Category: Other

BANGALORE, India, July 30, 2006 (AFP) – Twenty-five years ago, with an investment of just 250 dollars, a tiny software company took shape in a one-bedroom apartment in the western India city of Pune.Today Infosys Technologies has revenues of 2.1 billion dollars and employs 58,000 people in more than two dozen countries, ranking as India’s […]

LIEPAJA, Latvia, July 29, 2006 (AFP) – Some countries will do anything to attract tourists. In Latvia, they have pristine beaches, architectural pearls, verdant countryside and excellent cuisine, but why bother when you can have abuse and insults — even get shot — in a former KGB prison? On a hot July day, about 20 […]

GENEVA, July 27, 2006 (AFP) – Airlines must adapt to high oil prices and explore changes such as alternative fuels to regain profitability despite a 6.7 percent growth in passenger traffic during the first half of 2006, the top industry association said Thursday.Airlines are still battling for financial prosperity despite growing revenues and better load […]

SINGAPORE, July 25, 2006 (AFP) – There will be no more shouting or waving of hands in obscure signals from September when one of Asia’s last traditional “open outcry” exchange trading facilities is closed in Singapore.The Singapore Exchange said Tuesday its open outcry facility will shut at the close of business on Friday September 29 […]

TOKYO, July 25, 2006 (AFP) – The breakdown of the WTO talks is likely to encourage the further proliferation of bilateral free trade pacts in Asia that have raised concerns about a “noodle bowl” of overlapping rules, analysts said. East Asian nations have already been rushing to negotiate individual agreements to remove barriers to trade, […]

SINGAPORE, July 25, 2006 (AFP) – There will be no more shouting or waving of hands in obscure signals from September when one of Asia’s last traditional “open outcry” exchange trading facilities is closed in Singapore.The Singapore Exchange said Tuesday its open outcry facility will shut at the close of business on Friday September 29 […]

TOKYO, July 25, 2006 (AFP) – The breakdown of the WTO talks is likely to encourage the further proliferation of bilateral free trade pacts in Asia that have raised concerns about a “noodle bowl” of overlapping rules, analysts said. East Asian nations have already been rushing to negotiate individual agreements to remove barriers to trade, […]

SINGAPORE, July 24, 2006 (AFP) – Casino gaming is increasingly accepted as a revenue stream for Asian governments and the sector is set to continue growing phenomenally with Macau leading the way, industry players said Monday. From Australia to Singapore and other Asian countries, the region’s governments now recognise that integrated gaming “resorts”, offering casino […]

LONDON, July 24, 2006 (AFP) – The classic romantic wedding proposal where a man offers his would-be fiancee an engagement ring while down on bended knee, is going out of fashion, according to a British survey published Monday. Nearly one in three British couples just “agree together” to get married, according to a survey of […]

SINGAPORE, July 24, 2006 (AFP) – Casino gaming is increasingly accepted as a revenue stream for Asian governments and the sector is set to continue growing phenomenally with Macau leading the way, industry players said Monday. From Australia to Singapore and other Asian countries, the region’s governments now recognise that integrated gaming “resorts”, offering casino […]

SINGAPORE, July 23, 2006 (AFP) – Burgeoning economic links through a web of free trade agreements (FTAs), financial cooperation and investments may reduce the risk of war in Asia but are no guarantee of peace, analysts say.Nationalist sentiments and historical animosities between major Asian countries could sideline economic considerations should tensions come to a boiling […]

WASHINGTON, July 21, 2006 (AFP) – A growing number of Americans are setting up mini-refineries in their homes to produce biodiesel, a fuel made from waste cooking oil which is cleaner and cheaper than the petrol sold in gas stations.The sky-high price of crude oil is scaring everyone. Biodiesel has Hollywood backers like actress Julia […]