Sukanta Halder

Potato exports climbed to a three-year high in the recently concluded fiscal year (FY) 2024-25, as traders took advantage of a slump in domestic prices to increase shipments abroad.

The government yesterday decided to import 4 lakh tonnes of rice in its efforts to curb the spike in prices of the staple and build adequate stocks in advance so that it can intervene in the market in case of volatility originating from crop losses due to natural disasters like floods in the coming months.

Prices of potatoes have begun to rise after months, adding slight pressure on consumers struggling with high inflation but also bringing relief to farmers reeling from losses.

The dominance of middlemen, a lack of information, extortion, and unpredictable transportation costs have a significant impact, resulting in the high retail prices of vegetables, according to a recent Bangladesh Trade and Tariff Commission (BTTC) report.

Insurance claim settlements in the country took a nosedive in the first quarter of 2025, exposing the fragile state of insurers marred by cash shortages, irregularities and corruption.

Non-stop rainfall since Tuesday has left large swathes of farmland under water, causing concern among vegetable growers across the country.

Deposit and investment growth in the country’s Islamic banks fell to a four-year low in the first quarter of 2025, apparently driven by rising public concerns over the financial stability and governance practices of the commercial lenders.

Rice prices have increased by Tk 3 to Tk 5 per kilogramme across all categories over the past month, despite the recent Boro harvest and continuing imports of the staple grain.

Bangladesh is already facing the brunt of climate change in its major rice-growing regions, according to Bangladesh Rice Research Institute (BRRI) Director General Mohammad Khalequzzaman, as the institute has identified several climate-induced stresses that threaten production and eventually cause food security concerns.

The Insurance Development and Regulatory Authority (Idra) has finalised a draft of the Insurance Resolution Ordinance 2025, which would grant the regulator sweeping powers to declare financially troubled insurers bankrupt.

The proposed budget for the fiscal year 2025-26 has drawn criticism from the government-appointed Labour Reform Commission, which had earlier called for formal recognition of workers and stronger financial and legal safeguards.

Poor preservation, unfair pricing and failure to meet global standards cripple rawhide trade

Bangladesh’s food processing sector, which was worth $8 billion last year, is growing at an average rate of 8 percent a year, according to a report by the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA).

Mango prices are rising following a recent slump that had resulted in losses for many traders.

The Insurance Development and Regulatory Authority (Idra) has appointed audit firms to carry out special audits of 15 life insurance companies for the 2022-2024 period to uncover possible irregularities as claim settlements continued to mount.

The interim government has planned to nearly double its public food storage capacity to 37 lakh tonnes in the next fiscal year.

The government has taken the initiative to amend the insurance law, aiming to give the regulator greater authority to dissolve and restructure the boards of insurers, limit family ownership concentration, and impose hefty fines for breaking the rules.

Bangladesh's delicious mangoes: untapped economic potential, requiring a national strategy

Sales of cattle, as reflected in the number of animals sacrificed during this Eid-ul-Azha, declined this year amid an economic slowdown and political uncertainty in the country, said dairy producers and stakeholders yesterday.

Rawhide prices during Eid-ul-Azha have once again dropped below government-set rates across the country, frustrating traders and raising concerns about the effectiveness of recent policy steps, including the temporary lifting of the export ban on raw and wet blue leather.