Business

MNA Business Desk: The country’s power generation set a new record crossing the 10,000-MW mark on Monday night.   According to Public Relations Department of Power Development Board (PDB), the electricity generation reached 10,084 MW which was highest so far. Last year, the available power generation was about 8,500 MW in March, it said.   Though record power was generated last evening, there was no power in different parts in the capital for some time. Earlier, the power generation reached 9,715 MW on March 15. Later, the generation was increasing gradually. After the Awami League led government assumed power, the number of ...

MNA Business Desk: Bangladesh has termed it a historic day as it attained all three criteria for graduation from the least-developed country (LDC) group to developing one. “It’s a historic day for us. I am delighted to inform you that Bangladesh has fulfilled the criteria for graduation from the LDC category for the first time,” said Permanent Representative of Bangladesh to the UN Ambassador Masud Bin Momen. Roland Mollerus, Chief, Secretariat of the Committee for Development Policy (CPD) handed over Ambassador Masud Bin Momen an official letter conveying this announcement. The UN Committee for Development Policy (CDP) determines the graduation ...

MNA Business Desk: Chinese President Xi Jinping’s mega Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) raises the risk of debt distress for 68 countries identified as potential borrowers if the programme follows Chinese practices for infrastructure financing, which often entail lending to sovereign borrowers, Washington, D.C. based think tank Center for Global Development said in a recent report. BRI has come into sharper focus following the Chinese Communist Party’s decision to change the rules to allow Xi to potentially rule for life. The report said that eight countries including Maldives, in India’s neighbourhood, and Djibouti, which hosts the lone Chinese military base ...

MNA Business Desk: Development of plastics and rubber technologies has roared ahead like a tiger in current years and CHINAPLAS, as a leading trade fair, offers a technology-oriented platform for those sectors globally, reported news agency. Not only will 4,000 distinguished exhibitors showcase their advanced products and services at CHINAPLAS 2018, show organizer Adsale Exhibition Services Ltd. will also hold several exciting concurrent events. These will include “3rd Industry 4.0 Conference”, “Tech Talk”, “Medical Plastics Connect” and “CMF Inspiration for Design x Innovation”. Experts from all over the world will gather in Shanghai this April to assess market trends and ...

MNA Business Desk: US President Donald Trump has blocked a planned takeover of chipmaker Qualcomm by Singapore-based rival Broadcom on grounds of national security. His order cited “credible evidence” that the proposed $140bn (£100bn) takeover “threatens to impair the national security of the US”. Qualcomm was already trying to fend off Broadcom’s bid. Broadcom said it strongly disagreed that its proposed takeover gave any cause for concern. The deal would have created the world’s third-largest maker of microchips, behind Intel and Samsung. It would also have been the biggest takeover the technology sector had ever seen. The presidential order said: ...

MNA Business Desk: The state-owned Sonali Bank has sought guarantee worth Tk 60 billion from the government to meet its huge capital shortfall urgently, officials said. According to data available until September, Sonali Bank Ltd (SBL) had a capital inadequacy of over Tk 31.40 billion. And the current figure is assumed to have increased with the rise in its non-performing loans (NPLs). Managing Director of the SBL Obayed Ullah Al Masud in a letter to the Ministry of Finance on March 4 made the request for a kiss of life to the bank, the sources said. Officials of the bank ...

MNA Business Desk: The National Economic Council (NEC) on Tuesday approved a Taka 1,48,381 crore Revised Annual Development Programme (RADP) for the current fiscal year (FY18) downsizing the original ADP by 3.23 percent. “The NEC today approved the Revised ADP making a cut of Taka 4,950.25 crore from the foreign sources portion,” said Planning Minister AHM Mustafa Kamal while briefing reporters after a NEC meeting. Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina presided over the meeting at the NEC conference room at city’s Sher-e-Bangla Nagar. The Planning Minister said considering the organization’s own fund of Taka 9,213.39 crore, the overall RADP size now ...

MNA Business Desk: Bangladesh and Vietnam have signed three memoranda of understanding (MoUs) to promote bilateral cooperation in fisheries and livestock, industry and cultural exchange. The MoUs were signed after talks between the two sides, reported news agency. Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina led the Bangladesh delegation at the talks while visiting Vietnamese President Tran Dai Quang his country side. The MoUs are on promoting cooperation in the field of fisheries and livestock on renewal of the MoU signed on November 02, 2012. Minister for Fisheries and Livestock Narayan Chandra Chanda signed the MoU on behalf of Bangladesh side while Minister ...

MNA Business Desk: The 26th Chittagong International Trade Fair (CITF) 2018 began at Railway Pologround in the port city of Chittagong on Saturday. Shipping Minister Shahjahan Khan, MP, inaugurated the fair as the chief guest at Bangabandhu Conference Hall of the World Trade Center in Agrabad area while Chittagong Chamber of Commerce and Industries President Mahbubul Alam presided over the inauguration ceremony. The month-long fair, hosted by Chittagong Chamber of Commerce and Industries, will remain open for visitors from 10:00am to 10:00pm every day, reported news agency. Thailand, India, Iran and Mauritius along with some other countries showcased their products ...

