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Strict monitoring to check price hike of commodities during Ramadan: Munshi
Commerce Minister Tipu Munshi has said the government will strengthen monitoring to prevent price hike of commodities during the holy month of Ramadan.
“There is enough stock of essentials in the country. So, there is no reason to increase price of essentials in the name of short supply,” he said.
Tipu Munshi came up with the remarks on Wednesday while addressing an inter- ministerial meeting on stock, supply, import situation and prices of commodities ahead of Ramadan.
Read:Commerce ministry seeks BTTC report before raising edible oil price
The meeting held at the conference room of the Commerce Ministry at the secretariat.
He said the field administration has been asked to take stern action against those who are trying to increase price of commodities creating artificial crisis or hoarding goods illegally.
“The government has taken all possible steps so that people can buy commodities at affordable prices. Everything will be done to protect the interest of producers and consumers. All measures have been taken to keep the stock, supply and price of essential commodities normal,” the commerce minister told reporters.
He said the government will sell sugar, edible oil, lentils, onions and chickpeas among 1 crore people across the country through TCB during Ramadan.
The commerce minister said that the government will not allow sale of loose soybean oil after May 31 and sale of loose palm oil after December 16.
The government has decided that all edible oil will be bottled or packaged and sold at a fixed price to ensure the fair price.
Read: Veggies’ price soars due to untimely rains & intermediaries: Agriculture secy
The Directorate of National Consumer Rights Protection under the Ministry of Commerce and the National Board of Revenue (NBR) have intensified market monitoring, Munshi said.
The meeting was chaired by Senior Secretary of the Ministry of Commerce Tapan Kanti Ghosh, Chairperson of the Bangladesh Competition Commission Mofizul Islam, Chairman of the Bangladesh Trade and Tariff Commission (Secretary) Md. Afzal Hossain, member of the National Board of Revenue Masud Sadiq, FBCCI President Jasim Uddin, TCB Chairman Brigadier General Md. Ariful Hasan, Director (Administration) of Directorate of National Consumer Rights Protection Manzoor Mohammad Shahriar, representatives of Ministry of Industries, DGFI, NSI, BGB, among others, were present at the meeting.
Remittance inflow down by $ 3.25 billion in 8 months of FY 22
Bangladesh’s remittance inflow decreased by USD $ 284.5 million to $ 1496.09 million in February of the current fiscal year compared with the same month of last fiscal year.
In February of FY2020-21, the expatriates sent remittance of $ 1780.59 million to the country.
Bangladesh received $ 13.44 billion remittance in the first 8 months of the current FY2021-22 which is counted from 1st of July every year. In the same period of last FY2020-21, the expatriates sent $16.68 billion. It means flow of inward remittance has decreased by $3.25 billion.
Read: Remittance Magic: Bangladesh received $11.95bn in 7 months
Bangladesh Bank (BB) data released on Tuesday found that the expatriates in different countries of the world sent $1496.09 million inward remittance through banking channels.
The previous month, in January, expatriates sent inward remittances of $ 1704.53 million, in December $1630.66 million.
The government has been providing a 2 per cent incentive from the FY2019-20 to increase remittance inflow in the formal channel (banking) discouraging hundi.
Read:Central bank devalues taka to boost exports, remittances
After easing global Covid restriction on movement, the inward remittance flow decreased gradually compared with the severe pandemic period. In the last FY2021-22 Bangladesh received a record $ 24.77 billion remittance, which is the highest ever.
In January 2022, the government increased remittance incentive to 2.5 per cent to increase the inward remittance flow in the banking channel.
It means the expatriates are now getting hassle-free Tk 102.5 for sending Tk 100 remittance through banking channels.
Read Govt raises incentive on remittance to 2.5%
The sector insiders said that Bangladesh's remittance inflow would increase in the remaining period of the current fiscal year as the government increased incentive rate and upward trend of fuel oil prices in the global market.
Finance minister thanks ADB for prompt assistance in tackling pandemic
Finance Minister AHM Mustafa Kamal has thanked Asian Development Bank (ADB) for its prompt assistance in overcoming the adverse effects of COVID-19 pandemic.
Illustrating the ADB’s assistance to Bangladesh he said ADB has provide USD $ 1.0 billion budget support for potential economic impact of Coronavirus outbreak, $100 million for in health assistance for COVID-19 Response Emergency Assistance project, $940 million loan assistance for purchase of COVID-19 vaccine and $9.34 million grant assistance during the pandemic.
