Singapore pushes currency up to counter dollar inflation

SINGAPORE, October 14, 2010 (AFP) – Singapore on Thursday announced a surprise move to tighten monetary policy, pushing the local dollar to new highs as the economy headed for 13 to 15 percent expansion this year. The Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) signalled its anti-inflation stance after government data showed the economy expanded an annual […]

Sri Lankan stocks close down 0.10-pct

Oct 14, 2010 (LBO) – Sri Lankan stocks slid further Thursday, after Wednesday’s early morning fall and late afternoon rally, with falls in index heavy stocks like John Keells Holdings (JKH), Hatton National Bank (HNB) and Aitken Spence, brokers said. The Colombo All Share Index was down 0.10 percent (6.75 points) to 6,622.08 points, while […]

Port Prospects

Oct 14, 2010 (LBO) – The increase in cargo flows from India generated by accelerating economic growth will ensure business for a new container terminal that Sri Lanka’s Aitken Spence is investing in, an official said. “India’s economic growth in 2018 is expected to surpass China’s,” Dissanayake said. “When the economy grows they will handle […]

Financial Access

Oct 14, 2010 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s poor are reliable borrowers and repay loans, offering a growth opportunity for micro-finance especially in rural areas, deputy finance minister Sarath Amunugama said. Developing countries like Sri Lanka must not rely solely on export-led growth as in the past given sluggish recovery and rising protectionism in advanced economies, […]

Finance Losses

Oct 14, 2010 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s The Finance Company, which is converting some deposits into shares, has managed to reduce losses compared to last year but interest costs are still higher than income, a stock exchange filing showed. The firm, part of the troubled Ceylinco group although now under separate management, made a loss […]

Health Sourcing

Oct 14, 2010 (LBO) – Cambio Heathcare Systems, a Sweden based health sector firm has moved its outsourcing unit to larger premises in Sri Lanka’s capital Colombo, the country’s investment promotion agency said. The firm had started operations in Colombo in 2005 with 40 employees. By the beginning of this year its cadre of engineers […]

Tele Towers

Oct 14, 2010 (LBO) – A US based telecom tower company is looking for opportunities to build shared infrastructure in Sri Lanka as telcos in the island expand into former war torn areas in the north and east, an official said. “We are having discussions and looking at opportunities,” Vijendran Watson, from the Singapore-based Insight […]

Sri Lanka Treasuries yield inch up

Oct 13, 2010 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s Treasuries yields inched up slightly at Wednesday’s auction with the 6-month yield moving up 05 basis points to 7. 04 percent and the 12-month yield moving up 05 basis points to 7. 17 percent, the government’s debt office said. There were no sales of 3-month bills. The government […]

Sri Lanka Cargills adds northern farmers to network

Oct 13, 2010 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s Cargills, the island’s largest retail chain said it had added farmers from the former war-torn north to its country wide network that keeps its outlets supplied with fruits and vegetables. “We have added 1,600 farmers from the North,” Cargills chief Ranjith Page told the annual annual sessions of […]

Sri Lanka losing ground in US apparel market: Martin Trust

Oct 13, 2010 (LBO) – Sri Lanka is losing ground to China and Bangladesh in the United States apparel market, but the country can retain its place in the top end by banking on non-price competitive strengths, the island’s top US apparel buyer said. “Sri Lanka has not recovered from China’s surge in the US […]

US in small business road show in Sri Lanka

Oct 13, 2010 (LBO) – The United States is organizing a series of forums Sri Lanka country giving an opportunity especially to smaller businesses outside the capital to find out how to increase trade with the US. The ‘Doing Business’ seminar with assistant trade representative Micheal Delaney will off in Colombo on October 15. Similar […]

Sri Lanka gets first boxing gold in 72 years

NEW DELHI, October 13, 2010 (AFP) – Manju Wanniarachchi on Wednesday won Sri Lanka’s first gold medal in boxing in 72 years after beating Wales’ Sean McGoldrick in the bantamweight division. The 30-year-old from Kandy won a points decision 16-14 to beat the 18-year-old, who caused an upset in the semi-finals by beating the Olympic […]

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