Ahsan Habib

The pharmaceuticals sector in Bangladesh displayed the fastest growth in profit between 2015 and 2020 as more people, armed with rising purchasing power, afford more healthcare products.

Bank stock prices have been low for several years now despite providing handsome annual dividends and this begs the question, why are investors less enthusiastic about buying shares in what was once dubbed the most attractive sector?

Anti-ulcer drugs are the top-selling medicines in Bangladesh with sales clocking more than 12 per cent growth annually since 2015 driven by unhealthy food habits, use of excess oil and spices in food preparation and food adulteration.

If you like the idea of putting together your own meal by picking vegetables from a field and catching fish from a nearby pond, then you would love to visit Bongaon Villa, an agro-tourism centre situated in Bhaluka of Mymensingh.

Stock market analysts have questioned the market intervention of the Bangladesh Securities and Exchange Commission (BSEC) to stop the freefall of stocks as the decline is not unique to Bangladesh as markets are bleeding across the country due to tensions over the Russian-Ukraine war, runaway oil prices and surging inflation. 

Ten insurance companies hold around 85 per cent of the life insurance market in Bangladesh thanks to their experience and record in settling claims fast.

Insurance companies in Bangladesh were adversely impacted by the ongoing coronavirus pandemic as physically reaching their clients became tougher amid the restrictions on public movement imposed to curb infection rates.

The claim settlement rate of life and non-life insurance companies in Bangladesh still lags behind the world standard as well as that of neighbouring countries such as India and this is the main reason for low public confidence in the sector.

Most listed companies in Bangladesh do not post their quarterly financial reports within 48 hours of securing approval from their boards as they take advantage of the lack of specific regulations in this regard, according to experts.

Sonali Paper & Board Mills Ltd is yet another company that logged higher profits from equity investment compared to its core business in the first half of the current financial year.

Stock investors are not adequately aware of the SME board while its stringent requirements led to sparse participation, so the board was almost dormant, said Khairul Bashar Abu Taher Mohammed, CEO of MTB Capital.

Fortune Shoes earned more money from its stock market investment than its core business of footwear selling in the first half of the current financial year.

Md Belal Hossain, a pensioner from Old Dhaka, was livid when he picked up the morning paper on Wednesday: he learnt that Wasa was pushing to hike the water tariff by up to 40 percent.

The luxury hotel business in Bangladesh bounced back strongly in the first half of the current financial year as people have started to travel and host public events with the easing of coronavirus restrictions.

Local ice cream producers are going through tough times in spite of logging higher sales in 2021 as they are having to bear higher prices of raw materials amidst the coronavirus pandemic.

Startups are now quite thrilled at the likelihood of being allowed to raise funds from the stock market as the Bangladesh Securities and Exchange Commission (BSEC) is mulling over listing loss-making IT or e-commerce platforms.

The Bangladesh Securities and Exchange Commission (BSEC) has ordered the managing director and directors of Tamha Securities to sell its assets and deposit the proceeds at Dhaka Stock Exchange (DSE) by May 31.

Profits of listed biscuit makers plunged year-on-year in the last October-December period owing to a rise in raw material prices.

Listed IT-based companies’ profits bounced back strongly in the last six months after the initial shock of the pandemic.

Listed textile manufacturers logged a staggering 152 per cent higher profits year-on-year in the October to December period of the current financial year of 2021-22.