FDI posts over 32% growth in January-November of 2018
Ibrahim Hossain Ovi
US Dollar Bigstock
According to Bangladesh Investment Development Authority (BIDA) data, in January-November of 2018, Bangladesh saw FDI of $2.84 billion, up by 32.09%, compared to the total FDI of $2.15 billion in 2017
Foreign direct investment (FDI) to Bangladesh has seen a sharp rise of 32.09% during the January-November period of 2018.
According to Bangladesh Investment Development Authority (BIDA) data, in January-November of 2018, Bangladesh saw FDI of $2.84 billion, up by 32.09%, compared to the total FDI of $2.15 billion in 2017.
Equity and reinvestment by existing foreign companies doing business in the country are the two major sources of the $2.84 billion FDI, officials at the BIDA said.
Issues like policy reforms by the government and steady economic growth helped the country tap the enhanced FDI inflow, they added.
The government undertook measures to expedite the business registration process by introducing one-stop services aimed at attracting investments. Additionally, the government has been spending a large sum of money to remove infrastructural deficiencies.
Economists, business people, and government officials opine that these steps wooed investors to park their money into the country, turning into it an economic hub in the South Asian region.
Speaking to the Dhaka Tribune, Ahsan H Mansur, executive director of Policy Research Institute Bangladesh (PRI), said that since the country had not witnessed such a robust growth of FDI in the past few years, this growth is a positive sign for Bangladesh.
“The scenario is also good because some of the private Special Economic Zones [SEZs] have started allocating lands to businesspeople, which in turn, will attract more investment,” he added.
Crediting reallocation of investments from China to Bangladesh, and steady growth of the economy, he said that regulatory reforms and ease of doing business need to be prioritized since neither is up to the mark yet.
Kazi Aminul Islam, executive chairman of Bangladesh Investment Development Authority (BIDA), said that although global FDI fell by 20% in 2018, in line with the country’s current positive trend, Bangladesh’s FDI in 2019 is expected to reach $3.7 billion.
“Our doors are open for FDI, and foreign investments will jump by a significant margin in the coming days,” said Aminul, adding that Japan has already signed two deals to invest over Tk22,000 crore in Bangladesh’s private sector.
The rise in the FDI is a result of policy reforms and introduction of the one-stop service for investors—which is already in operation, the BIDA chief added.
As part of its reforms, the government enacted the One-Stop Service Act 2017, in an effort to facilitate services and reduce the cost of doing business for both foreign and domestic investors.
Calling for faster implementation of government initiative, the Federation of Bangladesh Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FBCCI) President Shafiul Islam Mohiuddin said that although government initiatives are in progress to ensure a business-friendly environment, the rate of implementation is not “satisfactory” to attract new investments.
“To attract more FDI, the government has to first attract local investment as the foreign investors consider the trend of local investment before making any investment decision,” explained Shafiul.
Trade analysts and economists said that among all the other least developed countries (LDCs), Bangladesh is doing better in terms of economic growth but receiving less FDI.
In 2017, Myanmar attracted FDI of $4.3 billion, the highest amount received by any LDC last year.
World Bank Lead Economist of Bangladesh Zahid Hussain said: “Although it is positive, the amount of FDI is not enough considering the size of the Bangladesh’s economy.”
He added that private sector investment to the GDP ratio of Bangladesh needs to increase by 5–6%,for which the country needs about $12.5 billion additional investments each year—of which a good amount will have to come from FDI.
“The question is, will the growth momentum sustain or continue? Sustainability will depend on the investment climate and for this, Bangladesh will have to improve port capacity and service quality,” explained Zahid, adding that the operation of the Special Economic Zones (SEZs) will be another tool to retain the FDI growth trend.
The government is aiming to establish 100 SEZs across the country by 2030, and construction has already started in some.
Mirsarai Economic Zone, styled as Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Shilpa Nagar, is being developed on 30,000 acres of land stretching to Feni’s Sonagazi upazila.
The new economic zone is expected to create employment opportunities for 1.5 million people within the next 15 years and ensure export earnings of $15 billion.
Many other SEZs have received pre-qualification licences and are also expected to develop soon.
According to Bangladesh Bank (BB) data, in the first nine months of the year 2018, FDI inflow to Bangladesh was $2.26 billion, up by 51.62%, which was $1.49 billion in the same period last year.
During January-September of 2018, Bangladesh received $605.37 million as equity investment, while $928.27 million came from reinvestment from earnings and intra-company loans was $731.95 million.
China was the highest investor with $374.52 million, while the United Kingdom made investments of $88.75 million followed by Singapore $77 million as of September, 2018.