MNA Business Desk: WTO director-general Roberto Azevedo on Friday said WTO is clearly concerned at the announcement of US plans for tariffs on steel and aluminium. The potential for escalation is real, as we have seen from the initial responses of others, Roberto said in a statement. “A trade war is in no-one’s interests. The WTO will be watching the situation very closely.” Trump triggered a furore on Thursday by announcing he would set tariffs of 25 percent on steel and 10 percent on aluminium to protect US producers, reported news agency. He did not specify if the tariffs would ...

MNA Business Desk: The Supreme has upheld a decision of the National Board of Revenue (NBR) to freeze all the bank accounts of mobile phone operator Robi on charge of dodging VAT. The Appellate Division of the SC on Thursday stayed for three days a High Court order that stayed the NBR decision. A four-member Appellate Division bench, led by chief justice Syed Mahmud Hossain, passed the order after hearing a petition filed by the revenue board. Earlier, the NBR filed a petition challenging the High Court stay order. The HC on Tuesday stayed the NBR decision to freeze all ...

MNA Business Desk: A three-day trade show will begin in the capital tomorrow to showcase American products and services in Bangladesh and give a boost to the bilateral trade. The show jointly organised by the American Chamber of Commerce in Bangladesh (AmCham) and the US embassy in Dhaka starts at Sonargaon hotel in Dhaka tomorrow. The show will exhibit more than 150 US companies, represented by 43 exhibitors from home and abroad, Shadab Ahmed Khan, acting president of the chamber, said at a media briefing. Companies like Bell Helicopter are coming to showcase their products in the 25th US Trade ...

MNA Business Desk: The Asian Development Bank (ADB) President Takehiko Nakao has arrived in Dhaka on a two-day visit. The bank’s local office confirmed this to media on Tuesday. President Nakao is scheduled to meet Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, Finance Minister Abul Maal Abdul Muhith, and other senior officials during his visit. During the visit, he will also visit selected ADB-assisted projects on Tuesday in power, education, urban infrastructure and rail transport sectors, reported news agency. However, he will leave Dhaka on February 28. Bangladesh joined ADB in 1973 and it became the first ADB member to host a field ...

MNA Business Desk: Five-day long Bangladesh Expo 2018 has started in Nepal. The event was launched at the Vrikuti Mandap Exhibition Hall of Nepal’s capital Kathmandu from Friday. Different organizations of Bangladesh are participating in this overseas expo, arranged by Bangladesh High Commission in Nepal. Bangladesh Expo 2018 was inaugurated by the chief guest Media Advisor of Prime Minister, Mr. Iqbal Sobhan Chowdhury. Commerce Secretary of Nepal, Leaders of different business forums appreciated the quality of Bangladeshi products in the event. After inauguration, the chief guest visited different stalls at the expo. He told that programs like these will enhance ...

MNA Business Desk: Economist Ahsan H Mansur believes imports spending may balloon to $60 billion this fiscal year. At the current exchange rate, the amount would be approximately Tk 5 trillion, which is Tk 1 trillion more than the national budget for fiscal 2017-18 and Tk 500 billion more than the probable budget for the coming fiscal year. Mansur said the rapid rise was a matter of some concern. “According to my calculations, the country’s import spending will pass $60 billion,” he said. Asked about the cause of the deficit, executive director of Policy Research Institute Ahsan Mansur said, “The ...

MNA Business Desk: The Japanese Honda Motor Company is going to manufacture motorbikes in Bangladesh this year as the company’s concern ‘Bangladesh Honda Private Limited’ is setting up a motorcycle assembling and manufacturing plant in the country. This was disclosed at a meeting between Industries Minister Amir Hossain Amu and a delegation from Bangladesh Honda Private Limited at the Industries Ministry in the city, said a press release. Among others, Industries Secretary Muhammad Abdullah, Chief Operating Officer of the Honda Motor Company Limited Noriaki Abe, director of the Asia and Oceania Region of Honda Motor Akira Murayama and Managing Director ...

MNA Business Desk: The International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) to give USD 92.30-million for sustainable improve of incomes and promoting resilience to extreme weather conditions for 3.30 lakh rural households in six flood-prone districts in northern Bangladesh. Economic Relations Division secretary Kazi Shofiqul Azam and IFAD president Gilbert Foussoun Houngbo signed the agreement on behalf of their respective sides. Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina witnessed the signing ceremony that took place at the IFAD Headquarters in Rome on Tuesday, reported news agency. The PM has said that Bangladesh has made progress in all development indicators – from poverty alleviation, fish ...

MNA Business Desk: The White House on Monday will unveil its long-awaited $1.5 trillion infrastructure package aimed at overhauling US public works. The plan is structured around four goals: generate $1.5 trillion for an infrastructure proposal, streamline the permitting process down to two years, invest in rural infrastructure projects and advance workforce training, reports The Hill magazine. The Trump administration confirmed a $200 billion direct federal investment for the package, which will be included in the White House’s Monday spending blueprint for fiscal 2019. Half of the federal seed money would go toward an incentive programme to match financing from ...