READ: Govt, ADB ink $13.5 mln loan deal to improve irrigation management
Kamal came up with remarks while speaking in an exchange meeting with Executive Director of ADB Sameer Kumar Khare at his secretariat office on Monday.
Abdur Rauf Talukder, Senior Secretary, Finance Division, Fatima Yasmin, Secretary, Economic Relations Division, Edimon Ginting, Country Director, Asian Development Bank, Bangladesh Office, among others, were present.
ADB is one of the leading development partners in Bangladesh. ADB has provided $19.7 billion in loan assistance to Bangladesh since 1982.
Kamal particularly urged the ADB to provide more development assistance to address the challenges following the transition from LDCs to developing countries.
READ: ADB provides $150 mln loan to support small-scale employment creation project
He stressed the need for continuing such cooperation between Bangladesh and ADB in the future to achieve the overall development goals.
In response Sameer Kumar said ADB has been cooperating from the very beginning to restore the social and economic security of Bangladesh to overcome the pandemic and will continue to be on the side of Bangladesh in the future as well.
Ruble dives, stocks sink as West tightens Russia sanctions
The ruble plunged to a record low of less than 1 U.S. cent and most global stock markets declined Monday after Western nations moved to block some Russian banks from a global payments system.
Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has caused markets to swing wildly, given the potential impact on inflation, energy supplies and other economic repercussions.
Putin's order that Russian nuclear weapons stand at increased readiness to launch ratcheted up tensions with Europe and the United States and revived dormant fears from the Cold War era.
The Russian central bank raised its key rate to 20% from 9.5% in a desperate attempt to shore up the plummeting ruble and prevent a run on banks. That brought a temporary reprieve for the Russian currency, which bounced back to the level it was at last week, but only briefly.
Also read: Asian shares, US futures fall as Ukraine conflict deepens
The ruble has plunged more than 30% after the move to block Russian banks from the SWIFT payments system. The sanctions include restrictions meant to crimp the Russian central bank’s access to over $600 billion in reserves and hinder its ability to support the ruble.
A weaker ruble is expected to cause inflation to surge, potentially angering Russians whose budgets will be stretched by soaring prices. It will also add to strains across Russia's financial systems.
Germany's DAX fell 2.1% to 14,263.95 and the CAC 40 in Paris lost 2.3% to 6,595.83. Britain's FTSE 100 shed 1.7% to 7,365.29.
In New York, the future for the S&P 500 was 1.6% lower and that for the Dow industrials declined 1.3%.
Also read: World shares up, US futures sink as Russia moves toward Kyiv
On Friday, the S&P 500 climbed 2.2%, notching its first weekly gain in three weeks. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 2.5% and the Nasdaq composite gained 1.6%. The Russell 2000 index rose 2.3%.
The end of the month usually brings a raft of economic data, but for now the conflict is eclipsing other issues.
“It’s all about the Russia-Ukraine situation and evolutions in that situation will drive market sentiment and direction,” Jeffrey Halley of Oanda said in a commentary.
“President Putin will now have to accept that the ‘Western’ powers are prepared to accept quite a bit of economic pain now to punish Russia,” he said.
Markets in Asia appeared to take the latest developments more calmly.
Japan's Nikkei 225 index recovered from earlier losses to edge 0.2% higher to 26,526.82. The Hang Seng in Hong Kong lost 0.2% to 22,713.02. The Shanghai Composite index gained 0.3% to 3,462.31. The Kospi in Seoul climbed 0.8% to 2,699.18, while in Sydney the S&P/ASX 200 gained 0.7% to 7,049.10.
Although Asia is unlikely to suffer direct damage from the war in Ukraine, higher energy prices are an unwelcome burden for oil-importing nations like Japan, especially while they are still struggling to recover from the pandemic.
Underscoring deepening rifts due to the conflict, BP said Sunday it was exiting its 19.75% share in Rosneft, a state-controlled Russian oil and gas company, which it has held since 2013. That stake is currently valued at $14 billion.
Oil prices surged Monday, with U.S. benchmark crude up $4.33, or 4.7%, at $95.92 per barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. It lost $1.22 to 91.59 per barrel on Friday.
Brent crude gained $4.20 to $98.32 per barrel, up 4.5% and approaching the $100 per barrel level it breached last week.
The Ukraine conflict has heaped uncertainty atop other worries over interest rates and inflation.
The U.S. Federal Reserve has suggested it will raise short-term interest rates next month by double its usual increase, the first rate increase since 2018. Higher U.S. rates tend to put downward pressure on all kinds of investments, and can have global repercussions.
