Reserve crosses $27bn

[Maira La]

Its even more crazy when you look how far behind you they were in 1990 (1/3rd per capita of B'desh). By 2000 they had caught up in per capita and then exceeded you. They were even a larger nominal economy in the years 2008, and 2011 - 2014...and are still growing at relatively the same pace.

Now B'desh is 58% per capita of Vietnam in nominal terms and 60% in PPP terms (indicating similar price levels in both countries)....expected to increase to 62% each by 2020 (because of the similar growth rate expected in Vietnam - even though its at a higher per capita base).

B'desh can sure learn a lot from Vietnam for sure.

Report for Selected Countries and Subjects

I'm not sure how accurate your % figures are because the stats were updated last year, but yeah we do have a lot to learn from Vietnam.

 

[Nilgiri]

I'm not sure how accurate your % figures are because the stats were updated last year

I'm going by the IMF WEO link I provided at the bottom of my previous reply. Its just a general frame of reference anyway.

 

[BDforever]

I'm going by the IMF WEO link I provided at the bottom of my previous reply. Its just a general frame of reference anyway.

it is because we live in serious natural disasters' area, we are slowly overcoming the odds.

 

[my2cents]

not with reserve but Bangladesh is funding Padma Bridge mega project by own

With your current account surplus it should not be a problem.

 

[Nilgiri]

it is because we live in serious natural disasters' area, we are slowly overcoming the odds.

I know bro. But Vietnam also faced the Vietnam war, invasion from China in 1979 and a war with and occupation of Cambodia as well. Thats why they were so economically shattered in 1990.

But the key thing is that they grew their education sector fundamentally through basic literacy campaigns.....even during the worst periods of warfare (even Viet Cong had underground tunnel schools during the Vietnam War).

It is this critical element of mass education that not only Bangladesh but large parts of South Asia ignored/failed (and natural disasters are not a good excuse for this in my opinion).

The future is looking better and brighter for us today, thats for sure. It has just taken way longer than it should have.

 

[BDforever]

I know bro. But Vietnam also faced the Vietnam war, invasion from China in 1979 and a war with and occupation of Cambodia as well. Thats why they were so economically shattered in 1990.

But the key thing is that they grew their education sector fundamentally through basic literacy campaigns.....even during the worst periods of warfare (even Viet Cong had underground tunnel schools during the Vietnam War).

It is this critical element of mass education that not only Bangladesh but large parts of South Asia ignored/failed (and natural disasters are not a good excuse for this in my opinion).

The future is looking better and brighter for us today, thats for sure. It has just taken way longer than it should have.

you also missed key factor is population. Bangladesh has to give so much effort to meet basic needs of large population than Vietnam. Bangladesh is larger than Vietnam in terms of population but small in terms of country size.

 

[Nilgiri]

you also missed key factor is population. Bangladesh has to give so much effort to meet basic needs of large population than Vietnam. Bangladesh is larger than Vietnam in terms of population but small in terms of country size.

Nah man, population is never a hindrance. The resource raising/consumption requirement "strain" ratio is always going to be the same. A bigger country by population just needs the proper mechanism (better decentralisation of economics and bare minimum centralisation only where needed...covered with creating the right basic framework of literacy/human capital investment).

The old mentality is that its by default a burden, better mentality is its an asset by default.

Look at China, they should be poorer than India because of population going by your argument....right?

The fact is they are more than 5 times richer than us today because they got the basics right earlier (mass literacy campaign in 50s and 60s onwards + economic reforms started in late 70s itself). They also were poorer than Indians still in the late 80s even( but already had better "basics" in position like literacy and health)....but they did not let this mentality that population is big and therefore a hindrance overcloud their drive to develop and succeed.

In fact the only policy that they had following the old attitude of population being a burden is one child policy and that has arguably created some real artificial problems in their demography rather than really helped growth....leading them to scrap it very recently (now 2 kids are officially allowed for the urban mainstream). If you ask me 2 - 3 kids policy would have provided a way more fluid transition of demographics for China....but hindsight is 20/20 I guess.

Also Vietnam has a much huger population than its neighbour Cambodia....much higher population density too. Yet Vietnam is much richer per capita. The population argument is a flawed one.

 

[TopCat]

Its even more crazy when you look how far behind you they were in 1990 (1/3rd per capita of B'desh). By 2000 they had caught up in per capita and then exceeded you. They were even a larger nominal economy in the years 2008, and 2011 - 2014...and are still growing at relatively the same pace.

Now B'desh is 58% per capita of Vietnam in nominal terms and 60% in PPP terms (indicating similar price levels in both countries)....expected to increase to 62% each by 2020 (because of the similar growth rate expected in Vietnam - even though its at a higher per capita base).

B'desh can sure learn a lot from Vietnam for sure.

Report for Selected Countries and Subjects

Vietnam is a sell off country. FDI/Gross Capital formation is more than 25% which is very dangerous and does not guarantee a stable economy in future (e.g. Thailand). They had double digit growth rate years after year and still have a per capita income less than 2000 dollar which suppose to be as par with China by now. I am glad BD is not following Vietnam path or any of the Mekong countires.

 

[Nilgiri]

FDI/Gross Capital formation is more than 25% which is very dangerous and does not guarantee a stable economy in future (e.g. Thailand)

How is more FDI/GCF a bad thing? They are measures of investment into a country. A developing country needs investment from both domestic and foreign sources to grow. There is no % that is naturally "too high", it depends on the country, economic conditions and requirements and current climate.

