Business
Bangladesh’s trade deficit widens to over $27bn in 10 months
Bangladesh’s trade deficit has widened to USD $ 27.56 billion in 10 months of the current fiscal year due to hefty rise in import demand following easing of Covid-19 pandemic.
Bangladesh Bank on Thursday released the ‘the current account balance’ after clearing foreign transactions. In the last FY 21, the trade deficit was $2.28 billion.
The BB data shows that during July -April of the current financial year, the exports increased by 34.56 per cent. On the other hand, imports grew by 41.42 per cent during the same period.
READ: Various nations expressing interest about Bangladesh’s trade, economy: Tipu Munshi
In these 10 months, the country has earned $41.10 billion from exports while it spent $ 68.67 billion on imports.
Dr Salehuddin Ahmed, former governor of BB told UNB that the gap has widened as imports are increasing while exports and remittances are decreasing.
“If we want to reduce the deficit, we have to increase exports and remittances. Besides, luxury and unnecessary imports have to be reduced,” he added.
He also urged increased vigilance on imported goods and containers to ensure that the goods against import LCs are really entering in the country.
EBL offers ISIC Co-brand Prepaid Card
Eastern Bank Limited (EBL) is offering International Student Identity Card (ISIC) Co-brand Prepaid Card with SSBCL Group in association with Visa.
The ISIC cards will come in three variants, especially designed to cater to students, youth and full-time teachers and professors.
An agreement to this effect was signed between EBL and SSBCL Group recently at the EBL’s head office in the capital, said a press release.
Read: Social media prepaid card launched for women entrepreneurs
These cards have been endorsed by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) since 1968 to help nurture cross-cultural understanding and international exchange.
The cardholders will get access to exclusive discounts on travel opportunities, allowing them to discover and interact with new countries, cultures and languages at reduced rates.
Read: iFarmer raises $2.1 million fund
EBL Deputy Managing Director and Head of Retail and SME Banking M Khorshed Anowar, Visa Bangladesh Country Director Soumya Basu and SSBCL Group Managing Director Sumon Talukder along with senior officials from respective organisations were present.
BB allows floating exchange rate of US dollar amid pressure
Bangladesh Bank on Thursday withdrew the fixed exchange rate of US dollar for banks allowing the market to decide the rate based on demand and supply.
The central bank on Thursday backtracked on its earlier decision after the remittance from expatriates marked a fall and exporters failed to convert their bills since the bank set a single exchange rate of a dollar at Tk89 on Sunday.
Also read: BB to set uniform exchange rate to stabilize volatile dollar
The BB informed banks the latest decision by giving some regulatory instructions. As a result, banks can set their (banks) own dollar price in line with the market demand.
The BB directive said that expatriate income (remittance) and import bill will be exchanged at a competitive market price of dollars. Besides, export income will be encashed at market price of dollar. Banks will sell dollars at a slightly higher price than they buy it.
Md Serajul Islam, executive director and spokesperson of BB told UNB that the central bank allowed banks to fix dollar pricing in consequence of market demand from Thursday.
Also read:BB depreciates taka by Tk 0.40 against US dollars
Explaining why the decision was made, he said, "Banks have said that those who are sending remittances do not think the dollar rate is right. Therefore, banks will set the dollar rate depending on the competitive market.”
But the BB instructed banks they cannot make any abrupt raise in dollar price,” Serajul said.
At the same time banks were instructed to keep watch on the money exchange houses so that they cannot raise dollar prices at unusual levels.
Edible oil prices likely to drop in Bangladesh in line with global market: Commerce Minister
Commerce Minister Tipu Munshi on Thursday said prices of edible oil may fall in Bangladesh in line with declining prices in the international market.
“We have seen that the prices of edible oil are declining in the international market and Indonesia has also withdrawn its ban on exporting edible oil. We will review the prices of oil within five to seven days and will fix new rate. It will take one and a half month time to come into effect,” he said.
Also read:Dealers, retailers betrayed me on edible oil price: Commerce Minister
The minister said these while speaking at a press briefing held at the conference room of the ministry.
The good news is that the price of palm oil has come down and the price of soybean oil has started to decline, he said.
Social media prepaid card launched for women entrepreneurs
Bangladesh’s first-ever social media prepaid card was launched on Wednesday, aimed at encouraging women to start Facebook-centric businesses.
MasterCard, Mutual Trust Bank, and e-Courier have jointly launched the prepaid card at an event in the capital.
