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Bangladesh Economy: News & Updates

You just edit it and put name of country to resolve this issue and it will help old schools like us a lot. We are following this format for more then six years
I just do not know how to edit the title because it does not come inside the inset.
 
Inflation has come down to five percent, the lowest in the past four years, according to the planning minister.

The government through ‘various measures’ has been able to contain inflation and it would go below target at the end of the financial year, said AHM Mostafa Kamal at a press conference on Tuesday.

He was announcing the latest data by the Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics at the NEC conference centre in Sher-e-Bangla Nagar in Dhaka.

The inflation rate at the end of December last year was at 5.03 percent on a point-to-point basis.


http://bdnews24.com/economy/2017/01/03/bangladesh-inflation-down-to-lowest-in-four-years-at-5
 
Great analysis.. Credit should go to successive govts in Bangladesh to have some impressive gains in HDI indicators, Out performing some in the region with bigger economies.. Given the relatively large population it's not a easy task.. Economic gains need to trickle down to the masses in order to have a more comprehensive development such a GDP per capita

For Bangladesh to archive those goals political stability is paramount, It's the sole reason that has been holding the country back and the later threats with religious extremism need to be nipped in the bud
 
Joy Bangla, Bangladesh Zindabad...

Political Stability is the main Booster for our Economy...
 
The fact that the thread in in Bangladesh section, should give you some idea about the name of the country
True, but from cellphone it doesnt mention the section. If u would like to make some convenience we would appreciate it otherwise it is always disliked when we get wrong meaning from any thread title!
 
03 Jan 2017, 18:33:12 | Updated : 03 Jan 2017, 18:38:07

Forex reserves hit record in Dec


Bangladesh's foreign exchange reserves hit a record $32.09 billion at the end of December, the central bank said on Tuesday, up $720 million from the previous month.

The reserves were sufficient to cover about nine months' worth of imports, and are $4.6 billion higher than a year ago.

Steady garment exports and remittances from Bangladeshis working overseas, the key drivers of the country's more than $200 billion economy, have helped build reserves in recent years.
 
Joy Bangla, Bangladesh Zindabad...

Political Stability is the main Booster for our Economy...

Political stability at the expense of democracy is not a good recipe for a long term development. Democracy is quite defective in a half-educated country like BD. But, the process must continue because in the course of time people will know which of the political parties are apt in tackling many issues including the economic ones.

I accept that the present AL govt has added new dimensions to the development of infrastructure, specially the physical ones. But, its domestic politics of hooliganism has its aftereffects. This will take the country back to a politics of revenge and this will keep on repeating in a cyclic order. So, I believe the politicians must reach a consensus on the way to conduct politics and re-establishing democracy.
 
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Political stability at the expense of democracy is not a good recipe for a long term development.

I humbly beg to differ. What Lee Kuan Yew did as an educated strongman for Singapore is now engraved in stone in the annals of history.

LKY knew the nature of indisciplined Asians (both Indians and Chinese) and he prescribed a one-party benevolent dictatorship of sorts. It all sounds bad (if considered in the light of 'human rights' BS that Western leaders like to spew), however the litmus test was when forty years later (1970 to 2010) Brits came to Singapore to study public transport to improve theirs for London....by that time Singapore's GDP had increased five-fold to USD52,000 per capita and exceeded that of the US.

Same in a larger context for Park Chung Hee in Korea and more recently, the case for China (uplifting for Billions).

These examples certainly make the case for,

a) fiscal discipline and,
b) a strongly-controlled centralized planning for the economy.

The good thing is that this discipline is only needed for say thirty/forty years until you get to first world level but you have to really stress law and order, education and family values, like Singapore did.

If we can get to second world status in another ten years, that will be beyond anyone's dreams....

So, I believe the politicians must reach a consensus on the way to conduct politics and re-establishing democracy.

I don't think any Bangladeshi politician will suddenly become benevolent and say, "I've done a lot of bad things over the years - but now I have seen the light and I won't be corrupt and conduct skulduggery and thuggery any longer." That may be a bit much to hope for or expect.

However I'll be personally ecstatic even if they can reach consensus to 'share the loot' and not cause grassroots labor trouble (like BNP recently did in Ashulia with the garments labor fiasco).

Law and order (stability) must be maintained at any cost. People's livelihoods (industrial labor) cannot be messed with, which affects the 'loot' for the politicians as well overall.
 
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Law and order (stability) must be maintained at any cost. People's livelihoods (industrial labor) cannot be messed with, which affects the 'loot' for the politicians as well overall.
That's damn true. AL should sometime share the loot with BNP. Keeping everyone happy.
 
THURSDAY, 05 JANUARY 2017 13:26

BANGLADESH: RMG EXPORTS TO THE WORLD SEES STEADY RISE

"Bangladesh's RMG exports to the global market rose by over 9 per cent to over $26 billion from Jan-Nov 2016. This growth rate is not sufficient to attain the $50 billion export target by 2021 as the sector needs over 12 per cent growth to realise the vision. Experts attributed remediation process, which helped improve safety standards-to the increased production capacity. Upon completion of remediation, some RMG units have received more orders from buyers who were satisfied with the safety progress, they argued."

