Pushing export during the tariff war

Increasing export is always a challenge for any country, big or small. Global economic climate sets the tone of challenge while internal condition also plays a critical role. Sometimes it becomes difficult to measure the extent of impact of global...

Keep focus on less meritorious students

St. Joseph Higher Secondary School is a Catholic higher secondary school in Dhaka. It is a boys' institution offering education from third grade to twelfth grade. The institution started its journey in 1954 as St. Joseph English Medium School in...

Banks now can open FX clearing account in yuan

The central bank has allowed banks to open foreign currency clearing account with Bangladesh Bank (BB) in Chinese yuan renminbi to facilitate bilateral foreign trade, officials said.The BB issued a notification in this connection on Tuesday and asked all authorised...

BHBFC seeks govt nod to cut flat loan interest rate to 9.0pc

The Bangladesh House Building Finance Corporation (BHBFC) has sought the government's approval to reduce the interest rate on flat purchase loans to 9.0 per cent, officials said.Presently, the rate of interest on this segment of loans is 10 per cent...

Need for remunerative prices

The development of infrastructure and storage facilities tends to contribute to increased commercialisation of crops. Agricultural practices begin to be carried out for generating surplus to own consumption. At the same time, marketing strategies also claim a berth in academic...

Brig. General Jamil - an epitome of courage

In the dawn of August 15, 1975, Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman made one of his final phone calls to his military secretary Col Jamil Uddin Ahmad. He had been attacked, Bangabandhu told Col Jamil, and the residence on Road 32...

NBR makes EFD installation mandatory for businesses

Some 13 types of businesses in city corporation area will have to install Electronic Fiscal Device (EFD) on their premises by November 01, 2018 to keep recorded data on financial transactions.The National Board of Revenue (NBR) issued an order, dated...

Govt moves to set lifespan of new roads, buildings

The government has moved to determine the lifetime of all new public-sector roads and buildings to be built across the country, officials said.The Prime Minister's Office (PMO) has recently asked all the government secretaries to take steps in this regard.The...

Trade deficit crosses $18b

The country's trade deficit passed the $18 billion mark in fiscal year (FY) 2017-18 mainly due to higher import payments than lower export receipts.Officials said the trade gap with the rest of the world rose to $18.26 billion in the...

The case for low-floor buses

Most of the public buses in Dhaka as well as across the country are not access-friendly for the passengers. Women and children as well as the elderly and the physically challenged people find it an uphill task getting into these...

Loosening the 'carbon triangle'

Remember the cliché: 'What's good for General Motors (GM) is good for the United States'? That down-to-earth observation about the company and country at one time no longer holds. Since 1955, GM was the top Fortune 500 company 37 times...

Cost soars to Tk 335b for huge land acquisition

The projected high spending for land acquisition has propelled the cost of Dhaka-Chittagong Expressway project to Tk 335 billion. The cost for land acquisition in the project is 68 per cent higher than the cost of its civil work and...

Connecting young minds

What are human relations if not discovering one's own self in others -and mutually so. Relations develop on acquaintance. The deeper it is the greater the understanding or rapport. In casual relations, people hardly open their bosom to others. In...

The Trump administration's dead end on trade

There is every reason to believe that the United States' trade dispute with China will get worse before it gets better, and that the US trade deficit will widen further rather than shrinking. In fact, the economic conditions - were...

Field level staffers call for fresh guidelines

Field level officials have requested the revenue board for issuing a fresh guidelines or user manual for filing VAT (value added tax) returns in the new form to steer clear of confusions.They said both traders and field level officials need...

Why the Bank of England should target growth

The Bank of England (BoE) raised interest rates to 0.75 per cent this month, in the belief that inflation will exceed its mandated 2.0 per cent target in about two years. But raising interest rates tends to dampen economic activity,...

Tale of a child labourer (2018-08-11)

A 10-year-old child of an affluent family in Bangladesh normally wakes up, brushes his or her teeth, has breakfast and gets ready for school. But Ridoy Ahmed's mornings are different. He has to jump out of bed and rush for...

Cost of Dhaka-Sylhet four-lane highway project set to go up

The cost of Dhaka-Sylhet four-lane highway project is set to see an upward revision despite the Planning Commission's directives to lower it assessing the proposed prices of all components, sources said.They said Roads and Highways Department (RHD) proposed increasing the...

Ratio of BD's black economy slipping, says IMF paper

The ratio of the shadow economy in Bangladesh in terms of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) has been declining for more than one decade.Shadow economy, also known as the black economy, means all economic activities, which are hidden from official...

Glimpses of what he was to his employees

He was out and out a professional person. He was a man of integrity and a source of inspiration. He was such a personality who had all kinds of human qualities.He was a man who had inspired and guided subordinates...

Achieving sustainability at the workplace

The word 'sustainability' has become a part of our daily life. Any individual action at workplace or home, whether it is small or large - can be a significant contribution towards achieving sustainability. Adopting Sustainability concept in corporate culture can...

The dangers of smartphone addiction

Nearly a decade ago, Apple co-founder Steve Jobs introduced the first iPhone, an efficient smart phone. Since then the concept of mobile phones has changed entirely. Smartphone possesses extensive computing capabilities, high-speed internet connectivity through Wi-Fi and mobile broadband and...

Good governance in NGOs receiving foreign funds

The non-government organisations have traditionally played an important role in the empowerment of poverty-stricken and marginalised population in developing countries. In war-ravaged post-independence Bangladesh, the NGO activities commenced through providing relief and rehabilitation assistance to the distressed and displaced population....

South Asian integration: Reorienting trade policies

Trade policies comprise of the standards, goals, rules, and regulations that guide trade relations among countries. Trade policies involve taxes imposed on imports and exports, inspection regulations, and different non-tariff issues. Trade brings forth the efficiency of the global economy...

Living beyond mortal end

When my footprint will not mark this borough/I'll not steer my ferry boat at this crossing And then, Life is but a walking shadow, a poor player/That struts and frets his hour upon this stage,/ And then is heard no...

Govt to build tunnel under Airport Road

The government has initiated to build a tunnel under the busy Airport Road aimed at preventing casualties.It will be constructed close to the July 29 accident site outside Kurmitola General Hospital.The move was made following the death of two students...

bKash witnesses steady growth

Mobile Financial Service (MFS) operator bKash has exhibited a steady growth in number of customers and transactions during last five years.The BRAC Bank subsidiary also registered steady growth in net profit during the period with the growth of its consumer...

US sanctions widen rift with Turkey

During the first week of August, tensions between the United States and Turkey escalated in the midst of US sanctions. The issue: continued confinement of Andrew Craig Brunson, a Christian Pastor from North Carolina on terrorism and espionage charges linked...

Climate convulsion signals ominous prospect

With Europe smarting under a heat wave -parts of it extending from Spain to arctic Sweden under the sway of record high temperature -it is clear that the planet is in convulsion. Bangladesh and its neighbours in South Asia have...

Revenue board to discontinue giving tax cards

The National Board of Revenue (NBR) has decided not to issue tax identity cards (IDs) to the taxpayers as many raised questions about its effectiveness without legal backup.In the upcoming income tax fair in November, the revenue board will only...