Good morning. Here's what happened overnight and what you need to know today, Aug. 30.
1.
Fixing Board of Ailing Banks: Bangladesh Bank Governor Ahsan H Mansur told the Daily Star that reconstituting the board of directors of ailing banks is the first step towards bringing good governance and discipline to the banking sector. The country's central bank has already reconstituted the board of some banks in which S Alam Group held a majority stake, the governor said in a recent interview with the newspaper. (The Daily Star)
2.
Seeking Additional Loan from IMF: Finance Adviser Salehuddin Ahmed has called for additional loans from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) as budget support to help Bangladesh overcome its foreign exchange reserve crisis. The IMF Mission Chief to Bangladesh, Chris Papageorgiou, has assured that the issue of providing new loans will be examined. Papageorgiou and Jayendu De, resident representative of the IMF in Bangladesh, held a Zoom meeting on Thursday with the finance adviser. Finance Secretary Md Khairuzzaman Mozumder was also present. (The Business Standard) & (The Financial Express)
3.
BoP Falls to $4.3b in FY’24: Bangladesh's balance of payments (BoP) decreased significantly to $4.3 billion in the July-June period of the 2023-24 fiscal year from $8.2 billion in the FY’23. Capital-flight cut and import curbs largely helped the reduction in BoP deficit, economists say, with its healing impact on other relevant major macroeconomic parameters. (The Financial Express).
4.
Over 1,000 Killed: Health Adviser Nurjahan Begum yesterday said more than 1,000 people were killed and over 400 blinded during the student-led mass uprising. The adviser spoke about protest casualties while briefing reporters after visiting the Central Police Hospital in Rajarbagh. (The Daily Star)
5.
Business Still Sluggish: Flash floods across parts of the country, the lingering effects of recent nationwide political upheaval, and persistent inflationary pressure have prevented business activities from getting back on track, according to businesspeople.As uncertainty and fear are still clouding people's minds, they are not interested in shopping, businesspeople said. (The Daily Star)
6.
US Election: Harris Swing: US polls published on Thursday showed Vice President Kamala Harris is leading her Republican presidential race rival Donald Trump by between 4 to 5 percentage points. A Reuters/Ipsos poll conducted between 19-22 August showed Harris leading Trump 45% to 41%, as the Democratic candidate gained support among women and Hispanic voters while Trump kept an edge among white voters and men. On the other hand, a USA TODAY/Suffolk University survey from 25-28 August showed the gap at 48%-43%, an eight-point turnaround since late June when Trump led Biden. That poll saw big swings among younger voters, Hispanics, Black and white low-income voters, the newspaper said. (Reuters) & (USA Today)
--- Saju Sarker