Dhaka, Jun 20 (UNB) - Siemens Bangladesh Ltd. recently signed an agreement with Super Star Group (SSG), one of the largest Electrical component producers of the country for reselling its SI- CP/LP Products. 

As per the contract SSG will re-sale the Siemens SI- CP/LP Products in the local markets. 

Prabal Bose, Managing Director and CEO, Siemens Bangladesh Ltd while announcing the partnership with SSG, said "We are pleased to have found a reliable partner for low voltage products. We feel confident that together, we can make a good progress in this dynamic and growing economy in Bangladesh.“

Md Ibrahim, Managing Director and CEO of SSG said that The signing contract with Siemens is a milestone for us. We will go for a further development by marketing the international standard products by Siemens.“
 
Siemens brought state-of-the-art technology that adds value to customers through a combination of multiple high-end technologies for complete solutions. 
 

Shanghai, June 20 (Xinhua/UNB) -- U.S. agriculture and food company Cargill is expanding its protein production capacity in the city of Chuzhou, east China's Anhui Province, with an investment of around 48.8 million U.S. dollars in a new plant.

This investment follows the company's 112-million-dollar investment in April to expand its deep corn production plant in Songyuan, northeastern Jilin Province.

The newly added production is expected to contribute to farmer prosperity and the growth of the local economy, bringing 600 new jobs, the company said in Shanghai Tuesday.

Cargill's integrated poultry production facility in Chuzhou covers every stage of the supply chain, including chicken breeding, raising, feed production, hatching, primary and further production. Any product from the facility can be traced back at any point in its production process within two hours, according to the company.

This facility is equipped with two fully cooked protein production lines that will be able to produce 32,000 tonnes of chicken and other protein products every year.

"This new investment will help Chuzhou and local farmers prosper as they work with us to deliver protein to dinner tables around the world," said Marcel Smits, chairman of Cargill Asia Pacific.

Dhaka, June 19 (UNB) - Azerbaijan is keen to import more products, including furniture, ceramic tiles, pharmaceuticals and IT ones, from Bangladesh.

Both Federation of Bangladesh Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FBCCI) and the Apex Chamber of Azerbaijan may also form a “Joint Chamber” in nearest future. 

Azerbaijan also wants to enhance the trade relations between the two countries. 

This was discussed between the FBCCI leaders and Dr Ashraf Shikhaliyev, Ambassador of the Republic of Azerbaijan based in India, at the FBCCI auditorium in Dhaka on Wednesday.

FBCCI acting president Md Muntakim Ashraf at the meeting briefed the envoy about the role of private sector in the fast-growing development activities of the country. 

He mentioned recent tremendous economic development activities of Bangladesh, and invited the Azerbaijan businesses to invest in the special economic zones taking the attractive opportunities offered by the Bangladesh government.

As the Ambassador invited the FBCCI leaders to visit Azerbaijan, its acting president agreed to tour the country as the entourage of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina during her visit in October next.
 

Washington, Jun 19 (AP/UNB)  — President Donald Trump said he'll hold trade talks with Chinese President Xi Jinping next week at a summit of nations in Japan. And U.S. and Chinese negotiators will resume talks before the leaders meet.

Financial markets greeted the news with relief Tuesday. The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed 1.4% higher, adding 353 points.

Investors have been on edge since the world's two biggest economies last month broke off talks aimed at settling a dispute over U.S. allegations that China steals technologies and forces foreign companies to hand over trade secrets. The U.S. says the predatory tactics are part of Beijing's aggressive drive to supplant American technological dominance.

Trump has already imposed 25% tariffs on $250 billion in Chinese imports. And he's preparing to target the $300 billion in Chinese imports that he hasn't already hit with tariffs, extending them to everything China ships to the United States. China has retaliated with tariffs on U.S. goods.

"Had a very good telephone conversation with President Xi of China," Trump tweeted. "We will be having an extended meeting next week at the G-20 in Japan. Our respective teams will begin talks prior to our meeting."

The White House said in a statement that the two leaders discussed leveling the playing field for U.S. farmers, workers and businesses through a "fair and reciprocal" economic relationship. The White House said that includes addressing barriers to trade with China and achieving meaningful reforms that can be verified and enforced.

