Business

BBF honours 79 digital campaigns with DMA

Digital

MNA Business Desk: The third edition of Digital Marketing Award honoured 79 digital campaigns through a grand award gala at a city hotel on Saturday. Winners received 1 Grand Prix award, 12 Gold awards, 16 Silver awards and 50 Bronze awards in 16 categories. An initiative of Bangladesh Brand Forum (BBF), Digital Marketing Award (DMA) 2019 was presented by Meghna Group of Industries. The award gala was attended by 500 digital marketing enthusiasts. This year, more than 500 nominations were submitted for the award, the only accolade for digital works in Bangladesh. Four jury panels shortlisted the digital works and ...

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WB praises progress of digitisation in Bangladesh

digitisation

MNA Business Desk: The World Bank (WB) on Monday praised the progress of digitisation in the country. Their appreciations came during a meeting with State Minister for ICT Zunaid Ahmed Palak at the conference room of Information of Communication Division at Agargaon in the city. A 12-member high-powered delegation of WB led by Geir Haarde met with the state minister. During the meeting Palak briefed the delegation about the activities of Digital Bangladesh being implemented in line with its four pillars— development of human resources, connectivity, e-governance and industry promotion. The state minister said Bangladesh started journey towards digitisation following ...

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5th BIGTEX expo kick-off Nov 7

BIGTEX

MNA Business Desk: A four-day “5th Bangladesh International Garment & Textile Industry Exposition (BIGTEX)” will begin on November 7 at International Convention City Bashundhara in Dhaka. Commence Miniter Tipu Munshi is expected to inaugurate the exposition at 2:30pm which will continue until November 10. RedCarpet365 Limited, the organiser of the BIGTEX expo, disclosed details about the mega exhibition at a press conference on Sunday at the Economic Reporters’ Forum (ERF) auditorium in the city. The organisers said targeting the entire Textile, Garment & Apparel industry, they are organizing four international exhibitions simultaneously at the same place – named Garment & ...

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Aviation X Lab unveiled in Dubai

Aviation X

MNA Business Desk: To innovate and create the next era of aviation and to positively impact the lives of one billion people the Aviation X Lab was unveiled at Area 2071 at Emirates Towers in Dubai recently. Area 2071 is a creative ecosystem to design the future that brings together government, creative individuals, businesses, and people from all walks of life, says a press release. Aviation X Lab establishes a long-term partnership between Emirates and Airbus, Collins Aerospace, GE Aviation, and Thales with an aim to enhance the travel experience. Telecom provider du has signed on as its digital innovation ...

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PM announces continuation of incentives in leather sector for five more years

incentives

MNA Business Desk: Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on Wednesday announced continuation of incentives in leather sector for at least five more years aimed at achieving the desired export target of the leather and footwear industry. “The incentive in leather sector will be continued for at least five more years with a view to achieving the desired export target from the leather and footwear industry,” she said. The prime minister was addressing while inaugurating the third edition of three-day Bangladesh Leather Footwear and Leathergoods International Sourcing Show (BLLISS), 2019 at Bangabandhu International Conference Centre (BICC) in the city this morning. Noting ...

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Russia keen to invest in telecommunication sector

Russia

MNA Business Desk: Russia has expressed keen interest to invest in the country’s telecommunication sector for accelerating its journey towards digitization. It has also expressed willingness to extend financial and technical support to launch Bangabandhu-2 satellite. The Russian interest came at a meeting between Russian ambassador to Dhaka Alexander I Ignatov and Posts, Telecommunications and Information Technology Minister Mustafa Jabbar on Tuesday at the latter’s office in the city. A five member team of Russian satellite technology company Glavkosmos also joined the meeting led by the Russian envoy to discuss issues related to Bangabandhu-2 satellite and their interest in investing ...

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No scope of onion prices to come down before shipment arrives: Commerce Minister

onion

MNA Business Desk: There is no scope for price of onions to come down until consignments from Egypt and Turkey arrive, said Commerce Minister Tipu Munshi on Monday. The minister also stated that 7,000-8,000 tonnes of onion from Egypt are expected to arrive by the first week of November. “The shipment of onions is expected to enter the country within the first week of November. There’s no scope for the onion price to come down until then,” he said. Talking to reporters after attending the launch event of Business Confidence Survey 2019 arranged by Business Initiative Leading Development (BUILD) at ...