Even Bangladesh GCF is around 27- 29% of GDP lately according to World Bank. India is about 30 - 40% depending on the year and Vietnam is 27-30%. Whereas China is around 48%. An example of under-investment situation is Pakistan with 14 - 15%, though we will see how this changes as CPEC materialises.

Gross capital formation (% of GDP) | Data | Table

What exactly do you have against Thailand? Its economy is a lot more stable at a fundamental consumption level than Bangladesh per capita given their much higher education and industrial output rates. FII swings that can crash like they did in Asian Financial Crisis does not take away from the base economic capability of a country....since they will recover and continue to grow with better policies and lessons learned.

Whats next.... you going to tell me that Bangladesh has a better economy than Argentina?

They had double digit growth rate years after year and still have a per capita income less than 2000 dollar which suppose to be as par with China by now.

Those growth rates are what got them from earning 3 times less than the average Bangladeshi in 1990 to almost twice what a Bangaldeshi earns today....be it nominal or PPP measure. They have definitely been a successful growth story that Bangladesh should learn from and emulate where suitable....on such things as literacy, strategic investment and enterprise. Unless you believe Bangladesh should be closed off from the whole world and rely only on its remittances to provide any economic relevance...i.e the old socialist way of thinking.

You telling me the Chinese growth story is also a bad one...Vietnam is pretty much following in their footsteps.

I am glad BD is not following Vietnam path or any of the Mekong countires.

So what model is Bangladesh following? Show me which great economic figures Bangladesh is posting compared to Vietnam and Thailand. Vietnam for example exports 5 times what Bangladesh exports with half the population almost....so almost 10 times per capita.

 

[Bilal9]

Bangladesh is ready to turn the corner for good and foreign investors could do well for themselves by hopping on the bandwagon now -- this was the unequivocal message from the third Bangladesh Investment Summit, Asia.

“We are getting ready for take-off. The wheels have started moving,” Gowher Rizvi, international affairs adviser to the prime minister, said in his keynote speech at the daylong event held at The St. Regis Singapore.

His bullish stance, after all, is not unfounded.

Last month, the Asian Development Bank upgraded Bangladesh's growth forecasts for fiscal 2015-16 -- while downgrading those of the rest of Asia Pacific save for Fiji and Vietnam.

The Manila-based multilateral lender tipped Bangladesh's gross domestic product to grow at 6.7 percent this fiscal year, up from its March prediction of 6.4 percent.

“These are conservative estimates,” said Sohail RK Hussain, managing director of City Bank.
Rizvi echoed the same. The country has averaged 6 percent in GDP growth over the last 15 years, which, he said, is a nice, satisfactory story but nowhere reflective of the true potential.

Abrar A Anwar, CEO of Standard Chartered Bangladesh, said the country is at the inflection point and if appropriate level of investment can be channeled to the critical sectors, the potential can be realized.

“Double-digit growth is within our reach. At the risk of being called hasty and an adventurer, I am going to say that it will come sooner than many of us are anticipating,” Rizvi said.

One of the reasons for the optimism is that Bangladesh has clocked in impressive social development, the bedrock for economic progress.

Its performance in this avenue is much better than any country with comparable level of income.
In the region of South Asia itself, Bangladesh is now well ahead of Nepal and Pakistan, and in many areas, have gone ahead of India and Sri Lanka, according to the prime minister's adviser.

“A society that is so broadly based, growing and remaining stable is the place you want to go to,” he told a room packed with interested investors.

Over the course of the day, 252 delegates from 191 companies called in to familiarize themselves with the remarkable Bangladesh story.

The City Bank MD also brought to the investors' attention the “vibrant” private sector and the population of 160 million.
“This means there is more money in people's hands, a larger domestic market,” he said, while highlighting the demographic advantage.

Gowher Rizvi

Of the total population, more than 50 percent are in the working age bracket, the median age of which is 24-30 years, according to Hussain.

It is an asset that needs to be harnessed, Anwar said.

Subsequently, there are ample opportunities for investors in labour-intensive industries such as readymade garments, household textiles, leather processing, agro products, food and beverages and so on, Hussain said.

Rizvi said all the elements that investors look for are present in Bangladesh.

“The fundamentals are right. Your investment is safe. The returns proportionate to risks are very attractive. There is macroeconomic stability along with policy continuity and predictability.”

Furthermore, the country is providing a host of incentives by way of fiscal concessions, tax holidays and so on, which, if not better, are on a par with other countries, he said.

The SCB CEO said the opportunities for investment in the country far outweigh the current challenges.
At the end of the day, investments need to make sense and investors look forward to a decent return, security of their investments and ability to repatriate dividend and capital when required.

“We have been able to do that, and I am sure, all of you who are contemplating investment in Bangladesh would also be able to do that in due course.”

Pal Stette, director of project and corporate finance of Telenor, Grameenphone's parent company, shared the Norwegian telecom giant's experience of investing in Bangladesh.

In less than two decades, Grameenphone has logged in turnover of more than $1 billion and is producing very good margins, with EBITDA (earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation) in excess of 50 percent.
In short, it is one of the star performers of Telenor's portfolio.

It took Grameenphone six years to get its first million subscribers and six months for the next million, Stette said to demonstrate the rising appetite and means of the country's consumer market.

“Today, I can stand in front of you confidently and say that we will not disappoint you,” Rizvi said as he wrapped up the event.

 

[bdslph]

27 billion is nothing big

we already lost a big amount as corruption and also the games the political party plays