Departing the White House for a campaign rally in Orlando, Florida, Trump said "our people are starting to deal as of tomorrow. The teams, they're starting to deal." The administration provided no details about talks between the negotiating teams.

One of Trump's top economic advisers, Larry Kudlow, would not speculate on what will happen at the Trump-Xi meeting on the sidelines of the G-20.

"Talk is better than no talk," said Kudlow, director of the National Economic Council.

He said the administration will push China to make fundamental changes to its economic policies.

"We want structural changes on all the items — theft of (intellectual property), forced transfer of technology, cyber hacking, of course trade barriers," he said. "We've got to have something that's enforceable."

Appearing before the Senate Finance Committee Tuesday, Trump's top trade negotiator sounded a cautious note.

"I can't predict what the United States is going to do or whether we're going to be able to resolve this issue with China," U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer said. "My hope is that we can."

The two countries each have an incentive to reach a deal.

China is contending with a decelerating economy, high debts and consumer worries about the impact of Trump's tariffs.

"The time may be ripe for China to make strong enforceable commitments on intellectual property and technology transfer," said Dean Pinkert, a partner at the law firm Hughes Hubbard & Reed and a former member of the U.S. International Trade Commission.

U.S. businesses are imploring Trump not to expand his tariffs to $300 billion in goods from China or at least spare those imports that are of key importance to their customers.

"I don't know if it'll get them to stop cheating, tariffs alone," Lighthizer told senators. But he added: "I don't think you have any other option. I know what won't work, and that is talking to them because we've done that for 20 years .... If there's a better idea than tariffs, I'd like to hear it."

Singapore, Jun 18 (AP/UNB) — Asian stocks were mixed on Tuesday as caution set in ahead of interest rate decisions by the U.S. Federal Reserve and other central banks.

Japan's benchmark Nikkei 225 eased 0.7% to 20,972.71 while South Korea's Kospi rose 0.4% to 2,098.71. Hong Kong's Hang Seng picked up 0.9% to 27,481.62. The Shanghai Composite index was 0.1% lower at 2,884.46. Australia's S&P ASX 200 added 0.6% to 6,570.00. Shares rose in Taiwan and in most of Southeast Asia.

The U.S. Federal Open Market Committee will hold a two-day meeting starting Tuesday. Traders will keep a close watch on a policy statement, to be released Wednesday, and a news conference held by Fed Chairman Jerome Powell shortly after that.

Powell will likely stick to the theme of a speech he made earlier this month: That the Fed will act if it thinks the Trump administration's trade conflicts are threatening the U.S. economy.

Financial markets had rallied on the remarks, which fueled hopes that the Fed would cut interest rates this year. Although a rate cut isn't expected this time around, fresh comments from Powell could support another wave of buying or have investors swing the other way.

"With scant data releases and no significant developments on the trade front, the mood in Asia will likely remain cautious with investors awaiting the FOMC meeting and possible adjustments to the dot plots before taking on substantial bets," ING economists Nicholas Mapa and Prakash Sakpal said in a commentary.

Central banks in Britain and Japan will also announce their latest monetary policy decisions this week.

On Tuesday, the Reserve Bank of Australia released minutes from a policy meeting in June, which saw it easing its cash rate to 1.25%. According to the minutes, members agreed that further rate cuts were "more likely than not" in the period ahead, although there were other ways to reduce unemployment.

Trading was choppy on Wall Street on Monday, weighed by uncertainty over the U.S.-China trade dispute.

But indexes finished the day with slight gains. The S&P 500 index edged 0.1% higher to 2,889.67 and the Dow Jones Industrial Average also rose 0.1% to 26,112.53. The Nasdaq composite climbed 0.6% to 7,845.02. The Russell 2000 index of smaller company stocks added 0.7% to 1,532.75.

ENERGY: Benchmark U.S. crude dropped 17 cents to $51.76 a barrel. The contract gave up 58 cents to $51.93 a barrel on Monday. Brent crude, the international standard, shed 20 cents to $60.74 a barrel.

CURRENCIES: The dollar slipped to 108.27 Japanese yen from 108.53 yen. The euro strengthened to $1.1234 from $1.1220.