Dhaka, Bangladesh (BBN) - The BBN (Bangladesh Business News) has prepared the morning business round up compiling reports, published by different newspapers and news portals in Bangladesh.
Banks giving low-cost loans to manufacturers
Banks are providing industrial loans at a maximum cost of 6.5 percent -- which is almost half the going interest rates -- from a fund provided by the World Bank, a development that will put a smile on the faces of businesses. At present, the rate of interest on industrial loans is 11 to 12 percent, which businessmen say reins in their investment.
HSBC to shrink Bangladesh operations, close 6 branches
The United Kingdom-based HSBC bank has taken approval from Bangladesh Bank to close down six of its 13 branches in Bangladesh by June 30, said officials of the Bangladesh Bank. BB officials said that the bank might have taken the move to shrink its Bangladesh operations with an ultimate target to wind up from the country in line with the bank’s initiative to scale down global operations to rein in costs.
Bangladesh’s stocks end higher for 3rd day
Bangladesh’s stocks ended higher for the three consecutive sessions on Wednesday as investors remained on buying mood, especially on large-cap stocks. Both the Dhaka Stock Exchange, the prime bourse of Bangladesh, and Chittagong Stock Exchange, the port city bourse of the country opened with an upward trend which continued till end of the session.
FBCCI seeks import duty revision for steel industry
Country's apex chamber urged the government to save the local steel and re-rolling industries by rationalising the existing import taxes for the sector in the new budget. The Federation of Bangladesh Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FBCCI) made the plea recently in a letter to the finance minister, as the budget for 2016-17 fiscal is in the making.
Budget prep mired as ministers on tour
The preparation for the next fiscal year’s budget seems to get locked as decisions on some vital matters including the value-added tax issue are still pending. Officials said ministers concerned and the NBR chairman have gone out of Dhaka keeping the decisions pending while the budget announcement is just two weeks away.
NBR still waiting on full ATM import data
The Customs Intelligence and Investigation Directorate of the National Board of Revenue is yet to get information on around 3,000 automated teller machines (ATMs) that were imported, officials said. The directorate hinted that unscrupulous businesses might have brought in the ATMs under the guise of computer accessories, which are subjected to 7 percent duty as opposed to 31 percent for cash machines.
ADB’s projects reviewed to improve implementation in Bangladesh
The Government of Bangladesh and Asian Development Bank (ADB) have jointly reviewed ADB-assisted projects of Bangladesh to further improve development results. Saifuddin Ahmed, Joint Secretary, Economic Relations Division, Ministry of Finance, and Kazuhiko Higuchi, Country Director for ADB’s Bangladesh Resident Mission co-chaired the Tripartite Portfolio Review Meeting on 18 May in the capital Dhaka.
Tk 0.57m heist at three Prime ATM booths
A foreigner was allegedly caught in the act while a racket of ATM forgers withdrew Wednesday Tk 575,000 from three booths of Prime Bank in the capital, hot on the heels of Bangladesh Bank's offshore reserve heist. The digital bank burglars pumped out the money from Elephant Road, Farmgate and Panthapath booths of the bank within a short time from 6.20am to 6.40am, said a Prime Bank official.
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