Dhaka, Bangladesh (BBN) - The BBN has prepared the morning business round up compiling reports, published by different newspapers and news portals in Bangladesh.
Transit services not for free: Tofail
The road and water transit services to be taken by India, Nepal and Bhutan from Bangladesh under recent landmark agreements will not be free of charge, said Commerce Minister Tofail Ahmed. “Nothing is free,” he said, adding that the practices followed by other countries in fixing the fee structure under such agreements will be followed.
Transit modalities, trade high on agenda
The commerce secretary-level meeting between Dhaka and Kathmandu will be held in the capital on October 17-18 to push forward longstanding issues on trade and transit, a top official in the commerce ministry said. The high profile trade talks between the two south Asian nations are going to take place after above three years, as the last secretary–level meeting was held in Kathmandu on July 29-30, 2012.
India, Pakistan lag behind Bangladesh on personal security
Bangladesh has made a significant progress than its next door neighbours India and Pakistan in terms of personal security, says a recent study. According to the recently released 2015 Gallup law and order index, Bangladesh fares better than India and Pakistan when it comes to the “personal security.”
BB in a fix over taxing gains on Islamic bond
The central bank has sought revenue board's direction in resolving complexities over deduction of upfront tax on proceeds from Islamic bond, as the authorities are caught in a quandary in deciding the calculation methodology. Officials said the debt-management wing of the Bangladesh Bank (BB) found it difficult to deduct the tax as estimation of profit gains on the bond at the time of its issuance is not possible as the investment is based on sharing profit and loss both.
Weekly review: Stocks end flat amid low turnover
Bangladesh’s stocks ended flat last week with participation remained low as investors were cautious ahead of third-quarterly earnings declaration. The market witnessed another shortened week with four trading sessions instead of five as opening day of the week fall on Eid holiday. During the four sessions’ long-week, the market edged higher two sessions while two sessions closed in the red.
Power outages hit rural industries, households
Rural people in many areas are reeling from severe power outages that affect their daily business and economic activities, sufferers said Saturday. They said the power supplier-the Rural Electrification Board (REB)--is supplying less power than their demand, thus harming the growing rural economy besides household activities.
Robi, Airtel say merger to match with GP dominance
Matching with the dominance of Grameenphone in the country’s telecommunications industry has been mentioned as the number one reason for the merger of mobile operators Robi and Airtel, according to a letter that the two operators sent to the telecom regulator. The Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulatory Commission recently approved the merger proposal of Robi and Airtel and decided to send it for approval from the Telecom Division.
Bringing MFS providers under a platform remains a challenge
The Bangladesh Bank move to integrate a total of seven business entities including four commercial banks into Mobile Financial Services platform poses challenge. According to the MFS revised guidelines, mobile phone operators will now enjoy beneficial ownership. Led by four commercial banks, each Mobile Financial Services platform will incorporate two non-bank entities, plus one mobile phone operator as share holders into its business.
BBN/SSR/AD