Business

The World Bank has approved a $12 billion loan for cash-strapped Pakistan that will be disbursed over five years, the country’s finance ministry and the global lender said on Friday, reports Reuters. The ministry said the money will target ‘energy, economy, (fighting) extremism and education’, with $1 billion being transferred to Pakistan in this week. The loan

Bangladesh, the world’s third largest cotton importer according to the US Department of Agriculture, is on a mission to topple No 1 importer China, reports Wall Street Journal. ‘Obviously, we wish to take China’s place, and that day is not so far off — two, three years’ time,’ Mehdi Ali, general secretary of the Bangladesh ... Read more

The prices of onion, potato and broiler increased in the city’s kitchen markets over the week ending Friday. Traders said that a supply shortage pushed the prices of the items in the last couple of days. Onion price went up by Tk 5 a kilogram and the item was selling at Tk 30-Tk 35 a kg on ... Read more

The country is experiencing a sweltering heat with the creeping up mercury mercilessly, prompting the city dwellers to buy electronic home appliances such as air conditioner and refrigerator. Producers and importers say they are in pressure to supply the home appliances to meet the escalating customers’ demand for the same as most of their stocks are

Biman Bangladesh Airlines has decided to carry Hajj pilgrims this year with its own aircraft without taking any wide-bodied aircraft on lease as in previous years. ‘Yes, we’ve decided to carry Hajj pilgrims by our own aircraft,’ Biman acting director (planning) Md Belayet Hossain told the news agency over telephone on

But sales of savings tools drop The net investment in the national savings certificates and bonds increased by 977.30 per cent in the first nine months of the current financial year 2013-14 compared with that in the same period of the FY13 due to a decreased premature cashing by clients. According to the Directorate of National ... Read more

Dhaka Stock Exchange’s chief technology officer ASM Khairuzzaman on Wednesday resigned from his post in the bourse. Asked, Khairuzzaman told New Age that his decision was based totally on personal ground. ‘I have worked at the bourse for 16 years. The journey with the bourse was nice,’ he said. Khairuzzaman’s resignation came at a time when the bourse ... Read more

Trade consultative committee advises commerce ministry Business leaders on Wednesday demanded that the government should immediately give gas connection to new industries and suitable industrial lands for relocating the readymade garment factories from cities to assist those to be compliant with labour and fire safety. At the first meeting of the trade consultative committee at Export ... Read more

Undisclosed money legalisation facility should stay The planned withdrawal of supplementary duty on more than 1,000 imported products from July 1, 2015 will cause a revenue loss of Tk 600 crore a year, the National Board of Revenue chairman Ghulam Hussain said on Wednesday. ‘We have to reduce the list of products for imposing supplementary to ... Read more

Political uncertainty blamed Commitment for the foreign loans and grants declined by 46.56 per cent in the first nine months of the current fiscal year because of the unrest in the run up to the January 5 national elections and ongoing political uncertainties. Latest data of the Economic Relations Division showed that the total commitment came ... Read more

The National Board of Revenue chairman Ghulam Hussain on Tuesday said that they were seriously mulling imposition of tax at double the present rate on new industries to be set up in Dhaka and adjacent areas. The revenue board will also offer attractive tax break for relocating factories from Dhaka and establishing new factories in other ... Read more

The Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulatory Commission has drafted a new directive for import of mobile phone handsets through type-based approval process instead of existing shipment-based process. BTRC officials said the move came to ensure the quality of the mobile phone handsets for new technologies such as 3G and 4G which the government permitted

The finance ministry on Tuesday scrapped a condition that directors of merchant banks and brokerage houses would issue personal guarantee for releasing loans to the affected small investors from Tk 900 crore refinance scheme of the government. The Bangladesh Securities and Exchange Commission recently sought permission from the ministry for waiving the

Overdependence on foreign loan by private sector creates financial crisis in any country as such type of trend leads to outflow of money in the form of repatriation of principle, interest and dividend, said leading bankers, economists and experts on Tuesday. They made the opinion at a seminar in Dhaka at a time when Bangladesh has ... Read more

International credit rating agency Moody’s on Tuesday said that Bangladesh’s headline growth was not meaningfully impacted because of heightened political turbulence over the last year in the run-up to parliamentary elections in January. In the annual investors update report published on the day, Moody’s also said the disruptions caused by industrial accidents

Dhaka stocks declined sharply on Tuesday, third trading session in a row, as investors turned shaky apprehending further fall in the market following a Bangladesh Bank move against the banks which have increased their capital market investment beyond the allowable limit. The key index of the Dhaka Stock Exchange, DSEX, declined to 4,567.04 points,

A European Union ban on import of Indian mangoes, including the famed Alphonsos, from tomorrow and a resultant glut in supply is pushing down prices in the local market, reports Times of India. Although Indian consumers are happy over the falling price, the country’s farmers and exporters criticised the European ban and appealed to Brussels to ... Read more

The government is planning to invest US$ 1.6 billion to train and employ 1.5 million workers to meet the shortage of skilled labour force in the country’s burgeoning manufacturing sector, officials said. The programme is likely to start from the next fiscal year and will continue for 10 years. Asian Development Bank and Switzerland would provide 85 ... Read more

BSEC body suggests developing infrastructure The introduction of a commodity market by the Bangladesh Securities and Exchange Commission will take time as a BSEC committee has suggested that the regulator should develop proper infrastructure before the launch of the market on which commodities are bought and sold for future delivery. The committee in a recent study ... Read more

The National Board of Revenue has exempted the international oil companies from paying value-added tax on import of services mainly consultancy services for exploration and production of oil and gas, NBR officials said. They said the facility was offered to facilitate the exploration and production activities by the IOCs in the country in line with the