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Bangladesh can afford higher borrowing to support Covid-affected economy, says BB policy note

FE Online Report 2021-01-04 15:43:40

Bangladesh has the ability to enhance the credit-based spending to support Covid-affected sectors as the country is ‘at low risk in terms of vulnerable debt sustainability.’ A policy note...

Asian factories emerging from initial damage of Covid, tougher controls cloud outlook

-- 2021-01-04 11:06:40

Asian factory activity expanded moderately in December thanks to robust demand in regional giant China, business surveys showed on Monday, the latest sign that manufacturers are emerging from the init...

7,000 legalise undeclared income, govt earns record Tk 8.8b in taxes

DOULOT AKTER MALA 2021-01-04 08:46:05

The government has received a record Tk 8.80 billion in tax from the holders of undisclosed money in the first half of the current fiscal year. Between July and December, some 6,937 people disclosed...

Remittance inflow tops $21b in 2020

FE ONLINE REPORT 2021-01-03 21:28:43

The inflow of remittances crossed the $21billion-mark for the first time in the just-concluded calendar year, registering an increase of nearly 19 per cent, despite the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic, offi...

Remittance inflow witnesses 37pc growth in six months

-- 2021-01-03 20:02:32

Inward remittances witnessed a massive growth of 37.6 per cent in the first six months of the current fiscal 2020-21 compared to the corresponding period of the previous fiscal. According to the fina...

BB extends deadline for execution of stimulus package for CMSMEs

FE ONLINE REPORT 2021-01-03 16:46:49

The central bank has extended the deadline for execution of the stimulus package for the cottage, micro, small and medium enterprises (CMSMEs) by more three months. Under the revised deadline, schedu...

Honest taxpayers pay up to 33pc tax, black money whiteners only 10pc: Experts

FE REPORT 2021-01-03 08:36:24

Concerted government efforts backed by political will are required to prevent money laundering and bringing discipline in the financial sector, Professor Mustafizur Rahman, distinguished fellow of the...

Tea producers seek 20pc subsidy to boost exports

FE REPORT 2021-01-03 08:26:45

The apex body of tea producers has requested the government to provide a 20 per cent subsidy, in addition to the existing export incentive facility to the tea sector, with a view to boosting the expor...

Oil-fed power plants idling due to lower demand

M AZIZUR RAHMAN 2021-01-03 08:17:09

The government has kept almost all oil-fired power plants shut and import of expensive LNG to a minimum to reduce energy procurement costs owing to lower winter demand and sluggish economic activiti...

US economic recovery widens inequality

-- 2021-01-02 14:38:23

After plunging into the worst recession in decades amid coronavirus (COVID-19) shutdowns in 2020, the US economy has been recovering in recent months. With alarming case spikes and a long-delayed fis...

Dhaka focussing on bilateral FTAs to face LDC graduation challenge

FE REPORT 2021-01-02 10:37:55

Commerce Secretary Dr. Md. Jafar Uddin, on Thursday, said Bangladesh will lose a number of duty-free quota-free (DFQF) facilities after its graduation from the existing least developed country (LDC) s...

2.6m new jobs a year difficult in post-pandemic Bangladesh: Economists

FHM Humayan Kabir 2021-01-02 09:16:09

Creating as many as 11.33 million jobs during the 8th five-year plan (FYP) period would be challenging for the government as the fallout of Covid-19, economists said on Friday. Following the unempl...

African free trade bloc opens for business, but challenges remain

Reuters 2021-01-01 18:50:14

African countries began officially trading under a new continent-wide free trade area on Friday, after months of delays caused by the global coronavirus pandemic. But experts view the New Year's Day...

Sales of savings schemes more than triple

FE REPORT 2021-01-01 09:42:30

The net sale of state-run savings instruments more than tripled in the July-November period of this fiscal year (FY), 2020-21, than that of the corresponding period of previous fiscal. The Departme...

Extension of support package will bring RMG to next level, says BGMEA chief

MONIRA MUNNI 2021-01-01 09:35:15

After an 'unprecedented' year in 2020 riddled with scars of the pandemic, the country's readymade garment (RMG) sector is ushering in the new year 2021 amid some challenges and hopes also, an industry...

