Ahsan Habib

Bangladesh is going to fulfil the International Monetary Fund’s condition on foreign exchange reserves in June on the back of record budget assistance from global creditors, the first time since the IMF approved its $4.7 billion loan programme more than a year ago.

The government gave its commitment to the International Monetary Fund regarding around 50 issues to restore macroeconomic stability and good governance in the financial sector.

Bangladesh will have to comply with 33 new conditions by June next year in order to receive the next two instalments under the International Monetary Fund’s $4.7 billion loan programme.

Md Matiur Rahman, the disgraced senior official of the National Board of Revenue (NBR), opened a Pandora’s Box when he claimed during an interview with a local television station that he received placement shares of a company below the face value.

NBR official Md Matiur Rahman, who has come under the scanner amid controversy over his wealth, has made a big fortune through investments in the stock market, raising questions about the means he applied in the process.

On the back of the credits from the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund, Bangladesh may meet for the first time the condition on net foreign exchange reserves attached to the $4.7 billion loan from the IMF and secure the next instalment.

The Belgian Investment Company for Developing Countries (BIO) has provided a $15 million loan to Mutual Trust Bank (MTB) to expand its portfolio dedicated for micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) alongside sustainable financing initiatives.

Stocks in Bangladesh climbed 1.6 percent yesterday, driven by a surge in the prices of some blue-chip companies such as Renata PLC and Linde Bangladesh.

India may offer Bangladesh fresh loans under a new framework, as implementation of the projects under the existing loan programme is proving difficult due to some strict loan conditions.

However, the move could have little effect on revitalising the market in the past as it was seen that black money holders do not prefer parking funds in stocks when the amnesty was in place.

The highest loss, at Tk 6,118 crore, was incurred by the Bangladesh Power Development Board (BPDB) in July-April of the fiscal year. Its provisional loss was Tk 11,163 crore in the full year of 2022-23.

In yet another blow to stock market investors, the government plans to impose a capital gains tax on them from next fiscal year.

The new budget for the upcoming fiscal year is unlikely to provide respite from one of the longest spells of sustained inflation in Bangladesh as the government’s measures appear to be missing the impetus required to contain the price spiral.

The overall revenue generation target will be Tk 537,000 crore in the new fiscal year that begins on July 1, which is 7.4 percent higher than that of the goal of the outgoing financial year.

The net foreign portfolio investment in Bangladesh continued to fall in the July-March period of fiscal year 2023-24 due to the negative economic outlook, repeated devaluation of the local currency against the US dollar, and policy instability.

The national budget for the fiscal year of 2024-25 is going to be presented in parliament on Thursday with monumental tasks ahead for the government to collect more revenues and contain stubbornly high inflation.

The key index of the Dhaka Stock Exchange plunged by 1,000 points in a span of three months as investors keep selling their holdings, fearing further deterioration of economic indicators.

Bangladesh’s stock market has never fallen into such a bad situation in terms of the narrowing of investment opportunities in the last 30 years, said Abu Ahmed, a stock market analyst.

According to a provisional estimate of the Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics (BBS), consumption of goods and services grew 3.53 percent in 2023-24, up from 2.52 percent in the last fiscal year.

Bangladesh's factory output grew 6.66 percent in the current fiscal year, the slowest pace of expansion since the Covid-19 pandemic hit the country, as the stubbornly high inflation hurt domestic demand and the shipment of export-oriented goods slowed.