Finance News: Latest Financial News, Finance News today in Bangladesh

Encouraging upturn in local, foreign investment proposals

Badrul AhsanInvestment proposals from both local and foreign sources have shown an encouraging upturn in the just concluded calendar year despite gas and electricity supply shortage and the shocks from global economic crisis, they said.In comparison with the previous years, the growth rates of the proposed local and foreign direct...

IFC helps farmers convert waste to electricity, boosting efficiency

IFC, a member of the World Bank Group, is working with local Eastern Bank to help poultry farmers buy technology that uses waste to generate electricity, enabling farmers to increase their efficiency, productivity and profitability, said a statement.With support from South Asia Enterprise Development Facility, managed by IFC, Eastern Bank...

SME credit makes up 76pc of total portfolio

Md Mazadul HoqueState-run BASIC Bank has scaled up SME lending to help create a pool of new entrepreneurs in rural and urban areas to foster socio-economic development of the country, the head of the bank said.The bank's chairman Sheikh Abdul Hye Bacchu said that his bank has financed Tk 39.81...

Poultry industry struggling hard for survival

Arafat AraThe country's once potential poultry industry is struggling hard to survive as nearly 10,000 poultry farms were shut over the last 12 months due mainly to the outbreak of bird flu, industry leaders said.The farm owners feared that the number of farms would further decline in coming days if...

Trade watch

Euro likely to survive 2012, says IMFPRETORIA, Jan 6: The euro is likely to survive 2012 despite the debt crisis in the euro currency zone, International Monetary Fund Managing Director Christine Lagarde said on Friday.European leaders will hold another summit this month to try to resolve the crisis which threatens...

Prices of chicken, eggs, garlic witness fresh hike

FE ReportPrices of broiler chicken, eggs and garlic witnessed a fresh hike while that of other essentials including edible oil, rice and sugar remained more or less stable in the city's kitchen markets, traders said.Prices of poultry birds increased by Tk 5-10 per kg to Tk 130-135 per kg. A...

Oil prices slip in Asian trade

SINGAPORE, Jan 6 (AFP): Oil prices slid in Asian trade today as dealers took profit from recent gains, while concerns over the European debt crisis and weaker US energy demand dampened sentiment, analysts said. New York's main contract, West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude for delivery in February was down 26...

S Asian youth convention begins today

A two-day South Asian Youth convention begins in the city today (Saturday) aiming to encourage youth of the region to look beyond national borders and develop regional outlook, reports UNB.The convention is expected to help exchange ideas among groups and people from socio-cultural arena of the SAARC member countries.The SAARC...

Leadership colloquium on ICT in healthcare begins in city

FE ReportLeadership colloquium titled ICT in Healthcare began in the city Friday in order to find out the easy way of reaching health service across the country by using communication technology. Telemedicine, Telehealth, Mobile Health, Patient Record Management, and Hospital Management are the topics of the two-day colloquium.LifeSize, a division...

Global Commodity Prices

Asian economies look to keep Iranian oil flowing

BEIJING, Jan 6 (AP): China, the biggest buyer of Iran's oil, has publicly rejected US sanctions aimed at Tehran's energy industry while American allies Japan and South Korea are scrambling to find a compromise to keep critical supplies flowing.Beijing is buying less Iranian crude this month but analysts say China...

India's food inflation gives way to deflation

NEW DELHI, Jan 6 (Business Standard): After a spree of adverse news in the early part of this financial year, Indian economy is moving into a somewhat better phase. For the first time in at least five-and-a-half years, India witnessed food deflation. Wholesale price-based food inflation fell to -3.36 per...

Euro hits 16-month low vs dollar

LONDON, Jan 6 (Reuters): The euro hit 16-month lows against the dollar and sterling on Friday and hovered near an 11-year low versus the yen, with further declines expected as worries grow about a worsening euro zone debt crisis and sovereign funding pressures.Next week's Italian and Spanish government bond sales...

Yuan ends slightly weaker, more volatility seen

SHANGHAI, Jan 6 (Reuters): China's yuan hit its lowest point in more than a week on Friday after the central bank set a weaker mid-point for the second straight day following a surge in the dollar overnight.Spot yuan closed slightly down at 6.3095 per dollar against Thursday's close of 6.3017....

China to put GDP target below 8.0pc in 2012

BEIJING, Jan 6 (Reuters): China's leadership is targeting growth of less than 8 per cent in 2012 a senior government researcher wrote Friday in the People's Daily, the mouthpiece of the ruling Communist Party.Lin Zhaomu, a researcher affiliated with China's economic planning agency and the author of key economic documents...