In currency trading, the U.S. dollar inched down to 115.61 Japanese yen from 115.77 yen. The euro rose to $1.1165 from $1.1157.
Asian shares, US futures fall as Ukraine conflict deepens
Asian shares slipped Monday after Western nations moved to tighten sanctions against Russia and President Vladimir Putin escalated tensions by ordering Russian nuclear forces be put on high alert.
U.S. futures fell, with the contract for the S&P 500 down 2.5% and that for the Dow industrials 1.6% lower.
Tokyo, Hong Kong and Shanghai declined while Sydney was higher.
Read:Putin puts nuclear forces on high alert, escalating tensions
Russian’s invasion of Ukraine has caused markets to swing wildly, given the potential impact on inflation, energy supplies and other repercussions.
The end of the month usually brings a raft of economic data, but for now the conflict is eclipsing other issues.
“It’s all about the Russia-Ukraine situation and evolutions in that situation will drive market sentiment and direction," Jeffrey Halley of Oanda said in a commentary.
“President Putin will now have to accept that the ‘Western' powers are prepared to accept quite a bit of economic pain now to punish Russia," he said.
The Russian ruble has weakened sharply in the past week but was steady early Monday at 83.86 to the dollar.
Putin ordered Russian nuclear weapons prepared for increased readiness to launch on Sunday ratcheting up tensions with Europe and the United States in a move that unearthed dormant fears from the Cold War era.
Japan joined moves by the U.S. and other western nations to impose sanctions against Russia, including blocking some Russian banks from the SWIFT global payment system.
The central bank restrictions target access to the more than $600 billion in reserves that the Kremlin has at its disposal, and are meant to block Russia’s ability to support the ruble as it plunges in value.
Sanctions announced earlier have taken its currency to its lowest level against the dollar in history and gave its stock market its worst week on record.
Japan's Nikkei 225 index lost 0.4% to 26,366.60 and the Hang Seng in Hong Kong lost 1.4% to 22,445.66. The Shanghai Composite index was 0.1% lower at 3,446.44. The Kospi in Seoul was nearly unchanged at 2,678.17, while in Sydney the S&P/ASX 200 gained 0.4% to 7,023.70.
Although Asia is unlikely to suffer direct damage from the war in Ukraine, higher energy prices are an unwelcome burden for oil-importing nations like Japan, especially while they are still struggling to recover from the pandemic.
Underscoring the deepening rifts due to the conflict, BP said Sunday it was exiting its 19.75% share in Rosneft, a state-controlled Russian oil and gas company, which it has held since 2013. That stake is currently valued at $14 billion.
Read:Ukraine, Russia diplomats to meet on Belarus border
Oil prices surged Monday, with U.S. benchmark crude up $4.95, or 5.4%, at $96.54 per barrel.
Brent crude gained $4.68 to $98.80 per barrel, up 4.9% and approaching the $100 per barrel level it breached last week.
On Friday, the S&P 500 climbed 2.2%, notching its first weekly gain in three weeks to close at 4,384.65. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 2.5% to 34,058.75. The Nasdaq composite gained 1.6% to 13,694.62 after swinging between modest gains and losses. The Russell 2000 index rose 2.3%, to 2,040.923.
The Ukraine conflict has heaped uncertainty atop other worries over interest rates and inflation.
The U.S. Federal Reserve has suggested it will raise short-term interest rates next month by double its usual increase, the first rate increase since 2018. Higher U.S. rates tend to put downward pressure on all kinds of investments, and can have global repercussions.
In currency trading, the U.S. dollar inched down to 115.46 Japanese yen from 115.77 yen. The euro was barely changed, at $1.1155, down from $1.1157.
Stock market witness a massive fall on Sunday after Russia attacks Ukraine
Dhaka stocks exchange (DSE) witnessed a massive price fall on Sunday amid a rush of selling pressure due to global tension rising after the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
The benchmark index of the DSE fell 163 points, or 2.38 per cent, to 6,676 at the end of the exchange on Sunday, the lowest in the last 2 months.
Analysis of the daily exchange situation shows that at the beginning of the week, 365 companies or 96 per cent stock fell. The investors’ participation in the stock saw a dried up position with the day’s turnover stood at Tk 916.28 crore.
Also read: Whitening black money: Stock exchanges ask NBR to continue it in stock market
The Chittagong Stock Exchange (CSE) also witnessed a fall or eroded on Sunday. A total of 304 companies’ shares traded on the day of which 284 dropped prices, only 9 gained and 11 remained unchanged. The CSE lost 490 point (2.45 per cent) to 19500.