The card is designed specifically for women entrepreneurs so that they can benefit from Facebook-centric businesses.
READ: Contactless payment service to be available for debit, prepaid card users: BB
The card has a dual currency facility for entrepreneurs to use their Facebook page without any third-party payment assistance.
The e-courier will transfer funds directly to the client's prepaid card, so women entrepreneurs do not have to go to the e-courier to collect cash in person.
This card includes special discounts on e-commerce portals, jewelry shops, groceries, and clothing stores, specially designed for cardholders.
Read BYLC Ventures opens applications for the 5th cohort
Cardholders will have a dual currency transaction facility at more than 5,000 outlets in Bangladesh, Bogo (buy-one-get-one) at hotel locations, dining and lifestyle offer an easy subscription on streaming platforms (Netflix, Amazon Prime, etc.), MTB Green Pin services, SMS banking, POS services, ATM and QR-code transaction facilities.
Biplob Ghosh Rahul, Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of e-Courier, said, “E-Courier is pleased to launch for the first time a co-branded prepaid card for women entrepreneurs in a joint venture with MasterCard and Mutual Trust Bank.
E-Courier is the first private logistics and courier brand in Bangladesh, which has been supporting women entrepreneurs and their endeavours through sophisticated and specialized logistics solutions for the past eight years.
Read Sonia Bashir, 2 other Bangladeshis among 100 Global Tech's Changemakers
Syed Mohammad Kamal, country manager, MasterCard Bangladesh, said, “The pandemic has had a significant impact on consumer spending growth on e-commerce channels like Facebook.”
The women entrepreneurs are contributing to the F-Commerce sector in Bangladesh that is why this card was introduced, he said.
Syed Mahbubur Rahman, MD & CEO, Mutual Trust Bank (MTB), said, “MTB has always played a leading role in implementing innovative payment solutions.
Read BUILD's initiative to harmonise terminology around women entrepreneurs
“Introducing co-branded prepaid cards jointly will ensure various financial benefits. This will further facilitate the expansion of trade and commerce in Bangladesh's growing F-commerce sector,” he added.
Non-brand bakery products prices soar by 20 percent: BBBCMA
The prices of non-brand bakery products have been increased by 20 percent amid hike in prices of flour, oil, butter and other ingredients used for baking.
Mohammad Jalal Uddin, President of Bangladesh Bread, Biscuit and Confectionery Manufacturers Association (BBBCMA) told UNB that the increased prices of bakery products have become effective from Wednesday (June 1).
Also read:Fair Electronics gets National Productivity and Quality Excellence Award
As per the decision of BBBCMA, the new prices the bakery products made in manually-operated bakeries have been implemented across the country, he said.
“The prices of bakery products made by different brands with automatic machines have also increased. The bakeries operated manually were also demanding to increase the prices, “he added.
Bakery owners said that the prices of almost ingredients used in bakery products have shot up.
Apart from oil, prices of butter, flour, sugar, milk and eggs have gone up. The price hike of different ingredients used in bakery products forced many to shut their business, said Jalal Uddin.
The BBBCMA leader said the bakeries of big companies, which make products in auto and semi-auto machines are not members of the Association of Manually Operated Bakery Owners and tese companies have already increased the prices of their products.
Also read:Budget to propose special VAT reduction to boost small businesses
According to the BBBCMA, there were 5,000 manually-operated bakeries across the country before Covid-19 pandemic. Half of those were temporarily shut during the pandemic.
After improvement of the Covid situation, many returned to business but now more than 500 bakeries have been closed due to rising commodity prices, the BBBCMA leader claimed.
Russia-Ukraine war creates uncertainties: Kamal on upcoming national budget
Finance Minister AHM Mustafa Kamal has said he faces the pressure of external vulnerabilities in the economy in preparing the national budget for FY2022-23.
"...But only pressure is the uncertainties and external vulnerabilities due to the war (Russia-Ukraine)”, he told reporters while briefing about the outcomes of the Cabinet Committee on Government Purchase (CCGP) on Wednesday.
Also read: Govt mulls amnesty to bring back laundered money: Finance Minister
The National Budget for FY2022-23 is slated to be placed in Parliament on June 9.
He said that after the Covid-19 pandemic when the economy was trying to recover from the shock, the Russia-Ukraine war started which created huge vulnerabilities and uncertainties globally.
