Category:
Sri Lanka threatened with loss of EU trade perks
BRUSSELS, October 19, 2009 (AFP) – Sri Lanka was threatened on Monday with losing preferential trading status with the European Union over human rights violations, the EU commission said Monday. A Sri Lankan foreign ministry statement said Colombo had blocked a team of experts from visiting “as a matter of principle”. The country’s textile industry […]
Sri Lanka post-war rebuilding to get ADB help
Oct 20, 2009 (LBO) – A senior Asian Development Bank (ADB) has visited Sri Lanka to discuss support for post-war reconstruction in the island, the bank said in a statement.ADB Director General South Asia Department Kunio Senga visited Sri Lanka during October 13 -15 for talks on ADB support to Sri Lanka, especially for rehabilitation […]
Sri Lanka shares down on billionaire arrest, trade deal doubts
Oct 19, 2009 (LBO) – Sri Lankan shares ended lower Monday on news of the arrest of a US hedge fund manager with big stakes in the island and uncertainty over a trade deal with the European Union, brokers said. The All Share Price Index closed down 1.56 percent (49.00 points) to end at 3,082.91, […]
Suspect Donations
Oct 19, 2009 (LBO) – Sri Lanka is continuing investigations into financial support given to a Tamil charity with alleged terrorist links by a US hedge fund manager who was arrested for fraud, a senior official said.Sri Lankan Central Bank governor Ajith Nivard Cabraal told LBO the banking regulator was still investigating contributions made by […]
Ethnic Support
VANCOUVER, October 19, 2009 (AFP) – The Canadian Tamil Congress said Sunday its lawyers will represent dozens of illegal migrants arrested on a mystery ship seized off Canada’s West Coast.Detention hearings will begin early this week for as many as 76 migrants from a freighter seized Friday by Canadian military, police and other agencies. The […]
Good Faith
Oct 19, 2009 (AFP) – Sri Lankan-born hedge fund billionaire Raj Rajaratnam was investigated for allegedly funding Tamil Tiger rebels, but there was no evidence against him, the Central Bank of Sri Lanka said Monday.US authorities on Friday charged Rajaratnam, 52, with fraud after saying they had uncovered the biggest ever case of insider-trading by […]
Mobile War
Oct 19, 2009 (LBO) – Fitch Ratings said the entry of Emirates Telecommunications Corporation (Etisalat) into Sri Lanka can further delay any prospects for recovery in the Sri Lankan telecom operators’ profitability.Millicom International Cellular SA last week sold its fully-owned subsidiary in Sri Lanka, Tigo, to Etisalat in a competitive bidding process. Tigo is the […]
Expansion
ABU DHABI, October 18, 2009 (AFP) – Gulf telecoms giant Etisalat said on Sunday that net profit dropped 4.7 percent in the nine months to September after a one-time gain had boosted year earlier figures. Net profit fell to 6.85 billion dirhams (1.87 billion dollars) from 7.19 billion dirhams (1.96 billion dollars) a year ago, […]
Maldives going under water: new look at a doomsday story
Oct 19, 2009 (LBO) – A great deal of fear has been expressed by many that on one fine day in the future the Maldives will be submerged by rising sea levels without leaving even a trace of those beautiful islands that have attracted thousands of visitors to them for thousands of years. The chain […]
Sri Lanka to get GSP Plus verdict by early January: official
Oct 19, 2009 (LBO) – The European Union will decide whether or not to renew the GSP Plus trade deal with Sri Lanka giving duty free access to EU markets by early January 2010, a senior official said. Bernard Savage, EU head of delegation to Sri Lanka, said the EU investigation report was submitted to […]
Sri Lanka draws Singapore investor interest
SINGAPORE, October 19, 2009 (AFP) – Singapore is urging local businessmen to explore investment opportunities in Sri Lanka following the defeat of the Tamil separatist insurgency there, a report said here Monday.“Our business community should take an interest in what’s happening, assess the risk and be aware there is a new situation,” Foreign Minister George […]
Wealthy Donor
WASHINGTON, October 18, 2009 (AFP) – A US-based hedge-fund billionaire charged as part of an insider-trading case was investigated by US authorities for allegedly raising funds for a Sri Lankan separatist group, The Wall Street Journal reported late Saturday. Citing people familiar with the probe, the newspaper said federal agents had uncovered documents showing that […]