The Daily Star: Internet Edition Sun. April 02, 2006

Vol. 5 Num 656

Sun. April 02, 2006


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Business

Remittance, export growth lessens trade deficit
BoP still negative
The growth of remittance and export has lessened Bangladesh's trade deficit in the first seven months of the current fiscal year, resulting in surplus current account balance.

Indian customs imposes non-tariff barriers on Bangladeshi betel nut
Say Mongla EPZ-based exporters
Mongla Export Processing Zone (EPZ)-based exporters yesterday said Indian customs authorities have imposed non-tariff barriers on Bangladeshi processed betel nut, violating Sapta (South Asian Preferential

Chartered accountants urge NBR to cut VAT rate
Chartered accountants at a seminar in Dhaka have urged the National Board of Revenue (NBR) to reduce value added tax (VAT) rate from existing 15 percent to 10-12 percent.

Two-day job fair begins
A two-day job fair began yesterday at Bangladesh-China Friendship Conference Centre in Dhaka with 20 private firms offering job opportunities.

EC seeks proposals for small projects in Bangladesh
The European Community represented by the European Commission, for and on behalf of the government of Bangladesh, has sought proposals for small projects in Bangladesh to receive financial assistancefrom

GP opens service desk in Rajshahi
GrameenPhone (GP), the largest cell phone operator in the country, has opened a full-fledged service desk at Index Plaza in Rajshahi.

WTO powers rejoin battle as deadline looms
The United States and the European Union held talks here Friday, joined by Brazil as a spokesman for the developing world, in a bid to unblock the WTO's stalled agenda before an April deadline.

RanksTel, Huawei Technologies sign deal
Ranks Telecom Limited (RanksTel), a private PSTN operator, recently signed an agreement with a Chinese telecom equipment manufacturer Huawei Technologies Co Ltd for expansion of RanksTel network in northwest

Pubali Bank declares 1:2 stock dividend
Pubali Bank Limited has declared two bonus shares against each ordinary share as dividend for its shareholders for the year 2005.

Clothing drives Sri Lanka economy to 5.9pc growth
Sri Lanka's economy expanded by 5.9 percent last year, up from 5.4 percent the previous year, on the back of higher garment exports, the Central Bank of Sri Lanka said Friday.

India's forex reserves up
India's forex reserves increased by US dollar 2.503 billion to stand at US dollar 148.662 billion during the week ended March 24, 2006 against USD 146.159 billion during the week ended March 17, 2006.

Bailout fails to make China state banks healthy: IMF
China's big four state banks are still far from operating healthily despite billions of dollars in government bailouts and changes to corporate governance structures, the International Monetary Fund has

ADB to lend India $300m for power sector
The Asian Development Bank (ADB) said Saturday it would provide up to 300 million dollars in loans to help strengthen and expand the power sector in one of India's poorest states.

Malaysia unveils $54b development blueprint
Malaysia on Friday unveiled a five-year development plan worth 54 billion dollars aimed at tackling poverty and spurring economic growth in its quest to become the first developed Muslim nation.

China's software industry earns $48.75b in 2005
China's software industry earned 390 billion yuan (48.75 billion US dollars) in 2005, a year on year surge of 40.3%, according to latest the statistics with the Chinese Ministry of Information Industry.

China to produce 98m computers this year
China will produce 98 million desktop and laptop computers in 2006, 58 million of which will be for export, the Ministry of Information Industry forecasts.

Indian airline takeover clears key hurdle in merger plan
Indian officials have cleared a key obstacle to the country's largest aviation merger between Jet Airways and Sahara Airlines following a dispute over landing rights, reports said Friday.

AKTEL sponsors premiere of Spielberg's movie
AKTEL, a leading mobile phone operator, sponsored the premiere of an international movie in Bangladesh titled 'War of the Worlds' on Wednesday.

Nokia gets new design chief
Alastair Curtis on Saturday started as new design chief at Nokia, replacing Frank Nuovo, who has been credited with being instrumental in developing mobile phones' sleek modern design.

Wipro gets $80m outsourcing deal
India's third largest software exporter Wipro Ltd has won a 80-million-dollar outsourcing deal from one of the country's top banks.