60pc of trimmed ADP implemented until May

Only 60 per cent of the annual development programme (ADP) was implemented until May, and the possibility in making any considerable progress is remote as only one month is left in the current fiscal to accomplish the job.The ADP was...

BCIC to boost output of its fertiliser factories

Bangladesh Chemical Industries Corporation (BCIC) will overhaul its six factories at a cost of over Tk 10 billion to produce an additional 0.5 million tonnes of urea fertiliser.The corporation has decided to modernise the factories as the government has raised...

How to see the world economy through two crises

TWO storms are buffeting the world economy: an inflationary commodity-price storm and a deflationary financial one. Last week I argued that exchange-rate regimes were a link between these distinct events. This week, let us look at how to sail on...

Exporting flowers and orchids

THERE are countries which greatly sustain their economy by exporting flowers. Holland, for example, is the world leader in floriculture and export of flowers. There is a big demand for flowers in many resourceful countries which do not grow flowers...

Lebanon to London via the launderette

Michael Kavanagh meets Zaher BarakatZaher Barakat grew up in war-tom Lebanon - an experience that made him determined to succeed in business.As peace returned, he witnessed the role played by the World Bank, Unicef and Lebanese ex-patriates in building his...

Govt may drop tax on children's drawing books

The government might drop the proposal on imposition of 15 per cent duty on children's pictorial and drawing books in the budget for fiscal 2008-09 following requests from different quarters, official sources said.In his budget speech on June 9, finance...

Bogota commends Dhaka's progress in cutting poverty

President of Colombia Alvaro Uribe Vetez has commended the progress of Bangladesh in alleviating poverty and micro-credit programmes, saying Bogota would like to benefit from Dhaka's experience, reports BSS.President Uribe said this during an interaction with newly accredited Bangladesh Ambassador...

Oil jumps to new record near $142

LONDON, Jun 27 (Reuters) : Oil leapt to a new record high near $142 a barrel Friday, extending gains after surging nearly 4 percent in the previous session, as tumbling global stock markets triggered a wider commodities rally.US light crude...

Iraq tries to entice back doctors

BAGHDAD, June 27 (Reuters): The Iraqi government is trying to entice back hundreds of doctors who fled the country because of rampant violence and says improved security is already leading some to return. Rasheed al-Nassiri, head of the government's "Committee...

The strange financial physics of the inverse bubble

Some literary journals invite their readers to compete in the invention of new words to describe activities or concepts that have not yet acquired a label. In current markets, what we need is a term for the opposite of a...

Showdown in Moscow for BP and investors

Catherine Belton, Neil Buckley and Ed CrooksMIKHAIL Fridman, the baby-faced Russian tycoon, is on the warpath. Inside his loft-like office in the Moscow headquarters of Alfa Bank, Mr Fridman is planning to take on BP, the UK energy group, over...

Democracy depends on local polls: Rab

Convener of Unity for Political Reform (UPR) ASM Abdur Rab asked for Upazila elections to be held by October, at a press conference Friday, saying all local government polls should be held before national elections in December, reports bdnews24.com.People want...

Inter-bank call rate eases

The inter-bank call money rate was in an easing mood last week slipping over the days and responding to central bank's intervention. The demand for cash remained strong and the market appeared to possess sufficient liquidity to meet the constant...

Bearish trend dominates

The Dhaka Stock Exchange (DSE) continued to witness downtrend for the second straight week that ended Thursday.The prime bourse opened negatively fearing market cooling measures taken by the DSE but finished positively as the investors went easy.The market barometers --...

Americans may hold a key to gas prices

Richard Wolf and Paul OverbergA decline in Americans' demand for gasoline is keeping record prices from skyrocketing even further, a USA TODAY analysis of gas and oil prices shows.The price of crude oil has nearly doubled in the past year,...

Better management to enhance competitiveness

Competitiveness is at the heart of being successful in business these days be it at the local, the regional and the global level. This competitiveness essentially boils down to business organisations employing the modern methods of cost cutting operations and...

