Businesses urge removal of tariff, non-tariff barriers to boost export

Bangladeshi businesses request that the government take initiative to enhance exports to India through land ports and remove roadblocks to trade with the largest neighbouring economy to bridge a yawning gap.According to industry insiders, they made the requests in proposals...

ShopUp starts exports of agri produce to KSA, UK

Bangladeshi business to business (B2B) commerce platform, ShopUp exported agricultural produce to several global markets including Saudi Arabia, the UK, and the UAE, exhibiting its operational prowess. It has recently completed the exports of 300 tonnes of rice across the...

Gas explosion at Meghnaghat plant canteen burns 12

At least 12 people suffered burn injuries after a gas explosion rocked the canteen of JERA Meghnaghat Power Plant Limited in Sonargaon Upazila of Narayanganj on Wednesday afternoon, reports BSS.The injured were immediately taken to the National Institute of Burn...

Chinese joint venture to rehabilitate first Jamuna Bridge

A Chinese joint-venture (JV) company has been assigned to rehabilitate Bangladesh's first longest bridge over the Jamuna River as railway tracks have been withdrawn from there.The tracks were removed after constructing a dedicated railway bridge on the river last year.The...

24,000 die a year in BD due to high-sodium foods

Processed and ultra-processed foods including packaged snacks and processed meat are among the leading contributors to excessive salt intake in Bangladesh, speakers said at an awareness seminar on Wednesday, reports UNB.According to the World Health Organization (WHO), excessive salt consumption...

Govt reappoints 96 officers through 27th BCS

The government has issued a revised gazette reappointing 96 officers to different Bangladesh Civil Service (BCS) cadres under the first result of the 27th BCS examination, more than a decade after the recruitment process became entangled in legal disputes and...

Measles, such symptoms claim eight more lives

At least eight more children died from measles-related infections, including one confirmed measles case, in the last 24 hours until Wednesday, taking the total death toll to 432 amid growing concern over malnutrition and post-infection complications among affected children. According...

Advance train ticket sale begins ahead of Eid

The authorities of Bangladesh Railway (BR) started on Wednesday selling advance train tickets for the upcoming Eid-ul-Azha.Tickets for May 23-the first day of Eid travel-went on sale on Wednesday (May 13, 2026).To ensure passenger conveniences, tickets of 100 per cent...

Heavy rain triggers waterlogging in city

Heavy rain triggered severe waterlogging across several parts of the capital on Wednesday afternoon, disrupting traffic and daily activities as dark clouds plunged Dhaka into near-darkness.According to the Bangladesh Meteorological Department (BMD), Dhaka recorded 42 millimetres of rainfall during the...

Urea supply fears grow ahead of Aman season

Concern over availability of urea during the upcoming Aman-cultivation season has intensified, as the state-run Bangladesh Chemical Industries Corporation (BCIC) struggles to secure sufficient imports amid the Middle East crisis and several local fertiliser factories remained shut due to gas...

BB cuts penalty interest on overdue loans

The central bank has reduced the maximum penalty interest and profit rate on overdue loans and investments in a move aimed at easing financial pressure on businesses and encouraging investment amid prolonged economic sluggishness.Under the broader policy objective, Bangladesh Bank...

Source tax on essentials set to double

Essential commodities may get costlier as the government is set to hike source tax on the same in the upcoming national budget, sources say, amid fears of inflation going further up.Currently, the tax at source on essential commodities is 0.5...

Govt raises cowhide prices by Tk 2.0 per sqft for Eid-ul-Adha

The government has fixed the prices of salted rawhides and skins of sacrificial animals for the upcoming Eid-ul-Adha, with an increase of Tk 2.0 per square foot (sqft) compared to that of previous year.The rawhide prices of salted sacrificial cows...

Fitch rates BD outlook as 'Negative' over Middle East crisis

Fitch Ratings has revised the outlook on Bangladesh's Long-Term Issuer Default Ratings (IDRs) to 'Negative' from 'Stable', while affirming the ratings at 'B+'.The outlook revision reflects Bangladesh's increased external finances and macroeconomic vulnerabilities stemming from significant exposure to the conflict...

ECNEC approves multipurpose Padma Barrage project

Decades of wait is all but over now as the government on Wednesday adopted the multipurpose Padma Barrage project meant to mitigate water-scarcity impacts in vast areas and facilitate irrigation, pisciculture and hydropower generation, officials say. The 65-year-long-stalled water-management infrastructure's...

Zubaida Rahman stands by measles-hit Nur Nahar

Prime Minister's wife Dr Zubaida Rahman has extended support to six-month-old Nur Nahar, who has been battling measles and pneumonia amid severe financial hardship, after media reports highlighted the infant's critical condition and her mother's desperate struggle to continue treatment,...

