Abdur Razzaque

From a legal standpoint, the US Supreme Court’s ruling leaves limited room for ambiguity.

For Bangladesh, the immediate implication is that the bilateral agreement just signed now sits on shifting ground

Amid Bangladesh’s fragmented preparation for LDC graduation, and at a time when unpredictable global geopolitical dynamics are reshaping competitiveness, some quietly consequential and rather rare good news has emerged from the United Kingdom.

Dubbed the “mother of all trade deals,” the EU–India free trade agreement, concluded after more than two decades of negotiation, appears to be the most consequential for Bangladesh among recent trade deals involving other countries. The agreement delivers market access gains for India in those sectors that have long underpinned Bangladesh’s export success in Europe, notably textiles, apparel, leather, and footwear.

A relative gain can turn into a loss when the American market begins to shrink.

Macroeconomic management will remain a formidable challenge for Bangladesh in the coming year.

In the wake of Covid-19 spreading in Europe and the US, global trade descended into a free-fall.

Preparing the budget for FY 2020-21 amid the Covid-19 pandemic has certainly been an extremely difficult task. Even then, there was room for being more realistic in providing headline budget targets and being more proactive in dealing with the profound health and livelihood challenges faced by numerous households in the country.