Licence fees on captive power plants likely to be slashed

The Bangladesh Energy Regulatory Commission (BERC) is likely to reduce the license fees on the use of captive and stand-by generators having capacity above one megawatt (MW) by industrial units."We are considering reviewing the rate of license fees on use...

Japanese price rises fuel fears on growth

JAPANESE consumer prices surged to another 10-year high in February while unemployment rose, squeezing Japanese disposable incomes and intensifying concerns that economic growth in the country is fading out.Core consumer prices, excluding fresh food, rose a faster-than-expected 1.0 per cent...

Reputed colleges to face difficulty to enroll GPA-5 scorers

Reputed colleges with limited seats will be facing difficulty while selecting eligible candidates from an all-time high number of GPA-5 achievers, reports BSS.As many as 52,500 examinees scored GPA-5, the highest ever number of GPA-5 achievers in the SSC and...

N Korea destroys nuclear reactor tower

SEOUL, June 27 (Agencies): North Korea destroyed the most visible symbol of its nuclear weapons programme Friday, according to a news report, in a sign of its commitment to stop making plutonium for atomic bombs.The reported demolition of the 60-foot-tall...

Field Marshal Manekshaw passes away

NEW DELHI, June 27 (AP): India's most celebrated army chief, Field Marshal Sam Hormusji Framji Jamshedji Manekshaw, has died, the defence ministry said. He was 94.Manekshaw had been in a military hospital in the southern Indian town of Wellington for...

NBR starts tax motivational campaign from July 1

The National Board of Revenue (NBR) will launch a countrywide programme from July 1 to encourage people having taxable income for payment of tax.People having small but taxable earning at Thana level will be brought under the motivational programme to...

Terrorists kill tribal youth in Bandarban

BANDARBAN, Jun 27 (UNB): An indigenous youth was shot dead at Kanaiupara in Sadar Upazila here Thursday midnight.The deceased was identified as Priya Tongchongya.According to local people, a gang of some 16/17 terrorists led by terrorist Rajan Chakma encircled the...

World's rich scale back exposure to property

FT Syndication ServiceLONDON: Rapid growth in emerging markets enabled the world's richest people to shrug off the credit crisis last year and expand their assets by more than 9.0 per cent to $40,700bn, an authoritative study of global wealth has...

Egypt archaeologists find ancient painted coffins

CAIRO, June 27 (AFP): A team of Egyptian archaeologists have discovered several painted wooden coffins, including some dating back to the 13th century BC rule of pharaoh Ramses II. "These coffins were found in the tombs of senior officials of...

Nissan decides to enter Indian market

NEW YORK, June 27: Japanese automakers who had so long resisted the lure of such a massive and expanding market have now shed their shyness and planning big investments in India. Nissan Motors in collaboration with giant French automaker Renault...

Local-body polls to be held as per schedule: Commerce Adviser

KHAGRACHHORI, June 27 (UNB): Education and Commerce Adviser Hossain Zillur Rahman reiterated that the local government elections would be held as per the government formulated election roadmap."There is no doubt in this regard. Local government polls will be held before...

Tk 61,000 realised in fine from Sylhet eateries

SYLHET, June 27 (UNB): A mobile court Wednesday, in an anti-adulteration drive, realised Tk 61,000 in fine from eight restaurants in the city.Led by executive magistrate Altab Hossain, RAB-9 and Bangladesh Standards and Testing Institute (BSTI) officials also took part...

A point to ponder

The profession that is loathed but still exists with the tacit support of the society is prostitution. It is a profession, which involves not only physical labour but also service. Those, who slip into the profession, earn whatever they can....

EC to announce nat'l polls schedule in Oct

KHULNA, June 27 (bdnews24.com): The Election Commission will announce the schedule for the parliamentary elections in October, Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) ATM Shamsul Huda said Friday.'The parliamentary elections must be held in the third week of December, and its schedule...