NEW DELHI (Reuters): India’s Bajaj Auto Ltd. launched its first-ever four-wheeled vehicle on Tuesday, saying the RE60 would target commercial users and three-wheeled vehicle owners in India, and that production could involve Nissan and Renault. The unveiling of the four-seater RE60 ended months of rumours that have buzzed around India’s auto industry on the nature ...

A survey conducted last week on the health of the Sri Lankan economy revealed that almost 64% said that the Government had done its task but only 43% had said that there had been growth in the economy. Whilst some can say that this data is strange, a similar set of information was shared at ...

ABUJA(Reuters): Nigerian authorities announced on Sunday that a controversial plan to scrap fuel subsidies will be effective from Jan. 1, a move likely to lead to strikes and street protests. The plan is unpopular with Nigerians, many of whom see cheap fuel as the only benefit they get from living in Africa’s top crude oil ...

Saudi Arabia will soon allow foreign airlines to fly domestic routes, its aviation regulator said on Sunday, opening the market beyond state-owned Saudi Arabian Airlines (Saudia) and private National Air Services, which struggled to meet demand. The General Authority for Civil Aviation said in a statement carried by the state news agency it will let ...

Airbus is on course to end 2011 with well over 1,600 orders, pushing Boeing to the lowest market share of their 40-year rivalry, but Boeing has stored up momentum for a comeback as both companies put fresh vigour into their most-sold jets.       Although Boeing took a year longer than Airbus to revamp a key ...

New CEO Kapila Chandrasena upbeat on prospects for national carrier and Sri Lanka as a tourist destination post-warWhen the news of the impending change at the top in the national carrier broke, the Daily FT headlined the lead story on 6 May 2011 as ‘Turb-UL-ence,’ with a pun. But for the man in the hot ...

GENEVA (Reuters): More business air travellers bought economy tickets in October, as they shifted from premium to cheaper seats, particularly in Europe, due to the economic crisis, industry body IATA said. Although overall travel has not stopped growing “so far,” airline profitability

PARIS/NEW YORK (Reuters): Standard & Poor’s has warned it may carry out an unprecedented mass downgrade of euro zone countries, including Germany and France, if EU leaders fail to deliver a convincing agreement on how to solve the region’s debt crisis in a summit on Friday. The ratings warning sent markets reeling and drew a ...

TOKYO (Reuters): Toyota Motor Corp said its rechargeable Prius PHV plug-in hybrid would be priced from 3.2 million yen ($41,000) in Japan, higher than it flagged two years ago, as it aims to keep the lead in fuel-efficient electric vehicles. Toyota’s first plug-in model adds an external charging function and more batteries to the popular ...

TOKYO (Reuters): Mazda Motor Corp said on Friday it has developed a way to improve the fuel economy of passenger cars by as much as 10 per cent by using capacitors instead of batteries to capture energy lost during braking, which it said is a world first. The Japanese automaker will introduce

WASHINGTON (Reuters): The Obama administration has proposed doubling auto fuel efficiency to 54.5 miles per gallon by 2025, a White House energy priority that has come under scrutiny in Congress. The plan grew out of an uneasy agreement between the administration, automakers and environmental groups to reduce U.S. dependence on oil imports and cut tailpipe ...

By Cheranka Mendis With mobile penetration directly linked to increasing economic growth in a country, Sri Lanka with its bullish growth prospective stands to benefit heavily from the ever-expanding ICT and telecommunication sector. Alcatel-Lucent Asia Pacific President Rajeev Singh-Molares who was in Sri Lanka for a brief visit yesterday told the media that a World ...

After the recent Commonwealth Games in New Delhi, India, critics found three new words for the acronym ‘CWG’ – Corruption, Waste and lack of Governance. The Chairman of the Indian National Olympic Committee, who was Chairman of the Organising Committee, is presently in Tihar Jail, in Delhi with many of his acolytes, on charges regarding ...

HONG KONG (Reuters): Global container ship operators, hammered by high costs, oversupply and flagging demand, are cutting shipping capacity to shore up freight rates depressed by a sluggish global economy. Many container carriers have been losing money since the third quarter as freight rates fell

is testimony to ETI’s strong growth momentum, boosted by a buoyant economy ...

