Respecting Earth\\\'s inviolability

The Earth Day, now celebrated on April 22 worldwide each year, is the largest secular holiday on this planet celebrated by a billion people, according to the first Earth Day 1970 organiser Dennis Hayes. It is now observed in 192...

Load shedding or \\\'force shedding\\\'? It\\\'s back again

Because of extreme heat, electricity load shedding is taking place throughout the country. It takes place three to four times a day with duration of one hour each time. The Bangladesh Power Development Board (PDB) says that there is no...

DSE key index crosses 4,700 point-mark

Stocks edged higher for the sixth running session on Thursday with the key index of the premier bourse crossing 4,700 points mark once again as investors went for buying spree. The market started with a sharp rise and DSEX up...

DSE, CSE up at opening

The prices of most of the scripts on Dhaka Stock Exchange (DSE) and Chittagong Stock Exchange (CSE) witnessed upward trend in early hours of trading on Thursday, the last trading day of the week. DSEX, the prime index of the...

Indian electorates in cobweb of divergent political interests

AGRA (India), Apr 23: A visit to the city of "Tajmahal", where voting will be held tomorrow (April 24), gives an impression that the turn out of voters this time will be high compared to that of the previous elections...

Remembering the Atiar Chand

The Zamindari system, which once played a dominant role in the socio-economic life of this country, is non-existent now. It has now become a subject of academic discussion only. Vanity, power, pomp, luxury and torture became synonymous with the Zamandari...

Traffic management - if we could do then, why not now?

The capital city dazzled with sparkling lights, cleaner roads and colourful hoardings during the T20 World Cup Cricket. The roads, road islands and important intersections were magnificently decorated. It is learnt that the government spent Tk 1.15 billion to give...

Times of India, Dr. Subramanian Swamy and water issues

A Times of India (TOI) report, a BJP leader's statement and a particular talk show should wake up the spirits of millions who became martyrs in 1971 in disbelief about what is happening in present-day Bangladesh. The TOI report concerned...

Guidelines for banks for safe lending

For some years now non-performing loans continue to pose a serious threat to the health of the country's financial institutions. The problem of lending money has assumed new dimension on account of sluggish demand for loans on the one hand...

DSE turnover crosses Tk 5b-mark again

Stocks closed higher for the fifth consecutive session on Wednesday with turnover crossing Tk 5.0 billion-mark once again as investors went for buying spree on large cap stocks. The market started with a positive note and continued till the market...

Stocks see positive trend at opening

The prices of most of the shares on Dhaka Stock Exchange (DSE) and Chittagong Stock Exchange (CSE) witnessed positive trend in early hours of trading on Wednesday amid modest see-saw. DSEX, the prime index of the DSE, went up by...

Policy decision likely soon on deep-sea port construction

Policy makers concerned would take a decision soon on the construction of the much-talked-about deep-sea port at Sonadia in Cox's Bazar, official sources said. The Prime Minister's Office (PMO) has asked the ministry of shipping (MoS) to send a comprehensive...

Government, the indifferent investor

Though belated, the issue of extremely poor rate of return on its equity investment in as many 135 establishments has come to the notice of the country's single largest investor  --  the government. The government, according to a report published...

TCB seeks Tk 2.0b from govt to buy essentials to keep market stable

The Trading Corporation of Bangladesh (TCB) has sought Tk 2.0 billion from the government to procure essential commodities for uninterrupted supply aiming to keep the market stable and tolerable.   An official said the top priority of the present government is...

Pakistan: Growing domestic insecurity

Legally, the rule of law requires 'the government to exercise its authority under the law'. This requirement is sometimes explained with the phrase 'no one is above the law'. The rule of law requires the government to exercise its power...

Averting tragedies in garment factories

"While women find liberty in hard labour in the garment industry, the grim reality is garment factory workers toil for paltry wages. Nevertheless, such jobs have offered Bangladeshi girls a measure of independence in a traditional Muslim society." The above...

Outlook for global trade

The World Trade Organisation (WTO) has made one of those announcements that it not so frequently does, a forecast for an uptick in global trade growth. According to news published recently, global commerce is set to grow by 4.7 per...

Stocks inch up for fourth day

Stocks edged marginally higher for the fourth consecutive session on Tuesday amid volatile trading throughout the session with turnover remained sluggish as investors moved cautiously. The market started with a positive note and continued till the market closure. At the...

Positive opening amid volatility

The prices of most of the shares on Dhaka Stock Exchange (DSE) and Chittagong Stock Exchange (CSE) saw positive trend in early hours of trading on Tuesday amid modest see-saw. DSEX, the prime index of the DSE, went up by...

War of words, speculations galore in Indian elections

It is more than two weeks the Indians have been voting in one of the hotly-contested and highly-charged national elections, scheduled to be over in next three weeks' time. The results would start emerging from May 16 next. Nearly halfway...

Tariffs and consumer welfare

The National Board of Revenue (NBR) abruptly raised import duties on sugar on April 6, 2014. Currently import duties on sugar are in the form of specific duties and advance trade value added tax (VAT). NBR has now imposed regulatory...

New taxi cabs hit city streets today

New taxi cabs hit the city streets today (Tuesday) with the fares revised by the Bangladesh Road Transport Authority (BRTA) amid criticism from different quarters. Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina will launch the Bangladesh Army Welfare Trust-led taxi cab service from...

Biman seeks new boss after Kevin\\\'s departure

Biman Bangladesh Airlines has been searching for a new managing director (MD) and chief executive officer (CEO) from either Bangladeshi or foreign nationals, officials said. The national flag carrier is looking for a new chief as Kevin John Steele --...

Australian oil refining industry needs debate, not neglect

That Australia's oil refining industry is uncompetitive in the face of the new, complex plants in Asia is obvious. What isn't so obvious is what should be done about this. So far two solutions have presented themselves. The more common...

New Indo-Bangla JV co eyes to grab major market share in two-wheeler industry

Newly initiated joint venture (JV) of Nitol Niloy Group of Bangladesh and Hero MotoCorp of India looks to be the market leader in the country's two-wheeler industry capturing significant share of the local market, a top official said. The US$...

Income distribution and market mechanism: A study of watermelon price

The conventional perception is that economic theories don't apply in the economy of Bangladesh or fail to account for the real picture of the economy. This statement is both correct and incorrect. It is correct from the perspective that the...

On the road to Digital Bangladesh

The global information and communication networks are called information super highway. These cover  internet and switching systems such as telephone, cable television, satellite communication networks etc. and all types of digital information at high speed  Like many developed and developing...

Stocks up for third day

Stocks ended higher on Monday for the third running session with improving turnover value as investors took position on mid-cap and small-cap stocks amid optimism.The market started with a positive trend it continued till the market closure amid modest see-saw,...

Stocks see upward trend at opening

Share prices on Dhaka Stock Exchange (DSE) and Chittagong Stock Exchange (CSE) witnessed upward trend in early hours of trading on Monday, maintaining the previous day’s uptrend. DSEX, the prime index of the DSE, went up by 49.29 points or...

Trade deficit widens substantially in Feb

The country's overall trade deficit widened by nearly 28 per cent in the month of February last due mainly to higher import payments and relatively lower export revenue growth, officials said Sunday. The overall trade deficit rose to US$3.56 billion...