Time for new and innovative approach

As a nation we clearly need to invest in infrastructure. To be on the higher trajectory of GDP (gross domestic product) growth, the ratio of investment to GDP needs to be raised to 35-40 per cent from its present average...

On sight and vision

The other day, I was in a remote village in Thakurgaon. On my way to that village, I was struck by the sight that women were planting in almost knee-deep muddy fields.  Most of them supply labour in advance (called...

Myanmar continues to persecute Rohingyas

Myanmar recently hosted the BIMSTEC (Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation) summit and was earlier elected the chairman of ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations). These are big leaps forward for a nation which remained largely...

Keeping jute mills operational

The Pubali Jute Mills was set up immediately after liberation to promote industrialisation of the country. The mill was closed last month. About two thousand workers became unemployed. During the last two months, five private sector mills were closed down...

DSEX dips below 4,600 points-mark again

Stocks returned to the red Wednesday after a single session break with slight decline of turnover as the investors booked marginal profit on large cap stocks in later part of the trading session. DSEX, the prime index of the Dhaka...

Stocks see upward trend at opening

Share prices on the Dhaka Stock Exchange (DSE) and the Chittagong Stock Exchange (CSE) witnessed positive trend in early hours of trading on Wednesday, maintaining the previous session’s upward trend. DSEX, the prime index of the DSE, went up by...

Customs seizes record volume of smuggled gold in Jan-Mar period

A record quantity of 225 kilogrammes (kgs) of gold, smuggled into the country in the form of bars, were seized in the first three months of the current calendar year. The quantity is equivalent to near about 50 per cent...

Spectacular switchover!

One day, it had suddenly dawned on Ratan Krishna Majumder, a fish trader, operating reportedly at Mathbaria of Pirojpur district (some newspapers, however, mentioned Khulna city as his place of business operation), that the job of an orthopaedic surgeon would...

Bangladesh home to world\\\'s six per cent poor

It is good to know that the quality of life of the country's people is going to witness a change for the better. The number of poor people is declining because of facilities in town. Almost three percent people are...

Guardian, Washington Post win Pulitzers for U.S. spying coverage

The Guardian US and Washington Post were awarded the most prestigious Pulitzer prize on Monday for coverage of secret surveillance by the U.S. National Security Agency that sparked wide debate over government spying. Reuters won in international reporting for its...

An indifferent owner

Grabbing government-owned land, be it in urban or in rural areas, has become more of a normal practice in Bangladesh. Since the government is an indifferent owner, a section of people are always out to grab land that belongs to...

The trap of low growth and high inflation

Two important reports on the Bangladesh economy hit the headlines both in print and electronic media last week. One is about inflation and the other is about forecast of growth of the GDP (gross domestic product) for FY14. The sources...

Dhaka working in WTO HQ for extension of TRIPS deadline

The country's officials are informally working in the Geneva headquarters of the World Trade Organisation (WTO) to get extended period of manufacturing pharmaceutical products without paying royalty under the WTO transitional period. The WTO's TRIPs clause allows Bangladesh to manufacture...

DSEX crosses 4,600 points-mark again

Stocks returned to the green Tuesday after two session fall with turnover improved significantly as the investors went for buying spree mainly on large cap stocks. DSEX, the prime index of the Dhaka Stock Exchange (DSE) crossed 4,600 points mark...

Positive trend at opening

Share prices on the Dhaka Stock Exchange (DSE) and the 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 19.22 points or...

Hospitality industry\\\'s contribution to GDP may rise to 8pc this year

The direct contribution of hospitality industry to the country's gross domestic product (GDP) is likely to rise by 8 per cent in 2014 which was Tk 222.6 billion (2.1 per cent of total GDP) in 2013, according to an international...

BD missions abroad told to explore new markets for jute, jute goods

The government has directed commercial wings of its foreign missions to boost the country's exports and explore new markets for jute and jute goods, officials said. The ministry of commerce (MoC) has taken up the initiative with a view to...

Over hundred sub-contracting apparel factories close down

More than one hundred sub-contracting apparel factories, mostly non-compliant ones, have been closed and many others are at the verge of closure mainly for want of sufficient work, industry insiders said. They said the sub-contracting factories have long been facing...

Jhenidah professor innovates device for retention of water level

JHENIDAH, Apr 13: A wonderful instrument for retention of water level has been  innovated by Md. Abdus Sobhan, a retired professor of mathematics of Government Nurunnahar Women' College, Jhenidah. The device can be used for flood control, arsenic-free water and...

Golden Son eyes double profit within 3 years

Golden Son Limited (GSL), a listed company involved with manufacturing variety of products and a cent per cent export oriented company, aimed to double its net profit within next three years. "Currently we are undergoing a massive expansion of production...

Why US Congress must rethink sanctions on Cuba

Alan Gross, the 64-year-old American who has been imprisoned by Cuban authorities since 2009, is an unremarkable man on the surface. He could be a friend or colleague, or an uncle you've been meaning to call. Yet what distinguishes Gross...

Payment defaults under LCs

Bangladesh Bank has recently issued a circular underscoring the importance of prompt payment of import bills under letters of credit (LCs). Non-payment of these bills, the circular added, tarnishes the image of the country and raises the cost of imports...

Tensions over money flows bode poorly for global economy

For a bunch of people who just agreed the global economy is doing better, top officials from the world's rich and poor nations sound rather worried. For poor nations, the easy monetary policies in advanced economies are leading to big...

Fall in growth rate: Can it be reversed?

The Bangladesh economy was little affected and instead it showed resilience even in the most turbulent period of the global financial crisis starting in 2007. Export of readymade garments, the major export item of the country, could mostly avoid the...

Concerns about economics: Time to investigate background

Nobel laureate economist Paul Krugman in his insightful column titled Does Economics Still Progress? in the New York Times published on September 27, 2011 fumed saying: "And all this makes me wonder what kind of an enterprise I've devoted my...

Billionaire Russian gas trader says U.S. sanctions a badge of honour

Gennady Timchenko, the billionaire Russian gas trader hit with U.S. sanctions over his alleged ties with the Kremlin following Russia's annexation of Crimea, said being singled out by Washington was a badge of honour. But Timchenko, who sold his stake...

Why Hilsha is tantalisingly off limit

For weeks prior to Pahela Baishakh the much sought after Hilsha has become one of the rarest things in this country. The impression is that it is nowhere to be found. After all, the craze of the Bangalees for overnight...

Tax from bank deposit profits grows 53pc in three quarters of FY \\\'14

Tax collection from the profits on bank deposits marked a record 53 per cent growth in the first three quarters of the current fiscal year (FY) 2013-2014 thanks to excess liquidity with higher rate of interests in the banking system....

Govt fails to comply with HC order

The government has failed to follow a High Court (HC) order to set up an authority to enforce the national building code. The HC in its 2010 judgement asked the government to establish an authority to enforce the building code...

Govt fails to comply with HC order

The government has failed to follow a High Court (HC) order to set up an authority to enforce the national building code. The HC in its 2010 judgement asked the government to establish an authority to enforce the building code...