
Sri Lanka has good economic prospects, if deficits are cut: World Bank
Dec 19, 2010 (LBO) – Sri Lanka has good growth prospects if deficit spending can be reduced allowing the economy to be stable, and can also expect more financing from World Bank as the island emerges from a conflict, an official said. The US Federal Reserve devalued its currency against gold in 1933 setting the […]
Expert Visit
December 18, 2010 (AFP) – Sri Lanka has softened its stance and agreed to welcome a panel of experts appointed by UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon to probe alleged war crimes, a minister said Saturday. UN sources said no dates had yet been finalised for the UN experts to visit Sri Lanka, but noted that […]
China, Pakistan to formalise 10 billion dollar deals
ISLAMABAD, December 18, 2010 (AFP) – China and Pakistan are set to conclude another 10 billion dollars’ worth of deals on Saturday, the latest signings on a trade focused trip to South Asia for Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao. Business leaders are scheduled to formalise deals at Islamabad’s five-star Marriott Hotel, where a devastating suicide truck […]
Sri Lanka rights probe urged by US lawmakers
WASHINGTON, December 18, 2010 (AFP) – Dozens of US lawmakers on Friday urged a global probe into alleged rights violations by Sri Lanka in the last stages of its civil war, saying Colombo’s own efforts do not ensure accountability. In letters to Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, 17 senators and 30 members of the House […]
Sri Lanka to get funding from higher cost window: World Bank
Dec 18, 2010 (LBO) – Sri Lanka has qualified to get loans from a higher cost window of the World Bank amid rising incomes, which will double access to annual funds, managing director Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala said. Sri Lanka also now has access to capital markets. Countries with access to capital markets and which are deemed […]
Sri Lanka stocks close flat
Dec 17, 2010 (LBO) – Sri Lanka stocks closed flat Friday, with trading seen in the farming sector stocks, brokers said. The All Share Price Index closed flat at 6,360. 84 while the Milanka index of liquid stocks rose 0.18 percent (12.30 points) to close at 6,834.07, according to Colombo Stock Exchange (CSE) provisional figures. […]
Sea Travel
Dec 17, 2010 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s cabinet of ministers had given the nod for two ferry services to be set up with India between Colombo and Turicorin and Thalaimannar and Rameswaram, the government said. A large number of Sri Lankans also travel to India on business and pilgrimages. The government’s information office said a […]
Share Demand
Dec 17, 2010 (LBO) – An initial public offer by Singer Finance (Lanka) to raise 400 million rupees was oversubscribed 120 times, drawing applications worth 48 billion rupees, a statement said. The IPO is mainly to fund Singer Finance’s hire purchase business growth which is reawakening after the 2008-09 business downturn. Updated The firm had […]
Finance Upgrade
Dec 17, 2010 (LBO) – Fitch Ratings Lanka has upgraded Singer Finance (Lanka) Limited’s (SFL) national long-term rating to ‘BBB+(lka)’ from ‘BBB(lka)’ with a stable outlook, a statement said. SFL is a registered finance company and a fully-owned subsidiary of SSP. It has a network of six branches and six service centres in Sri Lanka. […]