Jagaran Chakma

The textile and garment sector, which earns the lion’s share of export proceeds, has been left neglected in the proposed budget, according to Shams Mahmud, a former president of the Dhaka Chamber of Commerce and Industry.

The extension of existing benefits for local consumer electronics industries through the proposed national budget is very encouraging, said Golam Murshed, managing director and chief executive officer of Walton Hi-Tech Industries, yesterday. 

The exports of leather footwear from Bangladesh declined 4.28 per cent year-on-year in July-May of the ongoing financial year owing to lower orders from Europe, the main market, official figures showed. 

Bangladesh has made the first payment for a mostly foreign loan-funded project in the taka, ushering in another mode of better preserving foreign currency reserves.

The price of steel products is unlikely to decline in the coming days from its current record level as the budget for the upcoming fiscal year has not offered any benefit to the sector, said a top executive.

The increase of duty on the import of cement clinker by Tk 200 per tonne will have an adverse impact on the cost of production and put a burden on consumers, said Mohammad Iqbal Chowdhury, chief executive officer of LafargeHolcim Bangladesh Limited.

State-owned enterprises (SOEs) in Bangladesh will likely incur collective losses of Tk 14,703 crore in the coming fiscal year, according to the finance ministry.

Manufacturers of cancer medicines will be able to sell the lifesaving drugs at reasonable prices after the National Board of Revenue (NBR) extended duty-free import benefits to 100 more raw materials used to make such products.

The proposed budget for 2023-24 is unrealistic and unattainable as the challenges that caused the economic growth to decelerate, foreign exchange reserves to dip and inflation to surge in the past one year still persist, said economists and think-tanks.  

PHP Float Glass Industries, a concern of PHP Family, started manufacturing decorative glass at its existing facility in Mirsharai, Chattogram earlier this month. 

Steel makers in Bangladesh are seeking reduced import duty, value added tax (VAT) and other tariffs in the upcoming national budget to provide products at lower prices, meaning that construction costs would likely decrease.

Dhaka is set to welcome four new five-star rated hotels over the next three years as the growing influx of travellers has heightened the demand for luxury accommodation in Bangladesh.

Delta Agro Food Industries, a joint venture of Seacom Group and Samuda Group, has set up a factory in Narayanganj at an investment of more than Tk 1,200 crore one and a half years ago. 

Locally manufactured air conditioners (ACs) are starting to dominate the domestic market as consumers are pleased to be getting good quality cooling systems at reasonable prices.

Around 62 per cent of Japanese companies in Bangladesh expect to turn a profit in 2023 even though the country’s macroeconomic situation is currently unstable, according to a survey of the Japan External Trade Organisation (Jetro).

Bangladesh has cut its reliance on the global markets for lifesaving vaccines as a number of local manufacturers are producing quality jabs, saving a significant volume of foreign currencies, industry people say.  

With sugar currently retailing for as much as Tk 140 per kilogramme (kg), production at mills of the Bangladesh Sugar and Food Industries Corporation (BSFIC) has hit a 23-year low due to reduced supply of sugarcane.

Workplace safety in the RMG sector improved to a great extent. However, the safety and compliance in the non-RMG sectors are yet to improve as per the standards of the garment sector.

It was 11.45 pm on Tuesday. Shopping malls and markets usually remain shut at this hour of the day. But, the bustling shopping district for clothing and lifestyle items in the Mirpur-1 area was abuzz with shoppers.

Demand for air conditioners (ACs) has increased significantly as people rushed to retailers for respite from the ongoing heatwave sweeping across the country.