The European Union on Monday defended its trade deal with President Donald Trump, with EU capitals and businesses sharply divided on an outcome some branded a “capitulation”.

With nudges from the International Monetary Fund and backing from the World Bank and Asian Development Bank, Bangladesh has embarked on a long-overdue three-year reform plan for its ailing banking sector.

The Bangladesh Satellite Company Limited (BSCL), the state-run satellite operator, has struck a deal to resell the satellite internet services of Starlink, the satellite internet arm of Elon Musk’s SpaceX.

This will likely have a detrimental effect on the country's exports, alongside prices of imported products

S&P Global has kept its long-term credit ratings on Bangladesh’s economy unchanged at B+ as the country works to rebuild external liquidity amid ongoing political uncertainty.

Customers can now recharge their registered mobile numbers with a single tap on the bKash app, without requiring a PIN or biometric verification, for amounts of up to Tk 1,000.

Bangladesh has entered a new chapter under a fresh political horizon, opening new opportunities for development. With a focus on governance reforms, economic liberalisation, and citizen-centric policies, the country aims to achieve stability and sustainable growth.

Bangladesh can boost crop yields by at least 25 percent through the adoption of modern technology in a cultivation method known as “precision agriculture”, according to a Dutch environmental and soil scientist.

The number of mobile subscribers in Bangladesh grew by 10 lakh in May, driven primarily by net additions from the country’s two largest operators, Grameenphone and Robi Axiata.

Local handset production dropped by over 30 percent in June compared to the previous month, with feature phones taking the biggest hit, according to official figures.

Bangladesh will auction around Tk 100 crore worth of abandoned imports on August 8, in the first such sale held under a special order aimed at easing the severe congestion at the country’s ports.

Average daily interbank spot transactions rose to $68.7 million in June, registering a ninefold increase from $7.5 million in March and April this year, following increased market-driven exchange rate movements and improved liquidity.

Over the past eight years until fiscal year 2023-24, the country’s economy grew by more than 50 percent, painting a rosy picture of performance by major sectors, while the expansion did not translate into job creation.

The stock market has bounced back strongly within two months of falling to its lowest in the past five years, thanks to some macroeconomic-level recoveries, including a drop in inflation and the strengthening of the local currency against the greenback.

Bangladesh should maintain its policy rate at 10 percent until the middle of fiscal year 2025-26, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) has said, citing the inflationary pressures of a weaker currency and the heightened sensitivity of inflation expectations to exchange rate depreciation.

Banks have several layers of professionals to regularly assess their financial health and raise early warnings at the first sign of trouble.

Cottage, Micro, Small & Medium Enterprises (CMSMEs), although being key contributors to Bangladesh’s national GDP growth, remain stifled by limited access to finance, markets, and digital tools.

Fraudulent trade transactions are one of the key reasons behind the rise in non-performing loans (NPLs) in Bangladesh’s banking sector, creating a dangerous feedback loop that undermines financial stability and enables trade-based money laundering (TBML), according to a study by the Bangladesh Institute of Bank Management (BIBM).

Bangladesh’s agricultural product exports increased slightly last fiscal year, although shipments to India fell, apparently due to its recent ban on the entry of goods, including processed foods, garments, fruits, and soft drinks, through all land ports except Bhomra.

During a coffee chat with one of my MIT fellows—an expert in global chip markets—he raised an eyebrow when I mentioned our country’s ambition to invest in chip fabs. “Can you really afford it?” he asked.