Survive, revive and then thrive, new DCCI President says on priorities

SYFUL ISLAM 2021-01-01 09:27:01

Bangladesh's economy will eke out "satisfactory" growth next year provided private investments and international trade remain buoyant, a leading voice on private business has said. "While uncertainti...

Bangladesh recovery to take three years, forecasts MCCI chief

JUBAIR HASAN 2021-01-01 09:17:00

Bangladesh would need at least three years to not just get back to the full speed of the economic activities but to overcome the losses caused by the Covid-19 pandemic, the chief of the country's olde...

Planning Commission discourages execution of unimportant projects this fiscal year

FHM HUMAYAN KABIR 2021-01-01 09:08:25

The government pursued a cautious stance in 2020 while approving development projects and releasing funds amid fears of higher budget deficit due to the adverse impact of Covid-19 pandemic, according...

Private commercial banks mostly see profit fall

SIDDIQUE ISLAM 2021-01-01 08:55:53

The operating profit of majority of the private commercial banks (PCBs) shrunk in the just-concluded calendar year mainly due to the impact of Covid-19 and implementation of the single-digit interes...

Experts emphasise accurate data for post-pandemic recovery

-- 2020-12-31 22:25:25

The recovery of the country's economy following the coronavirus crisis is long and slow due to data scarcity, experts said. Relief distribution is also affected due to the lack of a proper database,...

IFAD to provide $18m to rebuild microenterprises, support smallholders in Bangladesh

UNB 2020-12-31 18:21:04

The International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) will provide Bangladesh with an additional loan of US$18.07 million to rebuild microenterprises and support smallholders who have been affect...

All borrowers can now enjoy loan moratorium, central bank clarifies

FE REPORT 2020-12-31 09:24:42

Borrowers who rescheduled their defaulted loans under the Bangladesh Bank's (BB) relaxed policy in 2019 are now allowed to enjoy loan moratorium facilities like other clients, officials said. Besides...

Vaccine rekindles hopes of Bangladesh economic recovery

JASIM UDDIN HAROON 2020-12-31 08:10:16

Like most countries in the world, Bangladesh bids farewell to 2020 today (Thursday), a pandemic-devastated year that upended people's normal lifestyle while bringing the country's economic wheel to...

Forex reserve crosses $43b-mark

FE ONLINE REPORT 2020-12-30 18:59:54

Bangladesh’s foreign exchange (forex) reserve crossed US$43 billion-mark for the first time in the history of the country on Wednesday following lower import payment obligations and higher growt...

Bangladesh’s economy to perform better next year, finance minister says

-- 2020-12-30 18:40:21

Finance Minister AHM Mustafa Kamal on Wednesday said Bangladesh’s economy will perform better in the next year as all indicators of the country’s economy are in good position despite COVID...

India bets on asset sales to partly fund higher spending next year

Reuters 2020-12-30 17:37:42

India is likely to spend more next fiscal year than this year’s budgeted $415 billion and prioritise infrastructure projects, relying on asset sales of around $40 billion for some of the funding...

Foreign trade scenario dismal though deficit narrows down by $2.1b in July-Nov

SIDDIQUE ISLAM 2020-12-30 08:39:58

The country's trade deficit narrowed down by 30.77 per cent or US$ 2.10 billion in the first five months of this fiscal year (FY) amid dismal foreign trade situation due to the Covid-19 pandemic, of...

Corona-induced funding cushions public finance, contingency expenditure still cut by 50pc

FE REPORT 2020-12-30 08:36:27

The public finance went through a difficult phase between the months of April and September this year because of the Covid-19 consequences. Government's revenue earnings suffered, but its expenditu...

Climate disasters bring catastrophic results for rich, poor nations in 2020

-- 2020-12-29 20:39:21

Disasters fuelled by weather and climate extremes brought “catastrophic results for millions” across rich and poor nations in 2020, causing thousands of deaths and tens of billions of doll...

Bangladesh may see decline in remittance inflow in 2021: RMMRU

FE Online Report 2020-12-29 18:46:21

The country’s remittance earnings may fall next year as the outflow of workers abroad declined drastically in the current year, projected a RMMRU report. Only 183,682 workers went abroad with j...