No commission or service fee for claim settlement
Insurance companies in Bangladesh will no longer be able to charge policyholders for commissions or service fees while settling claims, according to the “Insurance Claims Management Guideline 2024”.
Shahjalal Islami Bank's first-quarter profit up 28%
Shahjalal Islami Bank (SIBL) reported a 28 percent year-on-year increase in profit in the January-March quarter
Analysis / Global car giants seek tech allies in China's cutthroat EV market
Struggling foreign automakers in China are looking for help from local tech giants to try to stay competitive in the world's biggest electric car market
HSBC’s 2023 profit nearly Tk 1,000cr
The profit amounted to Tk 999 crore, soaring 70 percent year-on-year. It was Tk 587 crore in 2022.
Economic crisis may deepen in 2026: Debapriya
Bangladesh will face a severe crisis in 2026 as the government has availed a significant amount of loans from foreign lending agencies and local banks which it will have to repay, said Bhattacharya.
Four state banks’ bad loans jump 27% as delinquencies rise
The combined bad loans of the banks surged 27 percent year-on-year to Tk 62,913 crore at the end of last year. Two years prior, total bad loans of the four state banks stood at just over Tk 38,200 crore, according to financial statements.
New entity wants to enter saturated insurance market
At present, there are 36 life and 46 non-life insurance companies in Bangladesh, which stands in stark contrast to just 24 life insurance companies in India, 10 in Pakistan, and 16 in Sri Lanka.
Shipping Corporation's profit down 27% in July-March
State-owned Bangladesh Shipping Corporation (BSC) has witnessed a year-on-year drop in both revenue, generated from renting out its seven vessels, and associated profit in the first nine months of this fiscal year of 2023-24.
News Analysis / Crawling peg system: A welcome step but will it be enough to boost reserves?
The crawling peg system for the taka is a delayed and, perhaps, inadequate response to the bleeding of forex reserves. Some economists suggest the central bank should go beyond this formula and open the exchange rate to market forces to stop the continuous erosion of reserves. Either way, exporters and remitters will celebrate more flexibility in the exchange rate.
Economy
Hike tax on cigarettes to boost revenue collection
The tax on cigarettes in Bangladesh should be raised in the national budget for fiscal 2024-25 to boost the country’s revenue generation and minimise health risks, according to experts.
Beyond Dollar: Bangladesh to seek over 36b yuan in Chinese loans
Bangladesh is going to seek more than 36 billion yuan, equivalent to $5 billion, as soft loans from China to reduce pressure on its dollar reserves.
Tk 34,000 crore investment proposals came in Jan-Mar: Bida
302 industries will make the investments
India's small shopping centres turning into ghost malls
India's small malls are increasingly turning into ghost malls as consumers move towards online purchases and bigger shopping centres for a better experience.
Banglalink draws the curtain on 3G
Banglalink has recently phased out its 3G networks, becoming the country’s first mobile operator to bid adieu to the technology, and repurposed those resources, including spectrum, to enhance the quality and speed of its 4G services
Bangladesh uses Oracle’s full cloud services at data centres
The Bangladesh Data Center Company Limited (BDCCL), a government-owned data storage and disaster recovery services provider, has equipped its data centres with the Oracle Cloud Infrastructure (OCI) Dedicated Region
Global Economy
Sri Lanka approves power deal with Adani Group
Sri Lanka is entering into a 20-year agreement with Adani Group to buy electricity from a $442-million wind power plant being built
Toyota to get an earnings lift from hybrids as EV hype cools
While strong in hybrids, Toyota remains a laggard when it comes to EVs, behind rivals such as Tesla
IMF Projects Japan’s GDP to fall to world’s 5th after India in 2025
Japan’s nominal GDP will be overtaken by India’s and slip from number 4 in the world to number 5 next year, according to projections by IMF
Analysis / Europe's auto suppliers reach the end of the road
Facing the double shock of the end of combustion engines and rising competition from China, European suppliers like Bosch, ZF and Webasto have all announced cuts, casting a shadow on the forthcoming EU elections
Foxconn reiterates Q2 revenue to grow, posts record April sales
Taiwan's Foxconn, the world's largest contract electronics maker. reiterated on Sunday it expected a rise in second-quarter revenue, and reported record sales for the month of April
China's smartphone shipments reach 69.3 million units in Q1
China's smartphone shipments grew by 6.5 percent year on year to 69.3 million units in the first quarter of 2024, data from a recent industry report showed
Apple has big AI ambitions - at a lower cost than its rivals
While Microsoft, Facebook and everyone else is investing heavily towards AI, Apple is taking a more cautious approach
US support sought to build Smart Bangladesh
ERD secretary sits with US delegation on the sidelines of the ADB annual meeting
Organisation News
Sunshine Bricks honoured as “Green Champion”
Sunshine Bricks was recently honoured as a “Green Champion” for manufacturing construction materials with the successful implementation of energy-efficient tunnel kiln technology.
