Tag: Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka supreme court takes up constitutional changes
August 31, 2010 (AFP) – Sri Lanka’s Supreme Court on Tuesday began assessing a draft bill that would amend the island’s constitution to allow President Mahinda Rajapakse to run for office for a third term. Registrar of the Supreme Court said the five-judge bench would give their decision to the president and speaker of parliament […]
Sri Lanka cabinet backs constitution change for president
August 30, 2010 (AFP) – Sri Lanka’s cabinet on Monday backed changing the constitution to allow President Mahinda Rajapakse to run for office for a third term, opening the way for a vote in parliament. Rajapakse, who oversaw the defeat of the Tamil Tiger rebels last year after decades of civil war, has a firm […]
‘s consumer prices slide, unemployment falls
TOKYO, August 27, 2010 (AFP) – Japan’s consumer prices continued to slide while the unemployment rate fell for the first time in six months in July, the mixed data Friday illustrating the fragility of the country’s recovery. Japan’s core consumer price index fell 1.1 percent in July from a year earlier, government data showed, marking […]
US should stay off further stimulus: John Taylor
Aug 26, 2010, Palo Alto (LBO) – Though US economic growth is ‘fizzling out’ there is unlikely to be a double dip recession and new ad hoc stimulus measures should be avoided to give a sense of stability for economic agents to act, a top monetary economist has said. “My own view is that for […]
Sri Lanka revenue soars after vehicle import tax cut: official
Aug 25, 2010 (LBO) – Sri Lankan government tax revenues have risen sharply after import duties on vehicle imports were slashed, a senior finance ministry official said. The government earned 1,700 million rupees in July alone on vehicle import tax revenue after import taxes were slashed in June, S R Attygalle, director-general of fiscal policy […]
Sri Lanka IMF programme on track, to get next tranche: official
Aug 23, 2010 (LBO) – An International Monetary Fund (IMF) mission to Sri Lanka said the island’s programme with the fund is on track with the government being able to meet the budget deficit target of eight percent of Gross Domestic Product. “End-June performance criteria on domestic budget borrowing, reserve money, and net reserves have […]
Australia in political limbo after voters punish PM
SYDNEY, August 22, 2010 (AFP) – Australia was in political limbo Sunday after voters punished Prime Minister Julia Gillard for deposing her predecessor two months ago, leaving the nation facing its first hung parliament in 70 years. Both sides targeted marginal seats in resource-rich Queensland and western Sydney, where rapid population growth has put pressure […]
”: officials
SYDNEY, August 21, 2010 (AFP) – Australia faced the “more and more likely” prospect of a hung parliament Saturday, with neither the government nor the opposition looking assured of an election majority, party officials said. Australia has not had a hung parliament since 1940, in the midst of World War II, but the election was […]
Sri Lanka war hero braced for jail term
August 19, 2010 (AFP) – Sri Lanka’s former army chief Sarath Fonseka said Thursday he expects the government to put him behind bars to end his political career after a court martial convicted him. Fonseka, who led troops to victory in the island’s 37-year ethnic conflict last year, said the government was seeking revenge for […]
Sri Lanka former war zone economy transformation seen
Aug 20, 2010 (LBO) – Northern Sri Lanka, where education was highly valued before war retarded its growth, has potential to be transformed into a ‘knowledge economy’ from its traditional agrarian cum fisheries base, a statement said. An open forum on ‘Pathways to Knowledge-based Development’ in northern Jaffna is being organised by the Point Pedro […]
Sri Lanka central bank cuts reverse repurchase rate
Aug 20, 2010 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s Central Bank said it has cut its reverse repurchase rate by 50 basis points to nine percent with immediate effect, while keeping the repurchase rate steady at 7. 25 percent to support an economic recovery as inflation eased. “While inflationary pressures in the domestic economy have continued to […]
Sri Lanka gets Japan, ADB help to restore livelihoods of families affected by war
Aug 20, 2010 (LBO) – The Asian Development Bank (ADB) and Japan are providing financial aid to help Sri Lanka restore infrastructure and provide livelihood training for thousands of people displaced by war, a statement said. The Japan Fund for Poverty Reduction, administered by ADB, is extending a 2.5 million US dollar grant for a […]