Current News

Bangladesh has become self-sufficient in billet manufacturing on the back of huge investment made by large steel mills, which bumped up their production capacity for the key raw material of steel products. Five years ago, steel mills had to import half the total requirement for billet to make steel to …

Garment exports to the US increased 10.10 percent year-on-year to $1.08 billion in the first two months of the year, with the shipments expected to grow exponentially if 25 percent duty on Chinese imports comes into effect. If that materialises, many international retailers will look to Bangladesh as an alternative …

Net foreign investment at Dhaka Stock Exchange fell in the last two months owing to a government move which puts a number of restrictions on Grameenphone alongside a fear of further depreciation of the local currency. Investment from foreign investors hit Tk 154 crore in the negative zone in April …

Bangladesh Express Co, licensee of Federal Express Corporation and a concern of MGH Group, opened a new FedEx World Service Center in the capital’s Banani yesterday, the 17th in the country.

BMW’s first-quarter operating profit fell 78 percent to 589 million euros, despite higher deliveries of luxury vehicles, as the carmaker felt the effects of higher investment spending and a 1.4 billion euro ($1.6 bln) legal provision. The European Commission last month told German carmakers they face hefty fines for alleged …

The US central bank warned Monday of persistent risks to the financial system posed by elevated stock prices and historically high corporate debt loads as well as the impact of President Donald Trump’s trade wars. But major banks and insurance companies appear healthy and there is a low risk they …

Norway’s Telenor and Malaysia’s Axiata, the parent companies of Bangladesh’s top two mobile operators, yesterday announced that they were in talks to combine their Asian operations. If the merger becomes successful, they will create a company with 300 million customers in nine countries, sales of about $13 billion and earnings …

Bangladesh needs to work with some alternative organisations of World Trade Organization (WTO) to continue enjoying trade privileges once its status graduates to a developing country from a least developed one, said a top WTO official yesterday. Bangladesh’s status is scheduled to finally graduate in 2027 when it would lose …

The entry of Japan Tobacco International (JTI) into Bangladesh through its $1.47 billion acquisition of Akij Group’s tobacco business would attract more international investors to the country, said a top official of JTI. “The acquisition should give a strong signal to international investors that Bangladesh is a place to do business …

The National Board of Revenue has granted VAT exemption to the imports of raw materials of active pharmaceutical ingredients (API) and reagents for six years till 2025 in a boost for the sector. The revenue administration has published a notification to this effect recently.