MNA Business Desk: The capital market will remain moderately bullish in 2018, but local political instability will be the risk factor for the capital market this year, according to a recent survey of a leading stockbroker. The forecasts were made by the majority of the respondents in a recent survey on the Bangladesh capital market conducted by LankaBangla Securities. The findings of the survey were released recently. The survey, which is the sixth of its kind, was carried out between January 4 and January 20 this year. A total of 312 people from various sectors — including academicians, fund managers, ...

MNA Business Desk: A day after Bangladesh confirmed that it would sue a Philippines bank in US for damages over the 2016 cyber heist, Manila-based Rizal Commercial Bank Corp or RCBC has threatened counter measures. In a media statement on Thursday, RCBC said it was considering legal actions against Bangladesh Bank officials, reports The Philippine Daily Inquirer. It alleged Dhaka officials of maligning the bank and using it as a “scapegoat” over one of the world’s biggest cyber heists. The Bangladesh Bank said it has decided to start a lawsuit in New York against RCBC over its role in the ...

MNA Business Desk: Uber is paying $245 million to Google’s self-driving car spinoff to end a legal pawl that aired out allegations of a sinister scheme that tore apart the once-friendly companies, reported news agency. The surprise settlement announced Friday came as lawyers for Uber and Waymo, a company hatched from Google, prepared to wrap up the first week of a trial that had attracted international attention. Waymo filed its lawsuit nearly a year ago , adding to Uber’s woes with allegations of a bold high-tech heist orchestrated by its former CEO, Travis Kalanick, and a former Google engineer. That ...

MNA Business Desk: Bangladesh Bank has decided to sue a Philippines bank in a US court for damages over the 2016 heist of its central bank’s reserve. Unidentified hackers stole $81 million from Bangladesh Bank’s account at the New York Fed, using fraudulent orders on the SWIFT payments system. The fund was sent to Manila-based Rizal Commercial Banking Corp or RCBC and then disappeared into the casino industry in the Philippines. Finance Minister AMA Muhith on Wednesday first confirmed Bangladesh’s move to start the lawsuit. The Bangladesh Bank provided details in a media briefing later in the day. The case ...

MNA Business Desk: Five countries among the 45 least developed countries (LDCs), including Bangladesh, attained economic growth at 7 percent or higher in 2017, according to a new report of the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD).  “This is the case of Bangladesh (+7.1 per cent), Djibouti (+7.0 per cent), Ethiopia (+8.5 per cent), Myanmar (+7.2 per cent), and Nepal (+7.5 per cent),” said the report titled, ‘Selected Sustainable Development Trends in the Least Developed Countries 2018’ published recently. At the other end of the spectrum, the report said, several LDC economies have featured among the world’s most ...

MNA Business Desk: Finance Minister AMA Muhith on Monday slammed former World Bank President Robert Zoellick over the Padma Bridge graft conspiracy, calling him a very ‘bad’ and ‘worthless’ person. ‘On the last day of his tenure (June 30, 2011), this former World Bank president cancelled the Padma Bridge loan bringing an allegation that we’re conspiring to appoint a particular consultant and take bribe,’ he said. The minister was speaking at a ceremony marking the distribution of awards among the highest VAT payers of Dhaka International Trade Fair-2018 at the National Board of Revenue (NBR) conference room. He also said ...

MNA Business Desk: bKash Limited, the largest mobile financial service provider in the country offers 10 percent cash back to its customer if they purchase books from the month long ‘Amar Ekushey Book Fair 2018’  through bKash payment. Around 350 leading publishers will accept bKash payment at the book fair which began on February 1, 2017 at the Bangla Academy premises. The customers can avail the cash back offer till February 28, the last day of the fair. bKash has been extended the same offer to its customers since 2014. To make the purchase, bKash customers  have to dial *247# ...

MNA Business Desk: The core index of the Dhaka bourse fell 133 points or 2.21 per cent on Sunday, the biggest single-day freefall in the last 55 months, as nervous investors sold shares in bulk, fearing further decline. However, it terms of percentage, Sunday’s fall is the 32 months highest fall as DSE core index fell 98 points or 2.34 per cent on April 26, 2015. Market operators said growing political tension coupled with fears of liquidity shortage due to the central bank’s latest directive to slash the limit of banks’ advance-deposit ratio (ADR) kept most of the investors at ...

MNA Business Desk: Cryptocurrencies plunged on Friday, with bitcoin at one point sliding below $8,000 and headed for its biggest weekly loss since December 2013, amid worries about a regulatory clampdown globally. The currencies have come off their lows but analysts said the sell-off was probably not over. This week’s slump brought the total market value of cryptocurrencies down to around $400 billion, half the high it reached in January, according to industry tracker Coinmarketcap.com. The market value of cryptocurrencies is calculated by multiplying the number of digital coins in existence by their price, although many question whether that is ...