Sukanta Halder

Many companies in Bangladesh now offer group health insurance benefits to their employees in a bid to attract young talents, survive in the competition and comply with regulations, according to industry people. 

Prices of groceries which witness peak demand during Ramadan, the holy month of fasting for Muslims, have swelled significantly year-on-year owing to hikes in import and transportation costs alongside the value of dollar.

The export growth of agricultural products, including vegetables, fruits and dry food, decreased 26.96 per cent in the first eight months of the current financial year, the sharpest decline in seven years, official figures showed.  

The Bangladesh Business Summit could help attract a good amount of investment from abroad as the capabilities of local businesses are being highlighted at the three-day event, according to Md Jashim Uddin, president of the Federation of Bangladesh Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FBCCI).

Sales of gold ornaments have remained low in Bangladesh despite the reduction of the prices of the precious metal twice in February after hitting an all-time high the month before, according to jewellery traders.

Consumers in Bangladesh are still paying higher prices for sugar although a week has passed since the National Board of Revenue (NBR) removed the import duty on both raw and refined sweetener.

The life and non-life insurance sectors have been in a tight spot for the past three years due to the economic shocks resulting from Covid-19 and the ongoing war between Russia and Ukraine.

The insurance industry in Bangladesh has immense potential for growth, thanks to the country’s rapid economic development, increasing per capita income, average life expectancy, and large number of young people.

Bangladesh's fruit imports fell 37.79 per cent year-on-year to $157.38 million in the July-January period

Though the government last December had fixed the rate of loose palm oil at Tk 117 per litre, retailers said they were charging Tk 125 to Tk 127

The USA has 5 lakh Bangladeshi migrant workers and Saudi Arabia 20 lakh

A three-day jewellery fair that opened in Dhaka yesterday witnessed, as per the organisers, a good turnout of visitors, a number of whom cited that they were looking for new designs, discounts and potential wedding gifts. 

Bangladesh has to rely on imports to meet about 15 per cent of the demand of the spice market, which highlighted the foreign currencies the country has to spend to bring in the items as well as the potential for local production.  

Scrap vessel imports by Bangladesh hit a four-year low in 2022 as banks in the country have become reluctant to open letters of credit amid the ongoing US dollar shortage, according to industry people.

The 27th edition of the Dhaka International Trade Fair (DITF), which ends today at its new venue in Dhaka’s Purbachal, may have seen a higher turnout but overall sales were lower compared to when the monthlong event was held in Agargaon, according to participants.

Tea production in Bangladesh has decreased by nearly 3 per cent year-on-year in 2022.

Tea production in Bangladesh decreased by nearly 3 per cent year-on-year in 2022.

Sugar prices edged up in the wholesale market of Bangladesh within days after refiners declared that they would sell the sweetener at higher prices from the first day of February.    

The price of the most-consumed items during Ramadan such as chickpeas, dried peas and dates has increased in the wholesale markets in Dhaka and Chattogram due to a supply shortage, two months before the fasting month begins.

Publishers are gearing up for the upcoming Ekushey book fair despite multipronged challenges as a sense of festivity surrounding the monthlong book fair has returned for the first time in three years.