Moving up the global innovation ladder

In the Global Innovation Index (GII)-2014 Switzerland is the leader for the fourth consecutive year. The United Kingdom moves up by one rank to the second place, followed by Sweden. A new name among the top 10 this year is...

Thailand: Junta consolidating power and talking about reform

Thailand's military junta has indicated that elections in the country may take place late next year and a transitional government is expected to be formed within the next few weeks. The armed forces in the country took power on May...

New products to help increase turnover of stock market

The premier bourse will introduce new products to help increase turnover of the capital market. The new products-- exchange traded fund (ETF), derivatives and options-will also bring diversifications in the capital market.  "We will introduce the new products to successfully...

Majority of microlenders defying MRA rules on mandatory liquidity provision

Most of the microfinanciers operating in the country are not complying with the mandatory liquidity fund against deposits provision of the Mirco-credit Regulatory Authority (MRA), officials said. Under section 34 of the MRA Rules of 2010, (1) "Every micro-credit organisation...

Modi offers Nepal $1.0b loan in regional diplomacy push

Prime Minister Narendra Modi offered Nepal $1.0 billion in concessional loans to help build power plants and roads during a visit on Sunday aimed at shoring up support in a region where China is making inroads. Both India and China...

Islamic State seize control of Iraqi dam and oilfield

Islamic State fighters seized control of Iraq's biggest dam, an oilfield and three more towns on Sunday after inflicting their first major defeat on Kurdish forces since sweeping across much of northern Iraq in June. Capture of the electricity-generating Mosul...

DSE turnover hits 3-month high

Turnover on the Dhaka Stock Exchange (DSE) hit a three-month high on Monday as investors went for buying spree on large cap stocks amid optimism. The total turnover on DSE stood at Tk 5.60 billion, registering an increase of 30.84...

Positive trend at DSE, CSE

The prices of most of the shares on Dhaka Stock Exchange (DSE) and Chittagong Stock Exchange (CSE) rose in the first 30 minutes of Monday’s session, the second trading day of the week. DSEX, the prime index of the DSE,...

CPA cancels deal with Malaysian co on Karnaphuli dredging

The deal with Malaysian Maritime and Dredging Corporation (MMDC) on capital dredging and bank protection of the Karnaphuli River has been cancelled for the foreign firm's repeated failure to implement the project, vital for operation of the Bangladesh's main seaport,...

BB gives cues for remittance fall

The central bank has identified the spending of a substantial amount on the renewal of work permits by many Bangladeshis in Saudi Arabia, the job market squeeze in Qatar and the closure of bank accounts of small money-transfer companies in...

BCIM corridor to top agenda as leaders meet in October

Business leaders of BCIM countries will push for finalising the establishment of economic corridor as they meet in Dhaka in October to boost regional trade and investment, officials said. The Federation of Bangladesh Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FBCCI) will...

BTRC will conduct study soon to know actual volume of illegal VoIP calls

The telecom regulator is going to conduct a comprehensive study soon to find out the actual size of illegal VoIP (voice over internet protocol) call termination in the country, sources said. The decision was taken recently following the recommendations made...

Flexible school banking policy

The Bangladesh Bank (BB) has been pressurising the country's commercial banks to open school banking accounts in an increasing number.  Already the banks have set targets for such bank accounts. This will affect bank rating. For this reason bank employees...

State sugar mills: Casualty of a price war

Sugar is one of the very few essential commodities that have not been troubling their consumers for a reasonable period of time. Rather, unlike most other essentials, its price has gone down by more than 33 per cent over the...

Climate change as sustainable goal for post-2015 era

The UN Open Working Group on Post-2015 Sustainable Development Goals (OWG SDGs) has finally picked up climate change as a stand-alone goal for the post-MDG (Millennium Development Goals) era. After long negotiations and heated debate, the OWG SDGs adopted this...