Ex-minister Engineer Mosharraf Hossain dies

CHATTOGRAM, May 13 (UNB): Former minister and veteran freedom fighter Engr Mosharraf Hossain died on Wednesday morning at a private hospital in the city. He was 83, reports UNB.He was declared dead at around 10:00 am, his eldest son Sayedur...

Jatiya Party reports Tk 500,000 general election expenditure

The Jatiya Party has reported an election expenditure of around Tk 500,000 for candidates contesting across 196 constituencies, a figure far below the amount permitted under electoral rules, reports bdnews24.com.A three-member delegation of the party, led by Presidium Member Rezaul...

510 people die in 527 road accidents in April: BJKS

FE REPORT Bangladesh Jatri Kalyan Samity (BJKS), a passenger welfare platform, said a total of 510 people were killed and 1,268 injured in 527 road accidents across the country in April 2026.Besides, 49 people were killed and 11 injured in...

Social stability key to economic revival, says Swapon

Information and Broadcasting Minister Zahir Uddin Swapon on Wednesday said it may take at least two more years to revive the fragile economy inherited from the fallen Awami League government, reports BSS."Social and political stability at the national level is...

Flow Fest ties up with Unilever for workplace wellness

The Flow Fest, a Dhaka-based workplace wellness initiative, recently conducted a corporate wellness session in partnership with Unilever Bangladesh. The session, titled 'Stress Management at Work: Sustaining Performance and Well-Being', was facilitated by Srabonti Ali of Lighthouse Therapy BD, and...

Engr AAMM Zia Hossain dead

CHATTOGRAM, May 13: Eminent engineer and former chairman of the Chittagong Development Authority (CDA), AAM Zia Hossain passed away while undergoing treatment at Evercare Hospital on Tuesday.He was 91. He was suffering from old age complications. He left wife, three...

DSCC Administrator Md Abdus Salam presiding over a meeting on modernising Sayedabad Bus Terminal at

DSCC Administrator Md Abdus Salam presiding over a meeting on modernising Sayedabad Bus Terminal at Nagar Bhaban in the capital on Tuesday. Shamsur Rahman Simul Biswas MP was present at the event as the special guest. — Press Release

Edn minister seeks timely completion of SSC, HSC studies

The government is planning to ensure students complete 10 years of schooling on time and sit for Secondary School Certificate (SSC), Higher Secondary Certificate (HSC) and equivalent examinations without delays, reports bdnews24.com.Speaking at Dhaka Residential Model College on Wednesday, Education...

BD receives over 383,000 doses of vaccine from China

Bangladesh has received 383,080 doses of polio vaccine from Chinese company Sinovac Biotech, Health and Family Welfare Minister Minister Sardar Md. Sakhawat Husain said on Wednesday, reports UNB."We now have sufficient vaccine stock in hand. We will begin administering polio...

Experts stress necessary budget allocation for HTN control

FE REPORTSustainable financing and a strong primary healthcare system are crucial to address the growing number of hypertension patients in the country, health experts and officials said at a discussion in the city on Wednesday.They called for controlling hypertension (HTN)...

Saudi Arabia launched ‘covert’ attacks on Iran

RIYADH/DUBAI, May 12 (Reuters): Saudi Arabia launched numerous, unpublicized strikes on Iran in retaliation for attacks carried out in the kingdom during the Middle East war, two Western officials briefed on the matter and two Iranian officials said.The Saudi attacks,...

Trump posts graphic of Venezuela as 51st US state

WASHINGTON, United States, May 13 (AFP): US President Donald Trump on Tuesday posted a map graphic on his Truth Social platform depicting Venezuela with an inset American flag and the label "51st State."The provocative post -- published while Trump was...

Australia to join France, UK defensive mission in Hormuz

CANBERRA, May 13 (AFP): Australia will join a "strictly defensive" mission led by France and Britain to secure shipping through the Strait of Hormuz, Defence Minister Richard Marles said Wednesday.Australia will contribute a Wedgetail E-7A surveillance aircraft, already deployed in...

UCB LAUNCHES ENTREPRENEURSHIP DEVELOPMENT PROGRAMME -

UCB LAUNCHES ENTREPRENEURSHIP DEVELOPMENT PROGRAMME United Commercial Bank (UCB) PLC has launched a month-long Entrepreneurship Development Programme in Savar, Dhaka. The programme is being conducted under the Skills for Industry Competitiveness and Innovation Program (SICIP) with support from the Asian...