Tax liability for some businesses to go up

The tax liability of most businesses would go up, especially in the case of import-dependent companies and suppliers, due to the certain fiscal measures proposed in the new budget.The budget for the fiscal year (FY) 2021-22 proposes to increase the...

GPH exports $50m billet to China

CHATTOGRAM: The GPH Ispat Limited exported its fourth shipment of prime quality steel billet to China's main port known as Jiangyin/Xiamen port on May 6 last. The first shipment was made from the Chittagong port in November last year. The...

Budgetary goals and vaccination

The economic growth of any country is now inextricably intertwined with its success in reining in the onslaught of the deadly pathogen - SARS-CoV-2- on life and livelihood. So, the problem all boils down to one issue-the Covid-19 pandemic which...

NBR pins hope on premium cigarettes, telcos and EFDs

The revenue board has projected the collection of an additional VAT revenue of Tk 60 billion from three areas in the upcoming fiscal year (FY). The Value Added Tax (VAT) is expected to come from tobacco and mobile phone sectors,...

Apt policy to address growth-inequality trade-off

Finance, globalisation, technology and urbanisation - key drivers of economic growth - can lead to more or less inequality-depending on how prevalent they are in the economy. The determinants of income inequality-a measure of how unevenly income is distributed across...

Ctg businesses welcome FY '22 budget

CHATTOGRAM, June 04: The businesses based in Chattogram hailed the budget and termed it 'pro-people' but the common people looked uninterested about the annual fiscal plan. Common people are frustrated over the continuous price hike of essential commodities. Most of...

Stocks extend rally for eighth week

Stocks extended their rally for the eight consecutive weeks that ended on Thursday as investors continued to put fresh bets on stocks amid high expectations.Meanwhile, Finance Minister AHM Mustafa Kamal unveiled a record Tk 6.03 trillion national budget for the...

Ecosystem restoration

World Environment Day gets recognition as the biggest and most significant global celebration that encourages people to protect our natural environment from several challenges our world faces today. The World Environment Day, also known as People's Day, allows people an...

China: A development partner of Bangladesh

China's commercial and cultural influence on the Muslim world, including Bangladesh, is noticeable. Over the past few decades, China has not only been conducting economic activities with Bangladesh, Pakistan, Nepal, Bhutan, India, Vietnam and Myanmar. China's trade relations with almost...

Climate change stares us in the face

Even by the turn of the century, the subject of global warming and the change in climate that scientists claimed it caused was to the average person an academic exercise. Even people of rational mind were of the view that...

Blue bond -- an inventive financing solution for blue economy

The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), also known as the Global Goals, were set by the United Nations in 2015. SDGs are considered the universal calls for ensuring that each person in every corner of the world relishes the benefit of...

Transport sector gets Tk 694.17b

Some Tk 694.17 billion has been proposed in the budget for the transport and communication sector to introduce more mega projects as well as to complete the Padma Bridge construction in the fiscal year (FY) 2021-22.The proposed budget for the...

Traditional, yet business-friendly

Finance Minister AHM Mustafa Kamal on Thursday placed in parliament yet another national budget -- country's 50th since independence -- amidst pandemic-induced constraints. The budget for the next financial year (FY 2021-22) that has been crafted on the traditional framework...

Understanding economic dynamics from an in-depth perspective

Writing a book encompassing a period of five decades of socioeconomic development of a country like Bangladesh is a daunting task. The country has passed through ups and downs in its political history which of course influenced its economic performances....

Waterlogging: Old worries, new players

Dhaka city residents witnessed the usual on Tuesday morning. Following a downpour measuring 85mm, the highest in four years, roads in different parts of the city went under the knee to waist-deep water. In some areas, overflowing rainwater sneaked into...

Celebrating the golden jubilee budget

The nation this year is celebrating the golden jubilee of its independence. And the proposed national budget for the fiscal year 2021-22 (FY22) is one of many events to mark the year-long celebration. It is the 50th annual national budget....

Govt to ease onion imports to increase supply

The government is going to ease import of onion to help enhance its supply, in the wake of recent surge in the prices of the key spice in the domestic market, said officials.The decision came as prices of onion shot...

Bank borrowing target set at Tk 760b for FY'22

The government is likely to set its borrowing target from the banking system at over Tk 760 billion to finance the budget deficit in the next fiscal year (FY), officials said.The bank borrowing for the FY2021-22 would be 7.0-plus per...

Train run on opening day still uncertain

Uncertainty still looms large over train movement alongside road vehicles on the inaugural day of the Tk 30-billion rail-cum-road Padma Bridge.An agreement is yet to reach to start the rail track development work on the bottom layer of the two-tier...

Women in agriculture

As evident from official statistics, the participation of women in the greater agricultural economy of Bangladesh is constantly on the rise. Women engaged in this sector have now crossed 10 million from a few thousands about fifty years ago. Available...

Shahid bhai was a dependable leader

Shahiduzzaman Khan, who we called Shahid bhai, was a soft spoken and very dependable leader of the newsroom. I had the honour to work with him in three newspapers and all of them had added new chapters in English journalism...

A new commitment for vaccine equity and defeating the pandemic

As preparations are made for the G7 Summit in the United Kingdom (UK) next week, top of the agenda is how to end the Covid-19 pandemic and secure the global recovery. Urgent challenges face us. By now it has become...

Inward remittance soars 39pc in first 11 months

The inflow of remittances reached nearly US$ 23 billion in the first 11 months of the current fiscal year (FY), registering an increase of more than 39 per cent despite the Covid-19 pandemic, officials said.The inward remittances jumped to $22.84...

10-yr tax holiday likely for hospital investors

The government is likely to offer a complete 10-year tax break in the 2021-22 fiscal budget for investors of 250-bed hospitals outside city areas with intent to decentralise health services.The exemption from payment of corporate taxes will be applicable to...

Curb on bonus share issuance

Five types of listed companies, including the 'Z' category ones, are set to be barred from issuing bonus shares without justified reason of business expansion and the regulatory permission as well.The Bangladesh Securities and Exchange Commission (BSEC) is about to...

MBL vows to grab top position

Mercantile Bank Limited (MBL) has taken a series of measures to become one of the country's top five financial institutions in the near future in terms of market share, its top executive has said.As part of the moves, the third-generation...

Strategy to cushion shocks to export

The government has taken an initiative to devise a strategy to cushion possible external shocks to the country's export trade, officials said.While working out the strategy, they said, the government would consider the aftermath of the country's graduation from a...

Policy recommendations for budget FY22

The economic downturn and uncertainty induced by the Coivd-19 pandemic continued in the fiscal year 2020-21 (FY21), although at a lower intensity than was initially perceived. During the first half of the ongoing fiscal year, much of the discussions and...

Study suggests metro rail line link-up with Kamalapur

The metro rail line being developed from Uttara to Motijheel will be linked up with Kamalapur Railway Station as a feasibility study has finally recommended extending the elevated track by over one kilometre after acquiring private land and buildings.The Dhaka...

NBR set to miss revenue target

The revenue board is almost certain that the revenue receipt during the outgoing fiscal year (FY) will fall far short of the revised target because of the pandemic effect. The National Board of Revenue (NBR) collected Tk 1.97 trillion during...