Dhaka, Bangladesh (BBN) – Highlights of Monday’s newspapers:
The Financial Express:
— India has granted duty-free access of all products from five least developed member nations of South Asian Associations for Regional Cooperation (SAARC), including Bangladesh, except wine and tobacco, to its market, according to an official notification of the Indian government.
— A section of infuriated investors took to the streets at Motijheel once again Sunday as share prices at the Dhaka Stock Exchange (DSE) witnessed yet another bout of plunge. It was the first trading day after the nine-day Eid closure.
— The remittance earnings from the Bangladeshi workers in the Middle-East (ME) countries increased by about 15 per cent in the first quarter (Q1) of the current fiscal year (FY), following a liberalised policy for transfer of money, by the central bank.
The Daily Star:
— The government yesterday decided not to increase transport fares right now although transport owners have been pushing for a hike following the fuel price hike Thursday night. The fares will be increased, likely next month, after another round of fuel and CNG price hike, said a communications ministry official.
— State banks are now suffering from a severe liquidity crisis as they lost Tk 2,275 crore in deposits in just three months. The money flew mainly due to an absence of a competitive interest rate on deposits and excessive credit expansion.
— The taka has depreciated 9 percent against the dollar in just 10 months since January, putting further pressure on consumers already suffering from high inflation. The taka depreciated by 0.54 percent in 2008, 0.47 percent in 2009 and 2.09 percent in 2010, Bangladesh Bank (BB) data shows.
The New Age:
— The Bangladesh Energy Regulatory Commission, after the 18.14 per cent increase in bulk power price in February this year, is likely to raise it further by 23.46 per cent for the distribution agencies.
— The main opposition Bangladesh Nationalist Party has decided to hold a two-day demonstration against increase in fuel oil prices the government effected from midnight past Thursday. The party’s national standing committee at a meeting in the party chairperson’s office at Gulshan on Sunday decided to hold the programme on November 15, in Dhaka, and on November 16, across the country, party insiders said.
— A two-day international conference of the Climate Vulnerable Forum has begun in Dhaka with a call for looking into the issues of migration of people due to climate change on an urgent basis. The issue of climate migration should come for discussion under UNFCCC process as migratory consequences are raising human security concerns in the countries vulnerable to climate change, said the speakers on the opening day of the conference on Sunday.
BBN/SSR/SI-14Nov11-10:07 am (BST)
