Category:
Sri Lanka small tea grower factory profits surge
Nov 01, 2007 (LBO) – Rising low grown tea prices have helped boost Sri Lanka’s Tea Smallholder Factories’ second quarter profit net profit 151 percent to 33.5 million rupees compared with the same period a year ago. Revenue for the quarter ended September 30, 2007 shot up 62 percent to 578 million rupees, according to […]
Blank Cheque
Nov 01, 2007 (LBO) – Tariff preferences available under European Union market access concessions are a ‘blank cheque’ for Sri Lankan exporters to penetrate sophisticated markets, trade officials said. Director of Commerce Kulatunga Perera said the EU’s Generalised System of Preferences Plus scheme will be reviewed in 2008 and that he was confident Sri Lanka […]
Broad Highway
Nov 01, 2007 (LBO) – Dialog Broadband Networks, a unit of Dialog Telekom launched broadband services offering high download speeds at competitive prices which can potentially take-over the corporate leased line market for internet, officials said. The firm uses Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access (WiMax) to offer download speeds of up to 4Megabits per second […]
Oil hits new high after Fed rate cut
SINGAPORE, Nov 1, 2007 (AFP) – Oil prices scaled record highs of more than 95 dollars a barrel in Asian trade Thursday after the Federal Reserve lowered interest rates and following news of a surprise decline in US crude stocks. New York’s main futures contract, light sweet crude for delivery in December, was trading at […]
Gold passes 800 dollars an ounce as Fed prints more money
NEW YORK, Oct 31, 2007 (AFP) – The price of gold passed 800 dollars an ounce on Wednesday for the first time since 1980 after the US Federal Reserve lowered its key short-term interest rate, the New York Mercantile Exchange said. Gold futures for December touched 800.80 dollars on the exchange (NYMEX) after the Fed […]
Dollar dives to new low against euro after Fed rate cut
NEW YORK, Oct 31, 2007 (AFP) – The dollar slid to new lows against the euro and the pound Wednesday after the US Federal Reserve cut a quarter-point from interest rates. The single European currency topped the 1.45 dollar level for the first time, reaching 1.4504 dollars after the Fed’s widely anticipated short-term rate cut […]
‘t add up
Nov 1, 2007 (AFP) – Judging by Sri Lankan government accounts of Tamil Tiger dead after decades of fighting, there should hardly be any rebels left. Yet the guerrillas keep on fighting, and apparently dying in large numbers — pointing either to an unlimited pool of combatants or a government wish to boost morale by […]
‘s weak rule of law alarming for economy: World Bank
Nov 1, 2007 (AFP) – A top World Bank official on Thursday urged Sri Lanka to cut a political deal with Tamil rebels to help spur economic growth which has been hit by an “alarming” disregard for the rule of law. “The conflict remains a major obstacle to Sri Lanka achieving its full potential,” the […]
Sri Lanka should lower inflation to protect poor people: World Bank
Nov 01, 2007 (LBO) – Sri Lanka should lower inflation to protect the poor and take steps to clear economic imbalances that were building up, a top visiting World Bank official said. Sri Lanka had a currency board before 1951.. “The rate of inflation is approaching 20 percent, and the government budget deficit and debt […]
Sri Lanka women keeping economy afloat – UN
Nov 01, 2007 (LBO) – Sri Lanka is depending on women to earn foreign revenues more than any other country in the world with the bulk of worker remittances and export earnings generated by women, a UN official said. “If you look at both Sri Lanka’s primary exports and remittances, women dominate the sectors,” said […]
Sri Lanka treasury yields plummet, rupee gains
Oct 31, 2007 (LBO) – Sri Lanka treasury yields plummeted at Wednesday’s auction with the benchmark 3-month bill falling 143 basis points to 15.80 percent as domestic borrowings reduced in the wake of a foreign bond issue.The government’s debt office said it retired 3.1 billion worth maturing debt and accepted 8.5 billion worth of bids. […]
Sri Lanka leisure group buys Maldives resort
Oct 31, 2006 (LBO) – Sri Lankan conglomerate Aitken Spence has announced that it has bought another island resort in the Maldivian archipelago where it is already one of the top leisure operators. Aitken Spence Hotels (International), a subsidiary of Aitken Spence Hotel Holdings, said it had acquired the Vadhoo Island Resort for 13 million […]