Proper utilisation of the proposed fund of Tk 100 crore in the budget for fiscal 2019-2020 is necessary for creation of new entrepreneurs for sustainability of the economy, Bangladesh Chamber of Industries (BCI) President Anwar-Ul-Alam Chowdhury (Parvez) says.

Finance Minister AHM Mustafa Kamal reveals the names of the top 300 loan defaulters in the parliament.

The paper importers of the country urge the government to fix five percent import duty in the budget from the existing 25 percent to help the local industry flourish.

Sushashoner Jonno Nagorik (Shujan), a civil society platform for good governance, has underscored the urgent need to reform the budgetary system for achieving the country’s desired goal.

The Bank of England cut its growth forecast for Britain’s economy to zero in the second quarter of 2019 and highlighted risks from global trade tensions and growing fears of a no-deal Brexit.

Senior Awami League leader Matia Chowdhury lambastes Finance Minister AHM Mustafa Kamal for increasing tax on family savings certificate from five per cent to 10 per cent in the proposed budget for 2019-20 fiscal.

The duty proposed on smartphones will push up illegal imports and cause big revenue losses for the government, industry stakeholders say.

The telecom regulator directs all the mobile phone operators in the country to reduce the charges of each local SMS to Tk 0.25 that are written in Bengali alphabet, aiming to promote the mother language.

Imposing 15 per cent tax on retained earnings of the multinational companies and their stock dividends will affect the inflow of Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) as the companies will feel discouraged to reinvest from their earnings, says the official of a leading trade body.

Cash incentives on remittance offered in the next budget will help boost foreign currency inflow, but the decline in allocation for the expatriate welfare ministry means low priority for the migrant workers’ rights, analysts said.

A group of non-government organisations have called upon the government to reconsider the budgetary allocation for people with disabilities.

Prices of some items such as sugar and edible oil may go up due to a spike in customs tariff and imposition of VAT for the fiscal 2019-20, Mosharraf Hossain Bhuiyan, chairman of the National Board of Revenue, said yesterday.

Apparel manufacturers and exporters demand three per cent cash incentive on export receipts in the budget for fiscal 2019-20.

Nagarik Oikya Convener Mahmudur Rahman Manna says the proposed budget for fiscal year 2019-20 is not pro poor people rather it will make the rich even richer.

Although no sweeping changes were expected, the general anticipation was that the FY2019-20 budget would have some measures to help the small farmers, especially after the severe loss of the boro farmers this year, creating a depressed rural economy. Over the years

An ambitious budget has been proposed. All the eye-catching elements can be found in it.

The Association of Mobile Telecom Operators of Bangladesh (AMTOB) yesterday criticised the proposal to raise the supplementary duty on mobile phone use by 5 percentage points from fiscal 2019-20, terming it a “suicidal decision”.

The Federation of Bangladesh Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FBCCI) yesterday urged the government to explore all sources other than banks to finance the budget deficit in the next fiscal year.

Sugar prices have gone up by Tk 120 per mound in the Khatunganj-Chaktai market, the hub for wholesale of commodities in Chattogram, soon after the proposed budget for 2019-20 was placed on Thursday.

The new VAT law may increase cost of many goods and services and hurt consumers, analysts said yesterday.