Digital technology crucial for essential service delivery
Bangladesh needs to take the crucial decision of embracing digital technology to ensure essential services like healthcare and education, said Binayak Sen, director general at the Bangladesh Institute of Development Studies (BIDS), yesterday.
Mamun Rashid joins ShopUp as president
Mamun Rashid, an economic analyst and banker, has joined ShopUp, a business-to-business commerce platform in Bangladesh, as president.
IBA winner of ‘HSBC-IBA Business Case Competition 2024’
The Hongkong and Shanghai Banking Corporation (HSBC) in Bangladesh, in partnership with the Institute of Business Administration (IBA) of the University of Dhaka, recently organised the finale and award-giving ceremony of “Business Case Competition 2024”.
ACI Motors opens new Yamaha showroom on Madani Avenue
ACI Motors, distributor of Yamaha motorcycles in Bangladesh, recently launched Yamaha’s new showroom, styled “Rubel Express”, at 100 feet on Madani Avenue in Gulshan’s Natun Bazar.
Mahbubur Rahman re-elected chairman of Eastland Insurance
Mahbubur Rahman has been re-elected chairman of Eastland Insurance Company for another three-year term.
6 firefighters get ‘Nirbhik Sanmanana 2024’ award
Six firemen have been honoured by RTV in collaboration with RR Kabel with the “Nirbhik Sanmanana 2024” award for risking their lives to save other people and their property.
Architects honoured at IAB awards
The Institute of Architects Bangladesh (IAB) recently honoured architects for their contribution to the country in different categories.
Business Multimedia
Potato price shoots up
The price of potatoes has begun an upward climb in the market
92 thousand crores or more siphoned out in 15 years?
Based on the compilation of media reports on bank scams between 2008 and 2023, CPD said as much as 92 thousand crores of taka have been siphoned out of the banking sector in the last fifteen years
Is Bangladesh going towards a deep economic crisis?
How can Bangladesh avoid the economic crisis to deepen further?
Who will benefit from WTO's duty benefit extension?
What are WTO’s duty-free benefits?
How can Bangladesh resolve economic, political problems?
Why is Bangladesh facing economic problems? Why did the country fail to follow the IMF's loan conditions? What are the remedies?
Shahjalal Islami Bank strikes MoU with ICD
Shahjalal Islami Bank recently signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the Islamic Corporation for the Development of the Private Sector (ICD), a member institution of the Islamic Development Bank (IsDB) Group.
Eastern Bank, Lavender sign deal on payroll banking
Eastern Bank recently signed an agreement with Lavender Convenience Store on payroll banking.
How National Bank lost its way
National Bank went from a financially stable bank to a bank marred in irregularities
Maiden logistics job fair opens eyes to new horizon
Mushfiqa Zarin Siddiqa, a final year BBA student at a private university in Chattogram who is majoring in human resource management, had a very limited idea about her career prospects.
How the FY2025 budget can address our economic challenges
The upcoming budget should adopt a balanced approach to address economic slowdown and inflationary pressure.
Stock market not lucrative in long run
Despite being a risky instrument, the stock market was not lucrative enough like the banking sector
Industries created more jobs amid slowdown. Economists find it puzzling
However, the findings raised questions among economists, who were puzzled by the growth at a time when the economy had been facing a slowdown due to high inflation, a downtrend in export growth, and falling imports.
Global companies upbeat about Bangladesh's denim
A European retailer asking not to be named said he has already increased the amount of clothes his company sources from Bangladesh as the country’s increasing production capacity was helping to give them more confidence.
Forex reserve target for IMF loans may be revised down to $18b
The latest proposal was made to the IMF’s visiting mission yesterday during a joint meeting with officials of the finance division and central bank at the finance ministry in Dhaka.
Pandemic's new poor unable to recover: study
Besides, these “new poor” are vulnerable to further deterioration of their financial health as they lack strong networks with employers, access to loans and social safety net programmes.