1. The President in his capacity as the Minister of Finance and Planning delivered the seventh consecutive Budget of the present Government for the year 2012 to the Parliament on 21 November. Prior to the preparation of the Budget, the President himself, Secretary, Minister of Finance and Planning and most of the line ministries conducted ...

Arrenga Capital Research takes a deeper look at Budget 2012 and impact on select listed companies 1. A challenging deficit target – 6.2% of GDP in 2012 I. Government revenue targeted to grow by 20.2% YoY to Rs. 1,126.1 b (14.7% of GDP) II. Total Government expenditure to rise 14.1% YoY to Rs. 1,594.9 b ...

UNP Co-Deputy Leader Karu Jayasuriya The Budget lacks direction and is neither here or there. For the consumer, it is inflationary; nor does it instil investor confidence. It has a political aim but lacks an economic aim. Furthermore, it does not address the productivity of employment; nor does it address the salaries of professionals and ...

Economy minister advises against buying foreign cash, gold Dollar rush pushes forex price 23 pct above official rate Struggling to control rate, cen bank names new forex head TEHRAN (Reuters): The Iranian government has asked its citizens not to buy dollars, in an effort to stem a rush for hard

Exports, imports up in Sept; Healthy financial inflows Two commercial banks infuse $ 250 m capital from overseas sources; corporate offshore debt capital raising tops $260 m Private sector borrowing averages Rs. 37 b per month in 2011 CB leaves policy rates unchanged for 10th straight month despite benign inflation and the inflation outlook Urges ...

ANN ARBOR, Mich (Reuters): At the Chevrolet dealership here, customers want to see and touch the Volt, the gasoline-electric hybrid hailed by enthusiasts as the kind of innovation that could secure the future of General Motors. But they usually kick the Volt’s tires and move on, often to a Cruze. The compact Chevy gets up ...

FRANKFURT (Reuters): Deutsche Post DHL has raised its 2011 outlook after robust Asian demand helped it beat expectations for the third quarter, marking a bright spot in an industry battered by soaring costs and a weakening global economy. “We are not ignoring the possibility that the economic

Unique driving pleasure in the premium compact segment BMW Asia last week announced the official launch of the new BMW 1 Series which will be available in two variants; BMW 116i and BMW 118i. This second generation entry-level BMW model has achieved maturity, offering an even better balance between sportiness and driving comfort, improved functionality, ...

 Eurozone crisis makes industry outlook uncertain COSCO negotiates lower charter rates Many shipping companies hit hard by industry downturn BOAO, China, (Reuters): Global shipping is in a downturn even worse than during the 2008 financial crisis, China’s transportation minister said on Thursday, with the outlook for the industry made increasingly uncertain by the European debt ...

Following is the address delivered by Senior Minister for International Monetary Cooperation Dr. Sarath Amunugama at the fourth South Asia Economic Summit (SAES IV) Plenary Session: In the aftermath of the global economic crisis, there has been a noticeable shift in economic clout, moving from the USA and the debt-plagued countries of the Eurozone, to ...

Harvard University may be America’s top-ranked national university, along with Princeton University, in US News and World Report’s latest best colleges rankings, but a competitor across the pond is now stealing some of that thunder. For the second year in a row, the United Kingdom’s University of Cambridge topped Harvard in the U.S. News World’s ...

IT is said that there are two constants in life – death and taxes. To this, it is practical to add fuel hikes and the latest increase is just another example of how the lack of a clear and transparent price adjustment policy undermines the vibrancy of the economy. This is the second price

Delayed fuel price increase comes as import bill rise tops 50% to $ 3 billion by AugustThe much-delayed fuel hike in the aftermath of rising oil prices came into effect from Sunday morning, whilst the quantum of the increase was unprecedented. Petrol prices were increased by Rs. 12 per litre and diesel by Rs. 8 ...

Reuters: Boeing Co is battling to prevent teething problems on its 747-8 freighter from turning into a wider customer revolt as jittery airlines seize on a chance to curb their exposure to a slump in the global freight market, industry sources said. The largest plane ever built by Boeing, a stretched version of its instantly ...

Reuters: New investors who have shown interest in Sri Lankan oil and gas exploration await the results of Cairn India’s drilling of a second well in the Mannar Basin before committing to anything, Sri Lanka’s Oil Minister said on Tuesday. Petroleum Industries Minister Susil Premajayantha confirmed that Russian gas export monopoly Gazprom, Malaysian State oil ...