Category: Other
Mobsters, hookers unwelcome in Singapore casinos
SINGAPORE, Dec 20, 2006 (AFP) – Loan sharks, prostitutes, money launderers and mobsters — they’re traditionally as much a part of casinos as the punters themselves.But squeaky-clean Singapore is taking steps to make sure criminals have no place in the city-state’s two new gaming centres, which are due to open by 2010. Analysts have confidence […]
‘s estate workers get wage hike; trade union strike ends
December 19, 2006 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s estate workers clinched a 260 rupee a day wage deal on Tuesday, ending weeks of strikes on tea and rubber estates that resulted in losses of over a billion rupees. Over 90 percent of workers are represented by trade unions the Ceylon Workers Congress, the Lanka Jathika Estate Workers […]
Goa puts its money on casinos as tourists flood India
CALANGUTE, India, Dec 19, 2006 (AFP) – India’s Arabian Sea tourist resort of Goa, beloved of hippies and backpackers, plans to launch an armada of floating casinos to pull in high-roller tourists. Goa’s state government proposed the casinos as India posted a 13 percent rise in tourist arrivals to 3.91 million in the fiscal year […]
Asian stocks punished as Thai junta spooks investors with capital controls
HONG KONG, Dec 19, 2006 (AFP) – Asian stocks were broadly lower Tuesday, with investors spooked by the worst ever losses in Bangkok where the military government imposed capital controls reminiscent of the 1997 Asian financial crisis. The controls, aimed at curbing a massive appreciation in the local currency, stunned the region, prompting heavy stock […]
2006 worst year on record for journalist casualties: media watchdog
GENEVA, Dec 19, 2006 (AFP) – More journalists were killed in 2006 than any other year, with the war in Iraq still the deadliest conflict for the third consecutive year, a media watchdog group said on Tuesday. The Geneva-based Press Emblem Campaign (PEC) said that 94 journalists lost their lives in the course of their […]
Striking estate workers to go back to work, wage talks to resume
December 18 (LBO) – Striking estate workers have been asked to get back to work, with the Ceylon Workers Congress agreeing to resume wage talks with plantation companies, officials said Monday.“The Ceylon Workers Congress (CWC) feels that this situation has gone too far and we cannot wait for others to deliver,” R Yogarajan, Vice President of […]
‘s real estate sector booms, but first-time buyers beware
NEW DELHI, Dec 15, 2006 (AFP) – India’s real estate market is in overdrive as developers snap up land to build malls and housing enclaves, but high prices and opaque rules make it hard for first-time buyers to land a dream home. The sector, worth 12 billion dollars, is growing at 30 percent a year, […]
‘s tea estates
December 14, 2006 (LBO) – Trade union action, wage hikes and high fertiliser prices are proving a volatile cocktail of problems for Sri Lanka’s plantation sector, with dismal predictions for early next year. Green leaf production on Sri Lanka’s tea estates grew a negative 0.7 percent in the third quarter of this year over the […]
Sri Lanka to revise lease agreements between govt. and plantation companies
December 14, 2006 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s cabinet has appointed a high level committee to help revise lease agreements currently in place between the government and regional plantation companies.A committee headed by treasury secretary P B Jayasundara will lead the government delegation to hammer out a mutual agreement between the golden shareholder (the government), regional plantation […]
Oil prices may cool in 2007 after record year: analysts
LONDON, Dec 14, 2006 (AFP) – Crude oil prices could head lower in 2007 after striking all-time highs above 78 dollars per barrel this year, as global production catches up with demand and geopolitical risks lessen, experts say. “This year, the main story has been the political risks story,” Global Insight oil analyst Simon Wardell […]
Asian cities face environmental crises: study
MANILA, Dec 13, 2006 (AFP) – Asia’s urban population is expected to grow by 70 percent to more than 2.6 billion over the next 25 years, placing severe strain on services, according to a book jointly published by the Asian Development Bank. “Development in Asia is tied to the growth of sustainable cities,” he added. […]
Bank of Ceylon in billion rupee loan deal with Sri Lanka sugar maker Pelwatte
Dec 12 (LBO) – State owned Bank of Ceylon has tied up with Pelwatte Sugar Industries to give farmers over a billion rupees in soft loans and boost production at the country’s largest sugar plantation.Bank of Ceylon said Tuesday that it would give 15,000 sugar cane growers cultivating 150,000 hectares, up to 150,000 rupees each to […]