“Every country in the world has to face the challenges of the vulnerabilities and they are under pressure”, he said adding that these uncertainties and vulnerabilities will create opportunities as well.
“We don’t war anymore. We want the war to stop immediately”, he said.
Kamal said his main focus in the budget will be recovering the economy from the uncertainties and vulnerabilities. “We’ll try to bring dynamism in the economy”.
Responding to a question on the CPD’s observation that the country’s financial sector is led by a weak leadership, the finance minister said Bangladesh has been the best country in the world in economic management.
Also read: Finance minister directs regulators to boost investment in stock market
“The way we run the economy in a crisis situation, the administrative efficiency we showed, it’s best compared with the other countries”, he claimed.
He, however, refused to disclose the main thrusts of the national budget. “Just wait…You will see when the budget is placed in Parliament”.
He hinted that strengthening the social safety-net programme will get a special focus in the upcoming budget.
High prices, Asian markets could blunt EU ban on Russian oil
The European Union’s groundbreaking decision to ban nearly all oil from Russia to punish the country for its invasion of Ukraine is a blow to Moscow’s economy, but its effects may be blunted by rising energy prices and other countries willing to buy some of the petroleum, industry experts say.
European Union leaders agreed late Monday to cut Russian oil imports by about 90% over the next six months, a dramatic move that was considered unthinkable just months ago.
The 27-country bloc relies on Russia for 25% of its oil and 40% of its natural gas, and European countries that are even more heavily dependent on Russia had been especially reluctant to act.
European heads of state hailed the decision as a watershed, but analysts were more circumspect.
The EU ban applies to all Russian oil delivered by sea. At Hungary’s insistence, it contains a temporary exemption for oil delivered by the Russian Druzhba pipeline to certain landlocked countries in Central Europe.
In addition to retaining some European markets, Russia could sell some of the oil previously bound to Europe to China, India and other customers in Asia, even though it will have to offer discounts, said Chris Weafer, CEO at consulting firm Macro-Advisory.
“Now, for the moment, that’s not financially too painful for Russia because global prices are elevated. They’re much higher than last year,” he said. “So even Russia offering a discount means that it’s probably selling its oil for roughly what it sold for last year also.”
He noted that “India has been a willing buyer” and “China’s certainly been keen to buy more oil because they’re both countries who are getting big discounts on global market prices.”
Still, Moscow has traditionally viewed Europe as its main energy market, making Monday’s decision the most significant effort yet to punish Russia for its war in Ukraine.
“The sanctions have one clear aim: to prompt Russia to end this war and withdraw its troops and to agree with Ukraine on a sensible and fair peace,” German Chancellor Olaf Scholz said.
Ukraine estimated the ban could cost Russia tens of billions of dollars.
Read: Budget to include scheme for whitening black money again
“The oil embargo will speed up the countdown to the collapse of the Russian economy and war machine,” Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba said.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said in a video address that Ukraine will be pressing for more sanctions, adding that “there should be no significant economic ties left between the free world and the terrorist state.”
Simone Tagliapietra, an energy expert and research fellow at the Brussels-based think tank Bruegel, called the embargo “a major blow.”
Matteo Villa, an analyst at the ISPI think tank in Milan, said Russia will take a pretty significant hit now but cautioned that the move could eventually backfire.
“The risk is that the price of oil in general goes up because of the European sanctions. And if the price goes up a lot, the risk is that Russia starts to earn more, and Europe loses the bet,” he said.
Like previous rounds of sanctions, the oil ban is unlikely to persuade the Kremlin to end the war.
Moscow seized on the new sanctions to try to rally public support against the West, describing it as bent on destroying Russia.
Dmitry Medvedev, the deputy head of Russia’s Security Council who served as the country’s president, said the oil ban aims to reduce the country’s export earnings and force the government to scale down social benefits.
“They hate us all!” Medvedev said on his messaging app channel. “Those decisions stem from hatred against Russia and against all of its people.”
Read: Experts: Iran disrupts internet; tower collapse deaths at 34
Russia has not shied away from withholding energy to get its way. Russian state energy giant Gazprom said it is cutting off natural gas to Dutch trader GasTerra and Denmark’s Oersted company and is also stopping shipments to Shell Energy Europe that were bound for Germany. Germany has other suppliers, and GasTerra and Oersted said they were prepared for a shutoff.
Gazprom previously stopped the flow to Bulgaria, Poland and Finland.
Meanwhile, the EU is urging other countries to avoid placing trade barriers on farm products as Russia’s war increases the risks of a global food crisis.