During the period, power sector received the highest investment of $274.50 million, while textile and clothing sector was the second largest sector with an investment of $146.33 million.
https://www.dhakatribune.com/busine...ts-over-32-growth-in-january-november-of-2018
Ibrahim Hossain Ovi
- Published at 01:53 am February 3rd, 2019
US Dollar Bigstock
According to Bangladesh Investment Development Authority (BIDA) data, in January-November of 2018, Bangladesh saw FDI of $2.84 billion, up by 32.09%, compared to the total FDI of $2.15 billion in 2017
Foreign direct investment (FDI) to Bangladesh has seen a sharp rise of 32.09% during the January-November period of 2018.
According to Bangladesh Investment Development Authority (BIDA) data, in January-November of 2018, Bangladesh saw FDI of $2.84 billion, up by 32.09%, compared to the total FDI of $2.15 billion in 2017.
Equity and reinvestment by existing foreign companies doing business in the country are the two major sources of the $2.84 billion FDI, officials at the BIDA said.
Issues like policy reforms by the government and steady economic growth helped the country tap the enhanced FDI inflow, they added.
The government undertook measures to expedite the business registration process by introducing one-stop services aimed at attracting investments. Additionally, the government has been spending a large sum of money to remove infrastructural deficiencies.
Economists, business people, and government officials opine that these steps wooed investors to park their money into the country, turning into it an economic hub in the South Asian region.
Speaking to the Dhaka Tribune, Ahsan H Mansur, executive director of Policy Research Institute Bangladesh (PRI), said that since the country had not witnessed such a robust growth of FDI in the past few years, this growth is a positive sign for Bangladesh.
“The scenario is also good because some of the private Special Economic Zones [SEZs] have started allocating lands to businesspeople, which in turn, will attract more investment,” he added.
Crediting reallocation of investments from China to Bangladesh, and steady growth of the economy, he said that regulatory reforms and ease of doing business need to be prioritized since neither is up to the mark yet.
Kazi Aminul Islam, executive chairman of Bangladesh Investment Development Authority (BIDA), said that although global FDI fell by 20% in 2018, in line with the country’s current positive trend, Bangladesh’s FDI in 2019 is expected to reach $3.7 billion.
“Our doors are open for FDI, and foreign investments will jump by a significant margin in the coming days,” said Aminul, adding that Japan has already signed two deals to invest over Tk22,000 crore in Bangladesh’s private sector.
The rise in the FDI is a result of policy reforms and introduction of the one-stop service for investors—which is already in operation, the BIDA chief added.
As part of its reforms, the government enacted the One-Stop Service Act 2017, in an effort to facilitate services and reduce the cost of doing business for both foreign and domestic investors.
Calling for faster implementation of government initiative, the Federation of Bangladesh Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FBCCI) President Shafiul Islam Mohiuddin said that although government initiatives are in progress to ensure a business-friendly environment, the rate of implementation is not “satisfactory” to attract new investments.
“To attract more FDI, the government has to first attract local investment as the foreign investors consider the trend of local investment before making any investment decision,” explained Shafiul.
Trade analysts and economists said that among all the other least developed countries (LDCs), Bangladesh is doing better in terms of economic growth but receiving less FDI.
In 2017, Myanmar attracted FDI of $4.3 billion, the highest amount received by any LDC last year.
World Bank Lead Economist of Bangladesh Zahid Hussain said: “Although it is positive, the amount of FDI is not enough considering the size of the Bangladesh’s economy.”
He added that private sector investment to the GDP ratio of Bangladesh needs to increase by 5–6%,for which the country needs about $12.5 billion additional investments each year—of which a good amount will have to come from FDI.
“The question is, will the growth momentum sustain or continue? Sustainability will depend on the investment climate and for this, Bangladesh will have to improve port capacity and service quality,” explained Zahid, adding that the operation of the Special Economic Zones (SEZs) will be another tool to retain the FDI growth trend.
The government is aiming to establish 100 SEZs across the country by 2030, and construction has already started in some.
Mirsarai Economic Zone, styled as Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Shilpa Nagar, is being developed on 30,000 acres of land stretching to Feni’s Sonagazi upazila.
The new economic zone is expected to create employment opportunities for 1.5 million people within the next 15 years and ensure export earnings of $15 billion.
Many other SEZs have received pre-qualification licences and are also expected to develop soon.
According to Bangladesh Bank (BB) data, in the first nine months of the year 2018, FDI inflow to Bangladesh was $2.26 billion, up by 51.62%, which was $1.49 billion in the same period last year.
During January-September of 2018, Bangladesh received $605.37 million as equity investment, while $928.27 million came from reinvestment from earnings and intra-company loans was $731.95 million.
China was the highest investor with $374.52 million, while the United Kingdom made investments of $88.75 million followed by Singapore $77 million as of September, 2018.
During the period, power sector received the highest investment of $274.50 million, while textile and clothing sector was the second largest sector with an investment of $146.33 million.
https://www.dhakatribune.com/busine...ts-over-32-growth-in-january-november-of-2018