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BD denim products to attract more foreign buyers

Denim

MNA Business Desk: The eleventh edition of Bangladesh Denim Expo, an international exposition to promote Bangladeshi denim goods, will focus on driving the country’s denim industry towards the direction of responsibility, organizers said on Sunday. For the first time, H&M Group, a Swedish multinational clothing-retailer, is collaborating with Bangladesh Denim Expo for its 11th edition to be held on November 5-6 at the International Convention City Bashundhara (ICCB). In the two-day exposition, a total of 100 exhibitors from 11 countries, including host Bangladesh, will take part. The other participating countries are China, Japan, Italy, India, Singapore, Brazil, Spain, Pakistan, Turkey ...

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DSE to form expert panel to check IPO prospectuses

prospectus

MNA Business Desk: The securities regulator has advised the country’s premier bourse to form an expert panel to scrutinize the upcoming initial public offerings (IPO) prospectus properly. The Bangladesh Securities and Exchange Commission (BSEC) chairman M Khairul Hossain advised the board of directors of the DSE to form the expert panel to assess the IPO prospectus of companies seeking to float IPOs, said a DSE statement. The securities regulator also assured that the commission will give approval to the IPO of a company if the Dhaka Stock Exchange (DSE) expert panel would be satisfied with the company’s financial statements. The ...

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BD moves up eight spots in ease of doing business index

Ease of Doing Business

MNA Business Desk: Bangladesh has moved up eight spots to 168 in the World Bank’s Ease of Doing Business index 2020. The country’s ranking was 176 in the last year, according to a report by the World Bank Group. A total of 190 countries have been ranked in the global lender’s latest index. According to the World Bank Group, Bangladesh is among the 20 economies that have seen progress in at least three out of ten areas of the ease of doing business for the last year. The country made it bringing about three reforms during the past year, the ...

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Comprehensive framework to develop bond market drafted

bond

MNA Business Desk: A comprehensive framework to develop the country’s bond market has been drafted by a designated working committee. Titled as ‘Comprehensive framework on the development of bond market in Bangladesh’ the draft report has also been made available to public on Monday. The government assigned nine-member working committee, headed by Md. Khurshid Alam, general manager of debt management department of Bangladesh Bank earlier submitted the report to the governor of Bangladesh Bank. The 45-page report reviewed the current status of bond market, pointed out the barriers to develop a vibrant bond market and spelled out a number of ...

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Emphasis on taxing digital commerce to tackle debt

debt

MNA Business Desk: Commonwealth finance ministers have recognized the potential of technology to improve debt transparency while urging closer collaboration to resolve tax challenges arising from growing digital commerce, says a press release. Revenues from tax collection are important for maintaining debt at sustainable levels, yet can often be impaired by the digitization of trade in services, as this often results in countries being unable to determine when, how and where taxes on digital transactions should be collected. Ministers have, therefore, agreed that the Commonwealth should bring its powerful collective voice to ongoing discussions at the Organization for Economic Co-operation ...

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Tourism fair begins in Chattogram on Thursday

tourism

MNA Business Desk: A three-day international tourism fair ‘Chittagong Travel Mart 2019’ begins in the port city of Chattogram from Thursday, October 24. The 11th edition of the fair is being organized at the Peninsula Chittagong Hotel by the Bangladesh Monitor, a premier travel fortnightly of the country. Online travel agency Buy Tickets is the title sponsor of the event, says a press release. Mayor of Chittagong City Corporation AJM Nasir Uddin will inaugurate the fair as the chief guest, while Mahbubul Alam, president, Chittagong Chamber of Commerce and Industry (CCCI) will be present as the special guest at the ...

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Bangladesh to get highest assistance from WB: Finance minister

assistance

MNA Business Desk: Finance Minister AHM Mustafa Kamal has expressed his hope that Bangladesh would get its highest loan assistance from the World Bank this time. “The World Bank is very much eager to lend additional loan assistance to Bangladesh and I hope we’ll get the highest loan assistance from the World Bank this time,” he said. The Finance Minister was talking to reporters on Friday after holding separate meetings with IFC regional vice president Snezana Stoiljkovic, Deputy Governor of Japan Bank for International Cooperation (JBIC) Nobumitsu Hayashi, with the USAID delegation on tax reforms and on road safety issues ...