RMG_exports_to_the_world_sees_steady_rise.jpg


Bangladesh's RMG exports to the global market rose by over 9 per cent to over $26 billion from Jan-Nov 2016. This growth rate is not sufficient to attain the $50 billion export target by 2021 as the sector needs over 12 per cent growth to realise the vision. Experts attributed remediation process, which helped improve safety standards-to the increased production capacity. Upon completion of remediation, some RMG units have received more orders from buyers who were satisfied with the safety progress, they argued.

As per World Trade Organisation (WTO), the global clothing export market has contracted by around 7.8 per cent to $445 billion in 2015. In 2014, the global apparel export was $483 billion while the global RMG export market is expected to reach $650 billion by 2021.

Production to get a boost
Bangladesh_RMG_exports_to_the_world_sees_steady_rise.jpg


According to the data of Export Promotion Bureau (EPB), during January-November 2016, Bangladesh earned $26.09 billion, exporting clothing products, which is 9.03 per cent higher compared to $23.93 billion a year ago. Knitwear products fetched $12.56 billion with an 8.22 per cent rise compared to $11.60 billion in the previous year while woven products earned $13.53 billion, which is 9.78 per cent higher compared to $12.32 billion a year ago.

Exporters Association of Bangladesh President Abdus Salam Murshedy expects a double digit growth as the production capacity as well as the volume of work orders have increased because of safety improvement and remediation completion in most factories. Last year production was hampered due to the ongoing remediation to improve safety standard in workplaces for ensuring workers' safety. After the full-fledged completion of Corrective Action Plans (CAPs), the work order flow would increase and it would be possible to attain a double-digit growth, added the business leader.

According to Mahmud Hasan Khan Babu, VP, BGMEA, the sector has seen less investment as manufacturers had to spend a lot on remediation and safety improvement. Experts feel that in order to expand, RMG sector requires investment to increase production capacity for gaining more global market share. Gas connection is a big challenge for Bangladesh's RMG. The country has to work on technology up-gradation and high-end products. Bangladesh has to now focus on capacity building and set strategies to move to high-end and branded fashion segments. Currently, about 79 per cent of Bangladesh export items are concentrated in five basic products – trouser, t-shirt, sweater, shirts and jackets mostly made of cotton.

Another priority area is market diversification as Bangladesh's apparel exports are mostly concentrated on EU and North America. Non-traditional market is the key element to enlarge the export volume. The contribution of non-traditional markets to total export was 2 per cent in FY2005-06, which has increased to 15 per cent in FY'16.
 
10 Jan 2017, 00:28:14

Biman's foreign loan swells to $ 592m

Rezaul Karim


The liability to foreign loans of the national flag carrier, Biman Bangladesh Airlines (BBA), has swelled to about US$ 592 million (more or less Tk 46.77 billion) due to its poor operational performance, sources said.

The state-owned airlines owe the debt to a total of nine international financial institutions. The credit has been used mainly to purchase aircraft for the BBA, they added.

Every country buys aircraft through foreign debt. It is a general practice. The rate of interest of foreign loan is very low, A. S. M. Monjur Emam, controller of accounts of BBA, told the FE on Sunday.

The loan is shown in the BBA's balance-sheet as loan and asset. But there is no relation with the loss and profit of the airlines, he added.

The BBA has been paying back the loan by regular instalments, he said, adding that the loan was not a burden on the agency.

Outstanding long-term foreign loans stood at US$ 591.77 million as of June 2016, according to the latest data of BBA.

The Biman takes out loans from international lenders in two ways -- one is senior loan and other is junior loan, a senior official of the airlines said.

Usually, the rate of interest of senior loan is 0.24-0.35 per cent annually with 12 years' duration, he added.

On the other hand, the interest rate of junior loan is more than senior loan with five years' duration period, he also mentioned.

Biman has been facing problems due to different complexities especially employment scam, poor management and corruption, aviation experts said.

It cannot provide service as expected due to excessive expenditure in maintenance of age-old aircraft, use of aircraft on lease and no hike in airfare in a competitive market, they said.

Besides, the Biman stopped flying to New York in 1996 after the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) slapped a ban on the airlines in the absence of 'Category 01' rating from the FAA, they said.

Biman owes a large amount of charges in the form of handling, landing and other charges to the Civil Aviation Authority, Bangladesh (CAAB). The BBA also owes a significant amount of money to the Bangladesh Petroleum Corporation (BPC), a CAAB high official said.

The airliner made profit in 2008 and in the first half of 2009, but after that it again plunged into losses, a source concerned said.

According to the balance sheet, Biman incurred Tk 5.94 billion, Tk 2.85 billion and Tk 2.85 billion as operating loss in fiscal years (FYs) 2011-2012, 2012-2013 and 2013-2014.

Biman earned profit over Tk 2.72 billion in FY 2014-15. But the account for the FY 2015-16 has not been prepared yet.

The amount of accumulated loss stood at Tk over 11.28 billion as of June 2015. The total liabilities also stand at over Tk 81.70 billion during the same period. The amount of long-term loan stood at over Tk 48.96 billion in June last, according to the Biman data.

@TopCat
 

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