Clashes with Russia point to globalisation\\\'s end

As the European Union and the United States ramp up their sanctions on Russia, President Vladimir Putin's plans for retaliation seem to include an attack on McDonald's. There could not be a more powerful symbol that geopolitics is increasingly undoing...

DSE turnover crosses Tk 4b-mark

Stocks slipped in the red on Sunday, the opening day after nine-day Eid vacation with turnover crossing Tk 4.0 billion-mark after 7-week as investors took position on large cap stocks. DSEX, the benchmark index of the Dhaka Stock Exchange (DSEX)...

Stocks see downtrend at opening

The Dhaka Stock Exchange (DSE) and the Chittagong Stock Exchange (CSE) saw negative trend in early hours of trading on Sunday, the opening day after a nine-day Eid vacation. DSEX, the prime index of the DSE, went down by 9.49...

Violence, tension sweep the world over

Internal volatility in strife-torn Libya has become a matter of latest international concern at a time when the escalating violence and tension in the Middle East are menacingly threatening the global peace and security. As the situation in the Gaza...

Ctg port lengthy clearance discourages foreign trade

Lengthy procedures followed for clearing the import and export goods at the Chittagong port have been listed as a major constraint to facilitating smooth international trade, a recent study has revealed. The clearance of an import cargo at Chittagong port...

WCO to help Bangladesh combat gold smuggling

The World Customs Organisation (WCO) is expected to help National Board of Revenue (NBR) conduct a joint combat against identified local and international gold smugglers' syndicates operating through the country's airports, officials said. According to the sources, the Detective Branch...

No end to toxic poultry feed supply

Tonnes of toxic poultry and fish feed continue to find their way into markets across the country exposing public health to serious hazards. About a fortnight ago a mobile court asked relevant departments to destroy three hundred tonnes of poultry...

Lebukhali bridge construction to start by December

The government has set a fresh target to start construction of the Lebukhali bridge by December next after missing last year's target to establish direct link between capital Dhaka and southern region including the proposed port at Payra river. Officials...

Non-release of HC judgment keeps sponsor-shareholders at bay

Sponsor-shareholders of the listed companies are not being able to move to legally fight in the Appellate Division regarding the securities regulator's notification on mandatory holding of 2.0 per cent shares, as full text of the High Court Division's judgment...

City\\\'s shopping malls yet to reopen

Most of the shopping malls in the capital continue to remain closed after three days of Eid-ul- Fitr holidays that ended Wednesday. On the other hand, business transactions in the shopping malls that opened on Saturday registered a poor volume...

Copycat drug cos sprouting up on drug office inaction

Many small pharmaceutical companies are allegedly involved in manufacturing drugs by using the labels of leading brands, wholesalers at the Mitford market, have said. Abdul Hai, Vice President of Bangladesh Chemist and Druggist Association (BCDA), said while counterfeiters produce antibiotics...

Monetary Policy July-December 2014: A review

Monetary Policy Statement (MPS) for July-December 2014, as unveiled by Bangladesh Bank recently, shows certain encouraging developments during the last six months, but few vital questions still remain unanswered. The MPS for January-June 2014 was based on certain key assumptions...

Why police torture continues unabated

In the wee hours on Sunday, 13 July, 2014, Rabbi, a 5-year-old son of Mahbubur Rahman Sujan, saw how brutally police raided their home, tortured his parents, beat his father mercilessly, dragged him to their bathroom, and hit him with...

Deaths and disappearances in custody

The Human Rights Watch (HRW) has called for disbanding the Rapid Action Bureau (RAB) highlighting the 800 custodial and extra-judicial deaths in its hands as the main reason. The government dismissed the call and correctly so because the fate of...

Migrants\\\' remittances: Causes of decline

A flurry of speculations greeted the recent decline in the flow of home remittances from Bangladesh migrant workers. Think tanks, news reporters, freelance columnists and arm-chair analysts have joined the fray to tell their own stories of why the remittances...