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Netflix shares jump as subscribers grow ahead of Disney, Apple attack

Netflix

MNA Business Desk: Netflix Inc added slightly more paying subscribers than Wall Street expected in the third quarter, a relief to investors who had worried the company might fall short just as Disney and Apple prepare to ramp up the streaming video wars. The results for July through September represented a rebound from the previous quarter when Netflix lost US streaming customers for the first time in eight years and missed targets for overseas subscribers. Shares of Netflix rose 9.2 per cent in after-hours trading on Wednesday to $312.69. That performance, combined with concerns about new competitors, had weighed on ...

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Marks & Spencer CFO to resign at the end of the year

Marks and Spencer

MNA Business Desk: Marks and Spencer (MKS.L) said on Wednesday its Chief Financial Officer Humphrey Singer, whose departure was announced last month, will step down from the role on Dec 31. Singer’s departure was announced after the company’s clothing, home and beauty managing director Jill McDonald was sacked in July, after which Chief Executive Officer Steve Rowe took direct control of the division.

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Bangladesh can attract Muslim tourists: State Minister

Muslim

MNA Business Desk: State Minister for Civil Aviation and Tourism M Mahbub Ali has said Muslim-friendly environment across the Bangladesh can be a great source to meet the growing demand of Muslim travellers. “Muslim-friendly tourism is the potential segment for Bangladesh to attract tourists from the Muslim countries as well as non-Muslim countries,” he said while addressing an international seminar at a city hotel on Tuesday, reports BSS. Bangladesh Tourism Board (BTB) and Statistical, Economic and Social Research and Training Centre for Islamic Countries (SESRIC), an organ of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) organised the seminar titled “Muslim-friendly Tourism’. ...

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Disposal of radioactive wastes: Cabinet obligates polluters to bear costs

polluters

MNA Business Desk: The Cabinet has approved a draft policy for radioactive waste management, obligating the users of radioactive elements or polluters to take the main role for safe disposal of the hazardous wastes. The draft of the National Policy on Radioactive Waste and Spent Nuclear Fuel Management-2019 was approved during the Cabinet meeting held with Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina in the chair at her office on Monday. Cabinet Secretary Mohammad Shafiul Alam briefed reporters at the Secretariat after the meeting. The cabinet secretary said the draft policy has been framed as per the guidelines of the International Atomic Energy ...

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Daraz holds seller summit in Chattogram

Daraz

MNA Business Desk: Country’s largest online shopping platform Daraz Bangladesh (daraz.com.bd), for the second time, organised a seller summit in Chattogram. The main purpose of the event was to inform all the merchants about the latest technological advances that were incorporated after Daraz joined Alibaba, the Chinese e-commerce company last year, said a media release. Chattogram city Mayor AJM Nasir Uddin was present as the chief guest of the ceremony held on Saturday at Hall 24 Convention Center. Syed Mostahidal Hoq, Managing Director, Khondoker Tasfin Alam, Chief Operating Officer and Fuad Arefin, Chief Commercial Officer of Daraz Bangladesh Limited were ...

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Banking sector needs urgent reformation: Speakers

banking

MNA Business Desk: Speakers at a roundtable have urged the government to take swift measures to reform the banking sector and set up a dedicated commission to this end. Noted economist Prof Dr Mainul Islam presented the keynote paper at the programme arranged by Shushashoner Jonno Nagorik at the Jatiya Press Club on Saturday. “Finance Minister AHM Mustafa Kamal said he won’t give a single taka loan to defaulters. He applied a trick to simplify the process of writing-off bad debt. Various banks are now able to increase write-offs using this relaxed method,” he said. Writing-off more bad debts will ...

