Bangladesh Bank yesterday asked banks to continue providing banking services to clients in the flood affected areas of the country through their offices in adjacent places that remain unaffected.

The government should form a separate authority to ensure accountability of the public servants to curb corruption and to ensure proper use public money, Dhaka Chamber of Commerce and Industry (DCCI) President Rizwan Rahman said today.

The turnover and the prime index of the Dhaka Stock Exchange (DSE) dropped again today after rising for consecutive two days.

Inflation in Bangladesh rose to 7.42 per cent in May, the highest since 2014’s May.

The Bangladesh Bank today asked banks to provide banking services to the flood-hit people through branches adjacent to the areas that are still unaffected.

There is no budgetary measure to protect the limited disposable income of the middle-class which is being depleted due to high food inflation, said Debapriya Bhattacharya, distinguished fellow of the Centre for Policy Dialogue.

Although pineapple yields in Madhupur upazila of Tangail have been good this year, growers have been left frustrated by a 40 to 50 per cent drop in prices for the highly popular fruit, according to local farmers and agriculture officials.

The 2.5 percentage points corporate tax rate cut will encourage firms in Bangladesh to move away from cash transactions, said Naser Ezaz Bijoy, president of the Foreign Investors’ Chamber of Commerce & Industry (FICCI).

The Bangladesh Financial Intelligence Unit (BFIU) has confiscated Tk 1,294 crore from money launderers since the fiscal year of 2016-17 as per court orders, said the agency yesterday.

Realtors yesterday demanded the continuation of unquestioned amnesty for using black money to buy property even though holders of undisclosed income showed little interest to legalise their assets through such investments in the outgoing fiscal year.

The National Board of Revenue (NBR) has broadened and relaxed the rules for bringing new taxpayers under the tax net by assessing their incomes on the spot.

Following the deadly fire at a private inland container depot earlier this month, the Chattogram Port Authority (CPA) has taken steps to tighten fire safety measures, modernise storage of dangerous cargoes and speed up delivery.

“The two panels of Oikko and Changemakers have not accepted the results,” Abdul Aziz, leader of Oikko, and Waseem Alim, leader of The Change Makers, made the comment in a joint statement.

Bangladesh Bank has imposed a fine of Tk 31 lakh on the Industrial and Infrastructure Development Finance Company (IIDFC) for violating the central bank’s rules for non-bank financial institutions (NBFIs) over renting and decorating branches.

Top business leaders yesterday urged the government to postpone its decision to close stores, shopping malls, markets and kitchen markets after 8:00pm until Eid-ul-Azha since an early closure will deal a blow to their sales.

Burimari Land Port in Lalmonirhat lacks banking facility, causing suffering to people especially those who are travelling to neighbouring countries.

Members of the e-Commerce Association of Bangladesh (e-CAB) yesterday elected an executive committee comprising nine members for a two-year term. 

The labour ministry is going to sit with top business chambers tomorrow to discuss ways for implementing the directive of the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) regarding the closure of shops and kitchen markets from 8 pm to save energy and curb import bills for fuel.

The Bangladesh Chamber of Industries (BCI) today urged the government to review its decision to close stores at 8pm as businesses will incur losses if the shops are closed so early ahead of the Eid-ul-Azha.

Realtors today said the cost of various raw materials, including rod and lift, will increase in the next fiscal year because of the increase in value added tax and customs tariff.