Business Plus / EU’s GSP+: The lifeline Bangladesh must win before 2029
In four years, that duty-free facility will cease to exist
5 December 2025, 18:00 PM
RMG exporters eye strong rebound next year
Christmas shipment, however, faces a slowdown
30 November 2025, 18:00 PM
Govt sees early signs of economic recovery
Report to UN claims stabilisation and improving indicators, but economists highlight inflation, unemployment, weak investment and mounting debt concerns
24 November 2025, 19:37 PM
Bangladesh on track for LDC graduation
Bangladesh is projected to lose around $8 billion in exports after graduation
23 November 2025, 18:41 PM
EPA with Japan expected next month
Bangladesh expects to sign the Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA) with Japan by the end of next month, as negotiations between the two countries have already been completed, Commerce Secretary Mahbubur Rahman told The Daily Star yesterday.
22 November 2025, 19:04 PM
Amended labour law: Unions applaud, factory owners push back
The union leaders welcomed the amended labour law, but factory owners rejected some of the clauses as their demands went unaddressed.
18 November 2025, 18:18 PM
Leadership vacuum at FBCCI weakens its policy role
The country’s apex trade body, the Federation of Bangladesh Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FBCCI), is struggling to assist the government in policy-making and serve the business community due to a leadership crisis caused by the absence of elections, according to business leaders.
18 November 2025, 18:00 PM
Garment exports to US rise 5% in July-October
Garment exports to the USA, the country’s largest single export destination, increased by 5.14 percent to $2.59 billion during July-October, despite facing a 20 percent reciprocal tariff imposed by the US under President Donald Trump’s administration..The USA accounted for 19.92 percent of
16 November 2025, 16:10 PM
Second wave starts taking a toll on garment export
Just as Bangladesh’s main foreign currency-earning apparel sector had begun recouping from shocks to its exports, a second wave of the coronavirus pandemic has started inflicting damages again.
21 November 2020, 18:00 PM
Covid-19 fallout: How the humble home textile is beating the odds
That the novel coronavirus has brought down many businesses is nothing new. Tourism firms and hotels are some of the first victims to come to mind, considering all the non-stop ruckus with isolation.
18 November 2020, 18:00 PM
Apparel makers demand easing conditions for using duty-free fabrics
Local apparel manufacturers have urged the bond authorities to increase the amount of waste permitted while producing garments from items imported duty free under bonded warehouse benefit.
17 November 2020, 18:00 PM
Apex goes global
Apex Footwear has launched its first international outlet, finding its niche in Kathmandu, the capital of the Himalayan Kingdom ofNepal.
17 November 2020, 18:00 PM
Talks essential for viable solution: Japanese envoy says about Rohingya crisis
Japan is directly communicating with Myanmar, emphasising the importance of Rohingya repatriation and accountability as it considers a long-term solution to the crisis and regional stability essential conditions for a free and open Indo-Pacific.
16 November 2020, 18:00 PM
Improve business climate, go for intense negotiation for more Japanese investment: envoy
Japanese Ambassador to Bangladesh ITO Naoki believes Bangladesh should begin intense negotiations with his country so that the duo could sign a comprehensive economic partnership agreement.
16 November 2020, 18:00 PM
Industries vexed at no-gas plan outside economic zones
A decision by the energy ministry to stop providing new gas connections to the industries outside economic zones and industrial parks from April next year has drawn the ire of industrialists.
15 November 2020, 18:00 PM
Dhaka seeks duty-waiver for 12 more years past LDC graduation
Bangladesh has demanded before the United Nations export duty waivers on its products for 10 to 12 years past its graduation from a least developed country (LDC) to a developing one in 2024, said a top commerce ministry official yesterday.
14 November 2020, 18:00 PM
Bangladesh overlooks RCEP despite risk of competition
Bangladesh has not shown any interest in joining the world’s largest trade deal, Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) primarily to safeguard its revenue generation from duties on imports.
14 November 2020, 18:00 PM
Double whammy for apparel exporters for second wave, price cut
The garment sector fared well in the first quarter of the current fiscal year thanks to the reopening of western retail outlets after a pause for a few months since the Covid-19 outbreak.
12 November 2020, 18:00 PM
Pandemic sends Apex Tannery into losses
Apex Tannery Limited (ATL) sank to losses in the first quarter of the fiscal year due to a drop in sales of leather goods amid the Covid-19.
11 November 2020, 18:00 PM
Revamp efforts to secure market access, seek more American investment
Any major trade benefit on the export of goods bound for the US from Bangladesh with the changeover in power is unlikely as Washington rarely alters tariff structures on the import of apparel items.
10 November 2020, 18:00 PM
BGMEA polls by April next year
The biennial election of the Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA) will be held by April next year, according to a panel leader.
2 November 2020, 18:00 PM
Exports drop on faltering recovery of apparel
Bangladesh’s merchandise exports declined 4.08 per cent year-on-year to $2.94 billion in October because of the faltering recovery of garment shipment from the coronavirus pandemic, official data showed yesterday.
2 November 2020, 18:00 PM
Green apparel factories bring no cheer to owners
Although Bangladesh is the global leader in terms of green garment factories, international retailers and brands do not want to pay any premium or extra cost to purchase products manufactured in these units.
29 October 2020, 18:00 PM
Construction of dumping yards faces delays
Intense pollution is threatening the environment surrounding Savar Tannery Industrial Estate (STIE) as the construction of two dumping yards meant for solid waste are expected to be delayed by a couple of months.
18 October 2020, 18:00 PM
Apparel exports to promising Asian markets take a tumble
The fallouts from the coronavirus pandemic caused a dip in apparel shipments from Bangladesh to three promising Asian markets -- India, Japan and China -- in the last fiscal year, official figures showed.
17 October 2020, 18:00 PM
Retrenched workers yet to get govt allowance in absence of beneficiary list
The disbursement of allowances for retrenched workers in the export-oriented garment, leather and footwear sectors will begin once the associations concerned provide the list of employees, according to a senior official of the finance ministry.
14 October 2020, 18:00 PM
Leather turning into a big draw for foreign investors
The leather sector in Bangladesh is turning into a hotspot for foreign investment due to the country’s low manufacturing costs, availability of cheap raw materials and its eligibility for trade benefits on exports, said industry insiders.
12 October 2020, 18:00 PM
Bangladesh should sign comprehensive trade deals with key partners
Bangladesh needs to sign comprehensive trade agreements with its major partners in order to retain preferential access to key international markets after graduating from the least developed country (LDC) status, according to experts.
11 October 2020, 18:00 PM