The country's capital market passed the 3rd week in February on a one-day rise and a three-day downward trend. During this week's trading, the index and the share price of most companies was downward.
As a result, the capital of the country's main capital market DSE investors lost their capital in the 3rd week, the same situation was seen in the transactions of Chittagong Stock Exchange (CSE).
According to the DSE data, during the week (February 20-24), the transaction on the DSE was Tk398.79. The previous week's transaction was Tk5 98.12 crore. In other words, the transaction decreased by Tk1989.23 crore during the week, which means stock price decreased by 33.17 per cent.
Also read: Stock markets continue to fall on the third day Tuesday
Of the 392 stocks and units traded on the DSE in the fourth week of February, 73 rose, 296 declined and 16 remained unchanged. Shares of five companies were not traded.
Ministry of Industries achieves record 63% implementation of ADP
With 63 per cent of execution record, the Ministry of Industries has surpassed the national rate in implementing the Annual Development Program (ADP).
From July to January of the fiscal year 2022-23, the ministry was able to implement 63 per cent of the ADP, where the overall ADP implementation rate is less than 30 per cent.
Read:NBR goes all-out to boost tax revenue for better economic growth
The information was presented at a meeting held to review the implementation progress of projects included in the ADP, at the conference hall of the industries ministry on Sunday.
Industries Minister Nurul Majid Mahmud Humayun was the chief guest and State Minister for Industries Kamal Ahmed Majumder was the special guest at the review meeting chaired by Industries Secretary Zakia Sultana.
Relevant officials of the ministry, heads of various agencies and corporations under the ministry and various project managers were also present on the occasion.
The ministry officials said that a total of 33 projects are being implemented in the current fiscal year. For all the projects the budgetary allocation was Tk4066 crore, of which Tk 2565 crore or 63 per cent allocation was spent in the first 7 months of the current fiscal year.
Read: BSCIC holds beekeeping development workshop
The meeting was informed that there are a total of 33 projects in the annual development program of the Ministry. Of these, 30 investment projects, 2 technical assistance projects and 1 self-financing are implemented in the current fiscal year.
The allocation for these projects was Tk 4,066 crore. Of this, Tk 1,203 crore has been allocated in the public sector, Tk 2,817 crore in the project assistance sector and Tk 46 crore in the company's own finance sector.
NBR goes all-out to boost tax revenue for better economic growth
The National Board of Revenue (NBR) has intensified its tax survey, inspection, monitoring and realisation to boost the Tax GDP ratio, currently the lowest in the South Asian region.
The poor situation exists although NBR has recently witnessed a 9.51 per cent growth in individual income tax return submission.“The Board has already directed all the field offices to intensify and strengthen their respective tax survey to have a justified growth with other wings,” a senior official of the NBR told UNB wishing anonymity.He said that the Board has also directed the field offices to give extra efforts for collecting advance income tax, which is a good source of collection.
Also read: Whitening black money: Stock exchanges ask NBR to continue it in stock marketThe revenue target for the NBR for FY2021-22 has been fixed at 10.7 per cent, higher than the revised target of the FY2020-21. The revenue collection was set at Tk 330,078 crore during FY2021-22.In the last FY2020-21 the revised revenue target was Tk 301,000 crore while it was set Tk 330,000 in the main budget.Of the total target the VAT wing will contribute the lion share with Tk 127,745 crore which is 11 per cent higher than the revised target of the last fiscal. In the last fiscal the target was Tk 125, 163 crore.The target for Income Tax and Tax on Profit has been set Tk 104, 952 crore where it was Tk 103, 945 crore in the last fiscal.
Also read: Even government entities press NBR for tax exemption: NBR ChairmanThe revenue collection from import duty will be Tk 37, 907 crore, Tk 54,465 crore from from Supplementary Duty, Tk 56 crore from export duty, Tk 3825 crore from Excise Duty while Tk 1050 crore from other taxes and duties.As part of intensifying the tax survey information of the flat and house owners in posh areas like Gulshan, Banani, Uttara, Dhanmondi of the capital city will be gathered.The eligible but not enlisted persons will be given electronic tax identification number (e-TIN) instantly. “Proper directives have been given to the field level officials,” the NBR official said.Punitive measures will be taken against the e-TIN holders who fail to submit their income tax return or apply for time extension.The NBR teams will visit houses, shops and other commercial establishments in the city’s various areas to find out the potential taxpayers. The officials will take support from service agencies to scrutinise information related to income, wealth and property of the potentially eligible taxpayers.The survey teams are collecting information related to national identity card, trade licence and other business documents from people having income from house or business properties and from service or other professions.NBR has directed the tax commissioners to bring all eligible persons and organisation under the tax net and take initiative to remove the phobia regarding tax payment, sources said.It also asked to intensify the tax survey and activate the inactive TIN numbers as submitting income tax return has been made mandatory for every TIN holder from this fiscal.The Income Tax Wing of the NBR has already given necessary directives to the field offices in this regard.As a part of the internal survey, the field level officials have already collected possible taxpayers information from city corporations, Rajuk and sub-registrar offices. This is popularly called ‘secondary data’.
