Sohel Parvez

Over the last several years, Ahsan, a rickshaw puller in his 50s, has been eagerly waiting for relief from the high prices of food and other essentials. Days and months have passed, but his pursuit of a better living by escaping the curse of elevated inflation has remained a distant dream. 

Bangladesh remained the global shipping industry’s first choice for scrapping vessels in 2024, even though the overall import fell to a six-year low amid dollar constraints and subdued demand due to economic woes. 

Farmers in different parts of the country are being compelled to buy fertiliser, a key ingredient for crop production, by paying more than government-fixed prices.

Anyone of over 30 years of age might recall radio advertisements aired during their childhood and adolescence on contraceptives—Raja and Maya.

December has brought some good news! Remittance hit a record high, taking the total for the 2024 calendar year to $26.87 billion. Exports surged too, pushing the final annual figure to $50 billion.

Just a year ago, this newspaper ran a story leaving a question for our readers as to whether Bangladesh would be able to put its economy back on track in 2024.

Jute millers are struggling as exports show no sign of recovery and demand in the domestic market remains lukewarm amid slack implementation of the mandatory jute packaging act.

Improving law and order has become imperative in recovering Bangladesh’s global image that took a beating for domestic politics over the past decade, said a top chamber leader.

The sooner the country returns to a democratic process, the better it is for the economy, said top industrialist Ahsan Khan Chowdhury.

Bangladesh is losing $355 million in tax annually because of outward profit shifting by the corporates, particularly multinational firms, and abuses by individuals who have wealth, especially in tax havens.

Without proper institutions, it’s not possible to prevent abuse of power, prevent corruption, and improve public life, said business leader Abdul Awal Mintoo.

Without proper institutions, it’s not possible to prevent abuse of power, prevent corruption, and improve public life, says business leader Abdul Awal Mintoo

The Awami League regime's economic strategy was not always based on equity.

Against the backdrop of rising prices, the government has geared up efforts to buy rice from the international market to replenish stocks and ensure distributions under social safety net schemes to arrest market volatility.

The Awami League government favoured the super-rich who controlled capital and laundered the funds aboard, dampening the country’s economy.

Five of the six operators of Nationwide Telecommunication Transmission Network (NTTN) have not gone public despite being mandated to float shares on the stock market several years ago.

The government’s net borrowing from the banking system rose in the first two and half months of the current fiscal year in the face of falling tax collection and surging foreign debt servicing costs, raising concerns of a crowding out effect on private credit.

Until early September this year, Mahfuza Begum’s Surzu Handicrafts was making eco-friendly, lightweight and reusable net shopping bags out of jute and cotton for a handful of buyers.

Availability of raw materials now a challenge

Experts say raising policy rate would have little impact on lowering food prices