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.
Muhith revives plan for fuel price cuts
The finance ministry has revived a plan to cut prices of petroleum products, especially heavily used diesel and kerosene, to pass on the benefits of the lower global oil prices to domestic consumers. It sent the proposal for price cuts to the energy ministry last week for opinion. After getting the feedback from the energy ministry, Finance Minister AMA Muhith will discuss the matter with Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina. “Whether the fuel price will be lowered or not will be decided by the prime minister,” said a finance ministry official, adding that the extent of price cuts will also be determined by her.
ACC wants to create final legal window
The national anti-graft body recommends allowing unaccounted- for money to be invested in flats or lands under a legal measure 'once for all'. In giving such a view the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) noted that granting legal cover to such undisclosed income-better known as 'black money'-breeds corruption. Official sources said with the ACC acquiescence in hand the government authorities are likely to incorporate into the budget documentation for fiscal year (FY) 2017-18 the provision of what commonly passes for 'whitening black money' through payment of penal tax.
6% of budget deficit met in five months
Only 6% of the budget deficit has been met in the first five months of the fiscal year 2016-17, according to official data. The government estimate of fiscal deficit for the year is Tk97,853 crore. Of the figure, an amount of Tk5,893 crore has been met in the July-November period. In the last fiscal year, the budget surplus was Tk723 crore than in the same period a year ago.
Investment in nat’l saving tools marches past Tk 23,000cr in H1
The net investment in the national savings certificates and bonds in the first half of the current financial year 2016-17 increased by 76.41 per cent to Tk 23,473.56 crore from Tk 13,305.59 crore during the same period a fiscal year ago. Economists and Bangladesh Bank officials say clients continue to invest heavily in the savings tools in the recent period due to a lower rate of interest on the banks’ fixed deposit scheme. Lack of investment opportunities amid sluggish business is also forcing the clients to invest in the government tools, they say.
Weekly Review: Bangladesh’s stocks plunge 4.5pc on sale pressure
Bangladesh’s stocks faced a major setback last week, snapping 13 weeks gaining spell, as investors sharply retorted to the monetary policy statement (MPS). Brokers said investors sitting on profit fiercely sold the shares speculating a further correction in coming days following the central bank’s concern over the recent bullish momentum in the capital market. The central bank in its latest MPS said, “Effective surveillance is necessary so that the process of recovery from the bearish trend since 2010 remains under the regulator’s control”.
DITF spot orders remain almost static at Tk 243cr
The Dhaka International Trade Fair-2017 ended on Saturday with exhibitors receiving spot export orders worth Tk 243.44 crore, only Tk 8 crore more than those of last year. Total sales by traders at the extended fair stood around Tk 113.53 crore. At the closing ceremony of the trade fair at Sher-e-Bangla Nagar in the capital Dhaka, Export Promotion Bureau vice-chairman Mafruha Sultana disclosed the statistics related to the export orders and sales at the DITF-2017. In 2016 version of trade fair, the total spot export orders stood Tk 235.17 crore with a rise of Tk 95 crore from that of 2015.
Pvt sector credit flow rises in Dec after three months
Private sector credit growth increased slightly in December 2016, after experiencing a falling trend in the previous three consecutive months, due to higher trade financing for settling import payment obligations, bankers said. The growth in credit flow to private sector rose to 15.55 per cent in December 2016 on a year-on-year basis, which, however, was lower than the Bangladesh Bank (BB)'s earlier projection. It was 15.01 per cent in November, according to the central bank's latest statistics, released on Thursday.
ICAC sees world cotton production to rise by 2.0% in 2017/18
World cotton output will increase by 2.0 per cent to 23.4 million tonnes in 2017/18, according to the International Cotton Advisory Committee (ICAC)’s latest estimation. “The expansion is the result of an increase in planted area, which is expected to grow by 5.0 per cent to 30.6 million hectares after two seasons of contraction,” the ICAC said in its first estimation of 2017/18. After improving by 13 per cent to 781 kg/ha in 2016/17, the world average yield is projected to decline by 2.0 per cent to 764 kg/ha.
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