Tax hike to weigh on compliant businesses: FICCI

The Foreign Investors' Chamber of Commerce and Industry (FICCI) yesterday termed reform measures in the proposed national budget "positive" but warned that implementation of certain tax measures may lead to unintended burdens on industries and individuals.
4 June 2025, 20:00 PM

Power division gets 30% lower budget allocation

The allocation for the power division in the national budget for fiscal year 2025-26 is around 30 percent less than that of the previous fiscal year, while it has been nearly doubled for the energy and mineral resources division. .The government has decided to cut electricity production c
4 June 2025, 16:01 PM

Agri budget not enough to ensure food security: experts

The government has proposed a 3.55 percent rise in the budget allocation for agriculture, food, livestock and fisheries in the next fiscal year, setting aside Tk 39,620 crore..But agro-economists say the increase is far from sufficient to ensure the country’s long-term food security..<p
4 June 2025, 14:30 PM

DCCI criticises exclusive port rent exemption for RMG

Other sectors will lose competitiveness if only one sector gets the benefit, the chamber says
4 June 2025, 14:15 PM

80% industrial units have so far paid Eid bonus

While 96% of industrial units have paid April salary
4 June 2025, 12:01 PM

Chambers warn budget may hurt business, investment

Just a day after the interim government proposed the national budget and tax measures for fiscal year 2025-26, leading business chambers expressed significant concern that several measures could potentially impede business growth and affect investment.
3 June 2025, 18:15 PM

Corruption pervasive across the country

Corruption remains a pervasive challenge across the country, undermining the effective implementation of the national budget, Anisuzzaman Chowdhury, special assistant to the chief adviser, said at a post-budget discussion yesterday.
3 June 2025, 18:06 PM

Budget targets chocolate, lipstick

If you're planning to import cheap lipstick into Bangladesh anytime soon, think again. The country's interim government, in its latest budget, has quietly declared war on undervalued imports with a series of oddly specific tweaks to customs rules. Among the victims: chocolate bars, lipsticks, eye shadow, and -- wait for it -- inflatable toys.
3 June 2025, 18:01 PM

Trade deficit narrows 2.6% in July-April

The country’s trade deficit narrowed by 2.60 percent in the first ten months of the current fiscal year compared to the same period a year ago, thanks to a rise in export earnings coupled with subdued imports..During the July-April period of fiscal year (FY) 2024-25, the trade gap was $18.
3 June 2025, 16:20 PM

Reducing penalty on false declarations will encourage smuggling: experts

In the Finance Ordinance 2025–26, presented on Monday, the government proposed amending the Customs Act 2023 and revising the penalty structure for tax evasion related to intentional false declarations during import clearance, reducing the minimum fine from twice the evaded amount to an equivale
3 June 2025, 15:55 PM

Truely secures $2m to accelerate global expansion

The fresh funding will help the company accelerate its expansion in the eSIM market
3 June 2025, 13:25 PM

Commerce ministry forms FBCCI election boards

Md Abdur Razzak, additional secretary (IIT) at the commerce ministry, is the chairman of the election board
3 June 2025, 11:21 AM

Civil aviation ministry to get Tk 2,455cr

Additionally, a reduction in customs duty rates from 10 to 3 percent was proposed on all types of jet fuel and aviation spirits which is expected to reduce airfares and stimulate passenger growth, particularly for domestic carriers
2 June 2025, 15:12 PM

Budget should focus on reducing inequality

Economist Dr Mustafa K Mujeri has urged the government to place its main emphasis on reducing of societal inequality in the forthcoming national budget for the fiscal year 2025-26..He made the call during a pre-budget discussion titled “National Budget for FY2025-2026: A Pre-Budget Discuss
2 June 2025, 09:13 AM

60 resorts shut in Bandarban’s Lama due to bad weather

The decision was made at a meeting of the Lama Upazila Natural Disaster Preparedness Committee yesterday
1 June 2025, 19:42 PM

Budget for FY26: OTT platforms may get costlier

The interim government is likely to impose a 10 percent supplementary duty on over-the-top (OTT) platform services in the upcoming budget for the fiscal year 2025-26 — a move that is expected to raise consumer costs and increase spending on paid streaming services.
1 June 2025, 18:07 PM

Chinese investors eye strategic sectors for long-term investment

Chinese investors have shown interest in strategic sectors in Bangladesh — including textiles, renewable energy, electronics, and agribusiness — signalling a new phase of bilateral investment cooperation, according to the Bangladesh Investment Development Authority (Bida)..The interest was
1 June 2025, 16:35 PM

Economic partnership deal with S Korea likely by this year

Bangladesh and South Korea are expected to sign an economic partnership agreement (EPA) at the end of this year, said Commerce Secretary Mahbubur Rahman yesterday..The first round of talks will start at the end of July in Dhaka and around six to seven rounds of negotiations will take place
1 June 2025, 16:00 PM

Investor confidence dips amid absence of meaningful talks

Investors have been grappling with uncertainty over the absence of meaningful discussion between political players and the interim government about the country’s future fiscal direction, said Debapriya Bhattacharya, a distinguished fellow at the Centre for Policy Dialogue (CPD).
31 May 2025, 18:05 PM

BGMEA holds election

The biennial election of the Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA) was held yesterday to elect office bearers for the 2025-27 tenure.
31 May 2025, 18:00 PM