Jagaran Chakma

The demand for air conditioners has increased 25 per cent year-on-year

The Consumers Association of Bangladesh (CAB) chief has voiced its opposition to the apex trade body’s demand to reintroduce the facility of unconditional amnesty to the investments of black money in the real estate sector.

The sales of electronic home appliances usually pick up ahead of Eid-ul-Fitr as retailers introduce new models and offer discounts and consumers are awash with cash.  

Sales of motorcycles, particularly high-end ones, ahead of Eid-ul-Fitr were impressive over the last one decade but this year is quite different as demand is low due to an increase in inflationary pressure, economic crisis and an increase in prices of the two-wheelers.

Sales of passenger cars declined significantly in the first quarter of 2023 owing to higher prices and macroeconomic volatility, industry people said

Advance bookings for flights and lodging for the upcoming Eid holiday are going slower compared to last year due to the ongoing inflationary pressure resulting from an economic crisis, according to industry insiders.

In 2008, the Japanese government announced the “China Plus One” policy, focusing on relocating its sunset industries from China to other countries.

Sales of ceramics items have dropped by up to 20 per cent in Bangladesh as consumers cut back on their non-essential expenditures and the real estate sector faces a slowdown amid economic uncertainty and higher inflationary pressures, industry people said.

Inland water cargo vessel operations in Bangladesh declined 30 per cent over the past eight months as imports have fallen significantly amid global economic uncertainties stemming from the ongoing Russia-Ukraine war, according to industry insiders.

Motorcycle sales declined by 30 per cent in Bangladesh in the past two months due to higher inflationary pressures and a draft policy that makes securing a driving licence mandatory before buying two-wheelers.

Pharmaceutical companies are gradually enhancing their capacity to produce the raw materials needed to make medicines, which will go on to reduce Bangladesh’s over-reliance on imports and augment the country’s competitive edge in the global market. 

Bangladesh has the potential to become a hub for manufacturing electric vehicles (EV) as industries for the production of components such as batteries and tyres have already been established while the growing population assures market viability

Electric vehicles (EVs), including plug-in hybrids, will one day dominate the automobile market in Bangladesh as the demand for cars run on alternative fuel is slowly gaining ground, according to importers and distributors.

Bangladesh’s construction sector is facing challenges due to frequent hikes in the price of mild steel (MS) rod and other major construction materials while slow development activities have put many workers out of job, according to industry people.

Sales of prime movers, which are the front part of semi-trailer type trucks, fell over 62 per cent year-on-year in 2022 in Bangladesh amid a fall in imports and surge in their prices alongside that of fuel.

The consumer electronics sector in Bangladesh is witnessing a slide in demand as sales have declined by 40 per cent from a year ago amid belt-tightening by customers

Pharmaceutical shipments from Bangladesh are slowly making a turnaround with a gradual improvement in the global US dollar crisis, according to drug exporters.

Growth in leather footwear exports from Bangladesh was unsatisfactory in the first seven months of the current financial year as the economic fallout of the Russia-Ukraine war has been weighing down shipments since September, according to industry people. 

The government is planning to procure 100 electric air-conditioned double-decker buses for Bangladesh Road Transport Corporation (BRTC) under an Indian line of credit. 

The sales of commercial vehicles, particularly heavy-duty trucks, fell nearly 22 per cent year-on-year in 2022 in Bangladesh due to their higher price, a surge in fuel costs and lower imports.