Zelenskyy has said Russia has prevented the export of 22 million tons of Ukrainian grain, much of it meant for people across the Middle East and Africa. He accused Moscow of “deliberately creating this problem.”
Russian oil delivered by sea accounts for two-thirds of the EU’s oil imports from Moscow. In addition to the EU cutoff of such imports, Germany and Poland have agreed to stop using oil from the northern branch of the Druzhba pipeline.
Agreeing on sanctions against Russian natural gas is likely to prove much tougher because it represents a larger percentage of Europe’s energy mix.
“The very loud and clear message that Moscow will hear is that it will be near impossible for the European Union to get any agreement on blocking gas because gas will not be as easily replicated from other sources in Europe as oil will be,” Weafer said.
RMG worker Parvin gets Tk 20 lakh buying Walton fridge
A garment worker named 'Parvin Akhter' at Latifpur area of Kashimpur in Gazipur sadar was awarded Tk 20 lakh cashback on the purchase of Walton brand refrigerator under the prevailing customer benefits, offered by the company in its nationwide ongoing 'Digital Campaign Season-15'.
She purchased the fridge on installment facility with a down payment of Tk 4,550 only from the Walton Plaza Panishail branch.
Walton Hi-Tech Industries PLC's Deputy Managing Director Nazrul Islam Sarker and Plaza Trade's Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Mohammad Rayhan officially handed over a cheque to Parvin Akhter at a prgramme held at Walton Plaza Panshail branch in Gazipur on Monday, the company said in a statement on Tuesday.
Read Eid: Walton Digital Campaign Season 15 starts
The domestic brand initiated the digital campaign for providing the best and most swift after-sales services through online automation. Through the digital registration system, detailed information including the buyer's name, mobile number, and model number of product sold is being stored on Walton's server. As a result, customers get fast service from any Walton service center in the country even if they have lost the warranty card.
On the occasion of Eid-ul-Azha, Walton commenced Season-15 of its digital campaign with the offer of lucrative customer benefits. To encourage buyer's spontaneous participation in the Season-15, Walton is offering sure cashback up to Tk 20 lakh as well as crores of taka worth of free products for each buyer of its fridge, TV, AC, washing machine, microwave oven, blender, gas stove, rice cooker, and fan.
Also Read: Walton brings Arc CPU liquid coolers
Parvin Akhtar came from the Lalmia Sarkar Kandi village of Faridpur sadar. She has one son and a daughter.
Long-time ago, she got divorced from her husband. Now, she is working in a garment factory named 'Big Boss' in Gazipur and also struggling to make ends meet with her two children. However, purchasing a Walton refrigerator at the installment facility changed the fortunes of Parvin and her two children, added the release.
According to authorities, Walton fridge customers are getting 12 years compressor guaranty, along with a one-year replacement warranty, 5-year free after-sales services, swift after-sales services through a total of 77 service centers across the country, and also maximum 36 months easy installment facility.
Read EPB assures Walton of support to boost electronics, electrical products exports
Hong Kong trade delegation visits BEPZA
A delegation from Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office in Bangkok led by its Director Sheung-yuen Lee visited BEPZA Executive Office, Dhaka on Tuesday.
Ali Reza Mazid, Member (Investment Promotion) of BEPZA said Bangladesh is an emerging economy with huge opportunity to boost investment.
Also read: Belgian delegation meets BEPZA Executive Chairman
“BEPZA has been serving for over 40 years to facilitate investors in the EPZs. Investors from 38 countries including Hong Kong and China have already invested here,” he said.
He requested the delegation to work together for more Hong Kong investment in the EPZs.
In response, Sheung-yuen Lee said Bangladesh is the first South Asian country with an office from Hong Kong working to develop bilateral relationships.
Terming Bangladesh as one of the upcoming major economic players, he stressed on signing agreements like the Investment Promotion and Protection Agreement (IPPA) between Bangladesh and Hong Kong.
He said Hong Kong has IPPA with over 30 countries to boost economic and investment relationships.
Also read:Chinese Company to set up hair fashion accessories industry at BEPZA economic zone
Lee hoped such an agreement would be very effective for Bangladesh and Hong Kong to get closer through economic and investment ties.
Earlier, Executive Director (IP) Tanvir Hossain briefed the delegation about the overall activities, operating procedures, facilities, incentives etc. provided by BEPZA to the EPZs’ investors.