Bangladesh’s budget as a percentage of national income has been falling consistently for the last four years although the economy has grown, reflecting its inability to generate enough revenue and spend enough on social sectors.

Local exporters are apprehending losing annual business worth $200 crore for a recent commerce ministry gazette barring rice bran oil export, for which a large number of letters of credit (LC) opened by foreign buyers have been blocked.

The country is facing its biggest macroeconomic challenge of the past decade due to a lack of reforms and the ongoing global crisis but it can be overcome with proper policy support and reforms, said economists and businesses yesterday.

The wheels of the two companies have begun turning again after remaining closed for many years while another firm is moving towards resuming operation – thanks to the restructuring of boards by the Bangladesh Securities and Exchange Commission (BSEC).

The country is facing the biggest macroeconomic challenge in the last one decade, said Selim Raihan, executive director of the South Asian Network on Economic Modeling (Sanem).

Farmers and entrepreneurs who rear cattle for meat and milk in the country’s northern districts are currently suffering from an abnormal hike in feed prices.

Bangladesh’s recent austerity and regulatory measures aimed at curbing non-essential imports, suspending the implementation of projects with high import components and cancelling the foreign tours of officials will send a positive signal to the market and the economy, according to economists.

The government is likely to keep the tax-free income limit unchanged for fiscal year 2022-23 in order to expand the tax net, said officials of the finance ministry.

I used to have a positional big boss who was new to the job and hardly had knowledge of the industry or the multinational way of working. Every time, my team put up a proposal to him, he would look at others in the meeting instead of me while knowing all too well where the right level of knowledge was to be found.

Bangladesh’s national currency may weaken further against the US dollar as the central bank has moved to restore stability in the foreign exchange market.

Customs authorities are planning to auction off on June 23 a total of 108 cars, including ones of luxury brands BMW, Land Rover, Mitsubishi, Mercedes-Benz and Lexus, brought to the Chattogram port around a decade ago duty-free under a UN convention.

Shabnam Vegetable Oil Industries, a concern of the TK Group of Industries, is set to secure a government contract to sell 5,000 tonnes of lentils at Tk 107.50 per kilogramme.

Bangladesh Bank has formed a Tk 2,000 crore refinance scheme to ensure sustainable development of the shipping industry, increase export earnings and employment and gradually reduce dependence on imports.

Guardian Life Insurance and Bank Asia, a role model of agent banking in the country, recently signed a group insurance agreement.

Brac Bank has signed an agreement with Bangladesh Bank (BB) to become a participating financial institution of a “Supporting Post Covid-19 Small Scale Employment Creation Project” funded by Asian Development Bank (ADB).

Earnings of Bangladesh Shipping Corporation (BSC) rose 183 per cent year-on-year in the January-March quarter of the current financial year on the back of a significant increase in fares in the shipping sector internationally.

South Korean company HKD Bangladesh is going to establish an industry in Bepza Economic Zone to manufacture a range of camping equipment, from tents and sleeping bags to nuts and steel wires.

The government should properly manage subsidies in the energy sector as taxpayer-backed spending is set to surge owning to higher commodity prices in the global market, according to the Metropolitan Chamber of Commerce and Industry (MCCI).

From export bans to price controls, governments in Asia are taking a much more targeted approach than their Western counterparts in curbing global inflationary pressure, a strategy that appears to be working at least for now.

General stock investors in Bangladesh rushed to buy stocks yesterday after the regulator lowered the limit of the circuit breaker to stop the free fall of the index.