Secondary data refers to the information of the individuals that are already kept with an organisation.The NBR also has started to collect information of the potential taxpayers at the upazila level through secondary data gathering, otherwise known as internal survey.According to data from the April 2021 issue of the World Economic Outlook, the tax to GDP ratio of the country has been 9.9 per cent on an average since 2016-2020, while it is 19.67 per cent for India, 21.50 per cent for Nepal, 14.88 for Pakistan, 12.74 per cent for Sri Lanka.The ratio is 24.72 per cent for developing countries and 35.81 per cent for developed countries, according to the data.The tax-to-GDP ratio is a ratio of a nation's tax revenue relative to its gross domestic product, the value of goods and services produced in a country during a certain period. The ratio is also a marker of how well the government controls a country's economic resources.According to an official document, the tax to GDP ratio in the current fiscal has been estimated at 10.7 per cent.
BSCIC holds beekeeping development workshop
The Bangladesh Small and Cottage Industry Corporation (BSCIC) is implementing a project of adopting beekeeping activities through training micro entrepreneurs.
As part of the program the BSCIC organized a skill developing workshop for beekeeping in Khulna region on Saturday.
The proposed project titled 'Development of beekeeping through application of modern technology' is a green leaf of FY 2021-22. BSIC has taken up this project under the Ministry of Industries to implement the government's My Village, My City program.
Nepal Chandra Karmakar, Director (Planning & Research) BSIC, was present at the beekeeping workshop as the Chief Guest.
Md. Hafizur Rahman, Deputy Director, Department of Agricultural Extension, Khulna, Mohammad Rashedur Rahman, Deputy General Manager (Planning) BSIC and Tushar Kanti Roy, Lecturer, Khulna Agricultural University, were present as the special guests.
Hafizur Rahman presented in the workshop overall BSCIC activities, master plan, BSCIC contribution in development of honey industry, existing status and problems of bee industry, activities identified under the proposed project.
In the workshop, the entrepreneurs involved in the honey industry highlighted the problems of the industry and suggested to include important aspects of the project.
A total of 20 honey industry entrepreneurs were present at the workshop.
National Geographic's 'Super Factories' showcases Walton factory
Walton has become the first Bangladeshi company to be featured in the National Geographic Channel's documentary series "Super Factories."
The episode featuring the Walton factory in Gazipur was aired at 8:30pm (Bangladesh time) Saturday, giving viewers an insight into the company's manufacturing process and success story.
The subscribers of Bangladesh Cable Operator (dish connection) and DTH users were able to watch the 44-minute documentary on National Geographic.
Read: Walton gets best electronics stall award in DITF-22
Super Factories unveiled the story of the successful application of modern engineering, functioning and innovation that goes behind the scenes of the making of Walton products.
The programme also showcased Walton's aspirations to contribute to the transformation of Bangladesh from an agricultural country to a manufacturing hub of electronics and technology products, branding "Made in Bangladesh."
National Geographic India said: "We endeavour to bring thought-provoking stories across the globe, through insightful narrative. Our popular Super Factories series was created to give viewers a deeper understanding of high-tech factories and expand their knowledge."
Read: Walton to bring new Printon printers
"With this latest edition, we aim to showcase the compelling journey of Walton Group, highlighting their innovative approach to adapt to the evolving technology and the needs of consumers that have helped them to make significant strides within the consumer electronics industry."
Walton's Chief Marketing Officer Mohammad Firoj Alam said: "Walton is representing Bangladesh in the global arena in the fields of engineering and technological advancement. In this documentary, we wanted to share our success story with the audience at home and abroad."
The programme will be rebroadcast at 10.30am (Bangladesh time) on March 6, 13, and 27, April 2 and 3 and 8.30pm (Bangladesh time) on March 12 and 19.
Read Walton Primo NX6 Review with Price in Bangladesh