Tackling the menace of gold smuggling

Judging by the avalanche of gold flowing into the country, the euphemism 'Sonar Bangla' seems to be crystallising into reality! Every other day the media carries news of big hauls of gold bars and coins intercepted by the law-enforcement agencies...

The end of an era

Mr. ABM Musa is no more. He breathed his last on Wednesday (April 09, 2014) at the Labaid Hospital in the city. His death has not come as a bolt from the blue. As the news of his death was...

The challenges of time present

"Time past and Time Present", wrote T.S. Eliot, are one at time future. Whether this will be the case in Bangladesh is a trillion dollar question. For Bangladesh April 2014 is really another time. The past is gone, as it...

News Brief

Tarek Elba, Chief Executive Officer of Lafarge Surma Cement Ltd has been elected as the president of the France-Bangladesh Chamber of Commerce & Industry (CCIFB) for the year 2014-15 & 2015-16. The CCIFB elected its new President and the Executive...

Stocks edge marginally higher

Stocks edged marginally higher Wednesday amid volatile trading throughout the session with turnover declined slightly as investors traded cautiously. The prime index of the Dhaka Stock Exchange (DSE) --- DSEX-- ended at 4,594.33 points, gaining 7.42 points or 0.16 per...

DSE up, CSE down at opening

Share prices on the Dhaka Stock Exchange (DSE) witnessed positive trend while Chittagong Stock Exchange (CSE) saw negative trend in early hours of trading on Wednesday, the fourth trading session of the week. DSEX, the benchmark index of the DSE,...

Bourses : Old practice and new perception

Good sense, as it seems to be the case now, has started dawning on the key management functionaries of the country's premier bourse, the Dhaka Stock Exchange (DSE), as far as its operations are concerned. Briefing the media about the...

Foreigners can invest in T-bonds using NITA

The government has relaxed regulations, allowing foreigners to invest in its treasury bonds by using Non-Resident Investor's Taka Account (NITA), officials said. Under the relaxations, the purchase is made with funds of a Non-Resident Foreign Currency Account (NFCA) or a...

Energy shortage hits manufacturing sector

Short supply of energy -- both power and gas -- is taking its toll on production in the country's manufacturing sector, industry insiders and businesses say. According to them, production in many manufacturing units is now well below their capacities...

Govt offers tax benefit to world-class hotel investors

The government has offered tax benefit to lure investment in world-class hotels by allowing the investors to import capital machinery at a reduced rate of Customs Duty (CD). The National Board of Revenue (NBR) has set 5.0 per cent CD,...

Traders raise Hilsa prices cashing in on Pahela Boishakh gaiety

The prices of Hilsa fish have increased in retail markets in the city ahead of Pahela Boishakh, the first day of Bengali New Year. Customers allege that sellers in the market are raising the prices as they want to take...

Local CFL bulbs struggle to stay in race with imports

Local manufacturers and assemblers of compact fluorescent light (CFL) bulbs are facing a stiff competition with the importers for lack of policy support to the testing and certification regulatory body concerned and poor surveillance, industry insiders said. They said the...

Concern over quality as Tk 7.60b jute goods stockpiled in mills

The quality of jute goods worth about Tk 7.60 billion, manufactured by different jute mills, is at risk, as those are remaining stockpiled at the mills concerned due to a fall in export on sagging demand in the international markets,...

Challenges for the new banks

Over the past decade, Bangladesh economy enjoyed favourable economic environment and grew at approximately 6.0 per cent with tolerable inflation. Major economic indicators like gross domestic product (GDP), exports and imports have tripled in the last ten years; industrialisation and...

DSE turnover crosses Tk 6.0b-mark

Stocks edged lower Tuesday, a day after positive trend with turnover crossing Tk 6.0 billion-mark as investors booked marginal profit in later part of the trading session.The market opened with a positive note, but could not sustain. At the end...

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 Tuesday, the third trading day of the week. DSEX, the prime index of the DSE, went up...

Import tariff hike likely to make sugar costlier

The latest hike in import tariff of sugar, an essential commodity, might push up its price in the domestic market ahead of Ramadan, retailers have expressed the fear. But the customs authorities have ruled out any significant impact on retail...

Mohsin Abdur Rahman — a charismatic teacher

Teaching inside a classroom is a tedious yet challenging experience. A teacher has to be a great artist and teaching might be the greatest of the arts. His main job is to stimulate his students into learning; he has to...

Bangladesh set to emerge as a middle income country

The story of the Bangladesh economy exemplifies that of an underdog which had been continuously berated and belittled by the naysayers, as it struggled to maintain its growing population and at the same time, keeping away from myriad obstacles to...

Artificial structures — eyesore on Gulshan Lake

Water bodies in Dhaka city are crucially important for recharging and replenishing the underground water. Gulshan Lake is an invaluable water reservoir in the city. It helps to control temperature and moisture in the surroundings and supports large varieties of...

Whither rural credit market?

For the sake of simplicity, an expression of willingness on the part of a household to borrow money from any source would be taken as a proxy for demand for credit by that household. During a census by BRAC in...

Indian election: Teesta and land boundary issues

As India is in the midst of national elections, speculations are galore about the shape of its relations with Bangladesh in the coming days. Indo-Bangladesh ties are being discussed in the context of a possible change of guards in the...

Of conspicuous consumption

Conspicuous consumption, as most people know, is that which is out of the ordinary. It is not needed for day-to-day living, nor for survival. Consumption becomes conspicuous when its superfluity and excess become apparent. It comes with a hefty price...

New building code to see a number of changes

The updated Bangladesh National Building Code (BNBC), aiming to avoid disasters, is likely to receive approval by June this year. A good number of changes will take place for the first time after twenty years since the drawing up of...

Stocks return to green

Stocks returned to the green Monday, a day after negative trend with turnover improved slightly as investors took position on large cap stocks amid optimism. The market opened with a positive note and the uptrend continued till the market closure....

DSE, CSE open positive

Share prices on the Dhaka Stock Exchange (DSE) and Chittagong Stock Exchange (CSE) witnessed positive trend in early hours of trading on Monday, the second trading day of the week. DSEX, the prime index of the DSE, went up by...

Govt bides time to make ICT at Pangaon fully operational

The government is likely to take a few measures to make the Pangaon inland container terminal (ICT) fully operational if existing measures fail to yield any tangible results in next two months, officials have said. "The government will observe operational...

BB raises export dev fund allocation to $ 1.2b

The central bank has increased the allocation for the export development fund (EDF) by 20 per cent to US$ 1.2 billion from $ 1.0 billion to meet the growing demand from the country's exporters. "We've enhanced the allocation for the...

Govt set to ink FTA with Macedonia boost trade, investments

The government is set to sign a Free Trade Agreement (FTA) with Macedonia as part of its efforts to explore the comparatively slow but potential markets across the globe, sources said. According to the sources, the FTA between the two...

Percentage of ADP funds for RHD keeps falling

The yearly development budget for the Roads and Highways Department (RHD) kept declining in terms of percentage over the last three years despite importance attached to development of road infrastructure to spur economic growth. Officials say it seems the RHD...