Rescue bid for BBIN MVA sans reluctant Bhutan

A last-ditch bid is on to salvage the BBIN motor vehicle agreement (MVA) for cross-border movement of all modes transport across the four member-countries sans dissenting Bhutan. The multimodal transport deal, signed by Bangladesh, Bhutan, India and Nepal (BBIN) in...

Sea-rail routes open to trade linking southwest China\'s Chongqing with Singapore

BEIJING, May 15: The first pilot freight train for new sea-rail transportation route linking southwest China's Chongqing Municipality and Singapore arrived at Qinzhou Port in south China's Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region last week after its 48-hour journey. The containers on...

Iran forges ahead despite Trump\'s ultimatum

Iran's ties with the European Union (EU) have clearly reached a threshold when the first Iran-EU Business Forum on sustainable energy opened in Tehran on April 29 last with European Climate Action and Energy Commissioner Miguel Arias Canete opening it....

What banks need most from their directors

It is learnt from newspapers that the government is going to amend the Banking Companies Act 1991. The cabinet division has approved the draft of the Banking Companies (Amendment) Act 2017. The Banking Companies Act was also previously other amendmended...

The wages of wage fear

If all else fails, try the previously unthinkable. It is not a bad principle for economic policy in the best of times. Today, it may be just what is needed: many Western countries - certainly the United States, Japan, and...

Energy machinery boosts spending

The country's import expenditure increased by more than 11 per cent or US$ 3.41 billion in the first nine months of the current fiscal year (FY). The import of capital machinery jumped nearly 53 per cent during the period, contributing...

BSC moves to buy 8 more ships with Chinese funds

The Bangladesh Shipping Corporation (BSC) has moved forward to buy eight more vessels with Chinese funds worth Tk 20 billion while six other vessels are under construction to enrich its fleet, sources said. In this regard, proposal will be sent...

OBOR: China\'s not-so-cruel intentions

Chinese President Xi Jinping is hosting a summit for many of the leaders of the 65 countries engaged in his "one belt, one road" (OBOR) initiative, a pioneering programme that will channel billions of investment dollars toward infrastructure projects across...

Future cyber attacks may be an existential dread

Now it is clear that one single hacker from any remote corner of the world can deface electronic information in any website, block any computer to catch a user for ransom, and intrude into systems and networks for paralysing anything...

Pre-Ramadan price frenzy

When countries with predominantly Muslim populations experience deliberately effected lower commodity prices immediately before and during Ramadan, the holy month, Bangladesh unashamedly remains an exception. In this country, the business community start pouncing on consumers long before the start of...

Undesirable transformation

The state-owned Power Development Board (PDB) that once dominated the power sector as a producer has reportedly assumed the role of a buyer of electricity from the private operators in the sector. This particular transformation is hurting the PDB much,...

Incentives add new bait to lure investment

The government is rearranging the incentive packages offered to attract investments into various economic zones and export-oriented sectors, with some new bait. Officials said the move has been made to adjust differences and inconsistencies among the facilities extended to raise...

Time to find \'magic formula\' to stop hatreds—Baku Forum

It is time to find that "magic formula" that will encourage people to stop conflicts, the rise of violent extremism and hatreds, and live together in peace, urged a United Nations senior official at the end of a UN-backed conference...

Religion cannot have state boundaries

The Chief Justice of Bangladesh Surendra Kumar Sinha must be congratulated on a wide range of issues on which he has been speaking in public for quite some time. At a time when the opposition forces have been given very...

Improving the lot of Bangladeshi seafarers

Maritime Labour Convention (MLC), 2006 is meant to protect the right of seafarers which is treated as "Fourth Pillar" next to SOLAS, MARPOL and STCW of International Maritime Organisation (IMO). It is also called "Bill of Right" among the 1.2...

Whither economy in first half of FY 2017?

The Center for Policy Dialogue (CPD), a premier think-tank of the country, assesses the country's economic status every year. It closely follows the preparation of the national budget presumably to provide an analytical review of the whole economy to help...

Talk of the town: Capital flight from Bangladesh

In its latest Annual Report, Global Financial Integrity (GFI), a Washington-based research outfit, provided an estimate of $6.0 to $9.0 billion that, it claims, was siphoned away from Bangladesh in 2014 via what it calls Illicit Financial Flow (IFF). The...

Financial inclusion a touchstone for quality

  Standard Bank Ltd will open a branch to operate in Jeddah of Kingdom of Saudia Arabia (KSA). "Bangladesh Bank has already allowed us to open the branch in KSA and the process is being finalised from the regulatory end of...

Stocks end lower as bank shares tumble

Stocks finished lower last week that ended Thursday as risk-averse investors encashed  throughout the week to safeguard their position, fearing further fall. Brokers said market finished lower as investors were selling shares mostly from banks and non-bank financial institutions to...

A different Rabindranath not at peace with himself

That the mental makeup of Rabindranath Thakur is multi-dimensional is known. But to have a measure of the diversity is to encounter a dilemma of how to rank him in order of his pursuance of different branches of literature. It...

Infrastructure in Pakistan to benefit from China\'s \'Belt and Road\' initiative

Pakistan's infrastructure has been greatly improved thanks to its cooperation with China under the Belt and Road initiative. Both the China-aided Karakoram Highway (KKH), the only land route connecting China and Pakistan, and Orange Line metro project in Lahore, the...

Ensuring higher education for the poor

A study by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) shows that the governments across the world are struggling to keep pace with the rapidly rising demand of higher education as many families cannot afford it. The number...

ICT and Bangladesh\'s blue economy

It is necessary to adopt a collective strategy to tie information and communications technology (ICT) with the country's emerging policies and expertise of blue economy for garnering economic benefits. The potentials of such a grand design can usher in a...

Moon: Healing wounds of Korean separation

Modern history has not witnessed countries as divided as they are today. And the good news is a new wave is surging around the world inspiring people to choose leaders who can unify their divided people. Emmanuel Macron of France...

More products, services may get VAT waiver in FY ’18

The government is likely to exempt more products and services from VAT in the upcoming fiscal year (FY), 2017-18, under the new VAT law. Education and medical services may be fully exempted from payment of VAT (value added tax). Officials...

‘Narrow spread, cut cost to save depositors’

The central bank asked banks to narrow their interest-rate spread through lowering both operational costs a+nd classified loans to shun interest squeeze on deposits. Officials said the major issues troubling the banking system were discussed at a last bankers' meeting...

Dhaka decides to ratify D-8 preferential trade accord

Bangladesh has decided to ratify the D-8 PTA (Preferential Trade Agreement) softening its long push for 30 per cent local value addition criteria for the least-developed countries, officials said. The ministry of commerce (MoC) has taken the decision recently after...

Delay in IPO approval process irks issuers

The securities' regulator and the issuers are locked in a row over the present delay in approval process of the IPO (initial public offering) proposals especially submitted under book building method. According to the some issuers and issue managers, they...

\'Belt and Road\' initiative speeds up Kazakhstan\'s agricultural modernisation

Thanks to its agricultural cooperation with China under the framework of "Belt and Road" initiative, Kazakhstan has found a new source of economic growth. An agricultural innovation park established by both sides has witnessed the development of such cooperation. Being...

Tax policy reform should be country-specific

The VAT rates in 19 Asian nations vary from the lowest 5.0 per cent to 20 per cent. Taiwan, Japan and Iran have the lowest rates. The rates in other countries are: South Korea - 10 per cent; Mongolia, Papua...