Transactions in a state-owned bank is going on at Motijheel, the commercial hub of Bangladesh. BBN file photo

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 demand scrapping of double taxation on balance
Bankers on Sunday demanded elimination of double taxation on bank balance claiming that clients were being forced to pay excise duty twice on the same bank balance. At a participatory dialogue with NBR, representatives from different banks also demanded withdrawal of income tax on provision amount kept against classified loans.

Spending on metro must be justified
The money spent on an expensive project like metro rail must be justified by ensuring it provides quality and optimum service to the public, said the country director of Asian Development Bank (ADB).

Bangladesh’s inflow of remittances rise by 10%
The flow of remittances rose by nearly 10 per cent in the first eight months of the current fiscal year, despite significant falls in February 2019. Bangladeshi nationals working abroad sent $10.40 billion home during the July-February period of the FY 2018-19 from $9.46 billion in the same period of the previous fiscal.

Bangladesh seeks tariff benefits for increased cotton imports from US
Bangladesh will import more cotton from the United States if the American government offers duty benefits for apparel items manufactured of American cotton. BGMEA president Md Siddiqur Rahman made the proposal at a meeting with the US Ambassador to Bangladesh, Earl R Miller, at the trade body’s headquarters in the capital on Sunday.

Bangladesh’s stocks see marginal gain on Sunday
Bangladesh’s stocks posted marginal gain on Sunday snapping a two-day losing streak, as investors showed their buying appetite on different sectors. Investors took position on sector specific issues as some companies showed better earnings for the year ended on December 31, 2018, market operators said.

Nasrul urges businesses to lower LPG prices
State minister for power and energy Nasrul Hamid on Sunday urged businesses to bring down prices of the liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) in the local market to help boost its consumption. Mr Hamid made the urging at the inaugural ceremony of a two-day South Asia LPG Summit 2019 at International Convention City, Bashundhara.

SCBs lag behind in achieving API targets
Almost all state-owned commercial banks have failed to achieve major aims including reducing the number of loss-making branches and decreasing bad loans in the first half of the current fiscal year despite their commitments under the annual performance indicators.

Bangladesh’s three banks to open KSA branches soon
Three commercial banks of Bangladesh are set to open branches in Saudi Arabia this year as they got the Bangladesh Bank’s go-ahead to this end. Officials said state-owned Sonali Bank along with two private banks –Social Islami Bank and Exim Bank –will open branches in compliance with the customary policies of the Muslim country.

BBN/SSR/AD