Sukanta Halder

Edible oil refiners have cut soybean oil prices up to Tk 6 a litre though the consumers rights organisation said the rates should have been reduced by at least Tk 30 amid falling prices of the item in the global market.

With just around two weeks left for Eid-ul-Azha, price of unrefined salt has shot up, at least in the wholesale hub of Narayanganj’s Nitaiganj, in what appears to be an attempt at cashing in on the upcoming seasonal rise in demand for preserving hides of sacrificial animals.

Padma Bridge will not only increase connectivity in Bangladesh, but also revolutionise the industrial landscape in southern parts of the country by creating new business avenue of opportunities, according to various entrepreneurs.

Refrigerator manufacturers and retailers in Bangladesh have come up with numerous offers to lure in customers ahead of Eid-ul-Azha, the biggest sales season for home appliances in the country.

The SMEF Suppliers Platform for Women Entrepreneurs has been created in collaboration with the World Bank and SME Foundation to support the sale of products produced by women entrepreneurs to corporate houses in Bangladesh.

The National Board of Revenue (NBR) has extended for another year a value added tax (VAT) reduction for local liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) cylinder manufacturers, who believe it would help keep fuel prices low against rising demand.

The leading chambers and trade body leaders have praised the government for fixing the priority areas of development, but they also said controlling inflation will be biggest headache for the Sheikh Hasina administration in the next fiscal year.

The government yesterday increased the price of soybean oil by Tk 5 to Tk 7 per litre, dashing the hopes of the edible oil market in Bangladesh cooling off anytime soon.

The prices of specialised wheelchair for the physically challenged may fall in the next fiscal year as the finance minister today proposed abolishing all kinds of taxes at the import stage of the item.

Coffee prices may rise as the finance minister today proposed imposing 20 per cent supplementary duty on processed and ready-to-consume coffee.

Finance Minister AHM Mustafa Kamal has proposed reducing the import duty on wheat gluten and sugarcane molasses to ensure supply of protein and dietary sugars at a lower price, thereby reducing production costs of the livestock industry.

The government has cut the fine by half in the case of failure of filing value-added tax (VAT) and turnover tax returns by the due date.

The cost of living has gone up but the incomes of most consumers have not. It is not just the prices of edible oil and rice that are hurting, it’s almost everything they need in the kitchen every day.

Exporters in Bangladesh raked in more than $1 billion in the shipment of leather, leather goods and footwear in the first 11 months of the current fiscal year despite a slowdown in May owing to supply chain disruptions and the fallout of the Russia-Ukraine war, official figures showed.

Even though prices of loose palm and soybean oil have dropped in wholesale markets, consumers are not being able to reap the benefits as retailers are still selling those at the government-fixed prices.

Powdered milk prices have increased by Tk 50 to Tk 80 per kilogramme (kg) as rising transportation charges and the growing value of US dollars pushed up costs in the international market.

On April 5, the revenue authorities held a draw of the lottery of sales receipts issued by the stores using electronic fiscal devices (EFDs).

The National Board of Revenue should accelerate the use of electronic fiscal devices (EFDs) and ramp up monitoring to eliminate non-compliance with a view to raising more value-added taxes using technologies, said former top taxmen and economists.

Consumers in Bangladesh are already facing a difficult time meeting their demand due to the increase in the prices of essential commodities. And now they are forced to spend more money to buy eggs, the low-cost sources of protein.

Air conditioner (AC) sales are growing steadily in Bangladesh thanks to increased demand from the country’s upper middle-class, modern offices and factories as consumers seek to escape hotter summers.