Derivative Probe

May 3, 2009 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s anti-bribery office is probing allegations that foreign trips were given to key officials to sweeten the sale of oil derivatives by international banks to a state-run oil firm which later went against it, a media report said. The exotic oil derivatives were sold to CPC by Standard Chartered, […]

Turntable

May 02, 2009 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s state-run railway needs to charge higher fares and compete with road transport on a level playing field in order to avoid losses, its general manager Lalithasiri Gunaruwan said.He said he was trying to turnaround Sri Lanka Railways through changes in fares and better management. The department has recommended […]

Sri Lanka rejects satellite evidence of civilian bombings

May 2, 2009 (AFP) – Sri Lanka’s defence ministry on Saturday rejected satellite imagery issued by the United Nations in support of allegations that security forces shelled a civilian area. The defence ministry said the allegations based on UN aerial images posted on the UNOSAT website and used on several foreign television channels had “no […]

Sri Lankan insurer Ceylinco cleans up balance sheet

Apr 29, 2009 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s Ceylinco Insurance Company has reported profits of 486.7 million for 2008, down 52.0 percent as the firm cleaned up its balance sheet by writing off more than 300 million rupees injected to related companies. Ceylinco Insurance revenues climbed 21 percent to 20.0 billion rupees and the firm paid […]

Sri Lanka journalist detention highlighted by Obama

May 02, 2009 (LBO) – US President Barack Obama said he was concerned about threats against the media the world over, and mentioned the plight of Sri Lankan journalist J S Tissainayagam who has been detained for over a year.“In every corner of the globe, there are journalists in jail or being actively harassed: from […]

Sri Lanka IMF loan would not be delayed on politics: central bank

May 2, 2009 (LBO) – Technical levels discussions for Sri Lanka’s International Monetary Fund (IMF) loan have now been finalized and with the UN Security Council also not standing in the way, there would be no further delays, a senior central banker said. Media reports indicated the United States, which has substantial say in IMF […]

Monetary Deception

May 01, 2009 (LBO) – In its most recent report on the world economy, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) has compared the ‘Great Depression’ and the current crisis but conveniently ignores the core cause, which is central bank rate manipulation. Predictably, blame is also heaped upon the gold standard for not allowing money to be […]

Sri Lanka Union Assurance March profit up 24-pct

May 01, 2009 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s Union Assurance said group net profit for the March quarter went up 24 percent to 51 million rupees from a year ago. Revenues for the three months ending March 31, 2009 rose 16 percent to 1.5 billion rupees, the company said in a stock exchange filing. Gross written […]

Sri Lanka troops tighten siege of Tamil rebels

May 1, 2009 (AFP) – Sri Lankan government troops have tightened their siege of the last strip of land on the island still controlled by Tamil Tiger rebels and are poised for a final assault, the military said Friday.Military spokesman Brigadier Udaya Nanayakkara told AFP that two columns of troops had consolidated positions along a […]

Sri Lankan stocks gain on retail interest

Apr 30, 2009 (LBO) – Sri Lankan retail investors pushed up shares for the second straight day on thin volumes, while the rupee strengthened from around 120.50 in spot trade to 120.00/10 by mid-day, brokers and dealers said. The All Share Price Index of the Colombo stock gained 0.46 percent (8.36 points) to end at […]

Lucrative Fees

April 30, 2009 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s Pan Asia Bank said March quarter net profit rose 39 percent to 92 million rupees from a year ago, helped by a sharp rise non-interest income and steady growth in net interest income.The profit growth came despite sharply higher provisions for bad loans and a contraction in the […]

Sri Lanka tea crop falls sharply in March

April 30, 2009 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s total tea production in March 2009 fell 44 percent to 18.2 million kilos from a year ago owing to drought and reduced crops, the Tea Board said. Tea output in the January-March 2009 period was down 41.6 percent to 48.8 million kilos from 83.5 million kilos in the […]

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