Refayet Ullah Mirdha

The 14th WTO Ministerial Conference began yesterday with a call to uphold the multilateral trading system, as rising trade protectionism poses challenges to the free flow of global trade.

The prolonged high oil prices resulting from the Middle East conflict could lower the global trade forecast by 0.5 percentage points, from 1.9 percent to 1.4 percent, said the director-general of the World Trade Organization (WTO), Okonjo-Iweala.

Bangladesh will prioritise bilateral trade negotiations, deferment of its graduation from least developed country (LDC) status, among other issues, at the World Trade Organisation’s (WTO) 14th Ministerial Conference, which opens tomorrow in Cameroon’s capital, Yaoundé.

Apparel exporter Doreen Garments Ltd has been struggling to collect $678,412 from US-based Zinntex LLC for a shipment delivered two years ago, prompting the supplier to file a lawsuit in an American court.

Bangladesh will use the World Trade Organization’s (WTO) 14th ministerial conference in Cameroon next week to garner support for deferring its graduation from the group of least developed countries (LDCs), said officials familiar with the matter.

The United States Trade Representative (USTR) has sought a date from Bangladesh for a hearing as part of the US’s twin investigations into trade and forced labour.

Some 138,392 workers of 180 ready-made garment factories at risk of failure to pay wages and bonuses before the Eid-ul-Fitr holidays could create labour unrest in different ways, the home ministry has warned.

Bangladesh leads global markets with over $5b in exports

The US has launched a fresh trade investigation into Bangladesh and more than a dozen other economies to examine whether their policies and production practices are contributing to global overcapacity that could harm American manufacturing.

The investigation was initiated today by the Office of the United States Trade Representative

The development came on the final day of a two-day visit to Dhaka by a commerce secretary-level delegation from Bhutan

The piling up of freight at the Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport (HSIA) has been increasing as some of the Middle East-based airliners suspended cargo flights due to the US-Israel war on Iran.

Garment factories in Gazipur are struggling to keep production at full capacity due to a shortage of diesel, as filling stations in the area have stopped supplying fuel in containers over the past two days.

Bangladeshi exporters of vegetables and other perishable goods face mounting losses as airspace closures across the Middle East, triggered by escalating US-Israeli war on Iran, have severed vital trade routes since late February.

Shipping disruptions, cargo rerouting, and rising freight and insurance costs are set to increase business expenses

Bangladesh’s merchandise exports fell for the seventh consecutive month in February, declining 12.03 percent year-on-year (YoY) to $3.49 billion, driven primarily by weakening garment shipments.

The US-Iran war is poised to increase the prices of imported petroleum products, LNG and disrupt the supply chain of industrial raw materials.

The market share of Bangladesh in the European Union’s (EU) apparel market increased to 21.57 percent in 2025 from 20.78 percent in 2024 thanks to the rising demand for locally made apparel items in the EU.

Bangladesh shipped apparels worth 19.41 billion euros in 2025 to the EU

The United Nations Committee for Development Policy (UN CDP) has discussed Bangladesh’s request to defer its graduation from the least developed country (LDC) category by three years during its latest plenary session.