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CPD to launch BD Business Environment Study

CPD

MNA Business Desk: The Centre for Policy Dialogue (CPD) will release the Global Competitiveness Report 2019 (GCR 2019) and present the findings of the Bangladesh Business Environment Study 2019 (which has contributed to this report) on Wednesday. The Global Competitiveness Report is the flagship publication of the World Economic Forum (WEF), where CPD is the partner organisation which conducts the Bangladesh chapter of the study. The Global Competitiveness Report 2019 will provide relative rankings of 141 countries based on the perception of 12,879 leading entrepreneurs and business executives taking part in the surveys conducted in the aforesaid countries. The GCR ...

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eGeneration, Highbar India to invest in 4iR tech

tech

MNA Business Desk: eGeneration Ltd., one of the leading technology and tech investment companies in Bangladesh on Friday signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with Highbar Technocrat Ltd., a spin-off of HCC Group in India at the ITC Maurya Hotel in New Delhi. Highbar Technocrat Ltd is one of top spin-offs, according to Gartner. The MoU was signed after the inaugural ceremony of India-Bangladesh Business Forum (IBBF) during Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s state visit to India. Under this MOU, eGeneration and Highbar will enable knowledge and technology transfer between the countries while investing in research and development of skills required ...

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Lobby on to supply LNG as prices slip

gas

MNA Business Desk: Global liquefied natural gas suppliers are lobbying with Bangladesh to ink deals to secure a persistently ‘higher’ price of the fuel for a long time. The LNG suppliers, who have already signed initial deals and memorandums of understanding with state-run Petrobangla, are at the forefront. Indonesia’s Petramina, Malaysia’s Petronas, Brunei’s Brunei LNG, and Switzerland’s AOT Energy AG are among the global LNG suppliers that have already inked MoUs or letters of intent with Petrobangla and awaiting final sales and purchase agreements. Some of the firms have already written letters to the ministry of power, energy and mineral ...

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Stocks edge down amid volatile trading

Stocks

MNA Business Desk: Stocks finished marginally lower on Wednesday as investors were mostly cautious amid ongoing sluggish market trend. Market analysts said investors remained worried about the recent volatility of the market and maintained cautious stance, taking the market in the negative territory once again. The market opened on positive note and the key index of the major bourse rose about 12 points within first 10 minutes of trading. But late hour sale pressure led the prime index to close lower. DSEX, the prime index of the Dhaka Stock Exchange (DSE), settled at 4936, losing 13.02 points or 0.26 per ...

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India’s current account gap narrows in June quarter vs year ago

account

MNA Business Desk: India’s current account deficit (CAD) narrowed to 2.0 per cent of gross domestic product in the June quarter of the fiscal year ending March 2020 from 2.3 per cent in the same period a year ago due to higher invisible receipts, the central bank said. On a quarterly basis, however, the CAD widened sharply from 0.7 per cent of GDP seen in the March quarter. CAD, a key indicator of economic health, measures the difference between the values of a country’s imported and exported goods and services. “Though the statistics look good, it doesn’t reflect any fundamental ...

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WB to provide $100m to improve water supply, sanitation

WB

MNA Business Desk: The World Bank (WB) will provide $100 million to increase access to improved water supply and sanitation system in selected 30 municipalities in Bangladesh as well as to help build their capacities for delivering water and sanitation services. “In this regard, a loan agreement will be signed between the government and the World Bank on October 6 at the Economic Relations Division (ERD) in the city’s Sher-e-Bangla Nagar area,” said an ERD official. ERD Secretary Monowar Ahmed and World Bank Country Director for Bangladesh and Bhutan Mercy Tembon are expected to sign the agreement on behalf of ...

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Uber offers full-time ride on puja vacation

puja

MNA Business Desk: Uber has offered full-time ride during puja vacation aimed at facilitating the grand celebration smoothly. With Uber’s premium service and Uber HIRE, anybody can book a ride as long as he/she needs. Besides, ‘Uber Intercity’ offers a hassle-free ride which allow passengers to hire vehicles for travelling to Narayanganj, Savar and Gazipur. Uber provides its service over 700 cities worldwide. In Bangladesh, it is being operated in Dhaka, Chattogram and Sylhet with a wide range of services — Uber Moto, X, XL, Premier, Hire and Uber Intercity. Uber Bangladesh is also providing its riders and driver partners ...

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