Month: August 2022

Farmers are to pay Tk. 6 more for a kilogram of urea fertilizer effective Monday, the Agriculture Ministry announced citing price hike in the global markets.

In a handout the ministry said that urea fertilizer will now be sold at Tk. 22 per kg, up from Tk. 16 per kg at the farmers’ level. At the dealers’ level the price has been re-fixed at Tk. 20 per kg, up from Tk. 14 per kg.

According to the handout, the price of per kilogram of urea fertilizer in the international market is currently Tk 81. Despite the raise in the local market by Tk 6 per kg, the government will have to provide Tk 59 in subsidy per kg.

In 2005-2006 fiscal year, the government provided Tk 15 a kg as urea fertilizer subsidy, it said.

The price of fertilizer has shot up 3-4 times in the international market and as a result the government’s subsidies on the essential agro inputs rose by four times.

In FY2020-21, the government provided Tk 7,717 crore as subsidy in fertilizer while Tk 28,000 in FY2021-22. .

Source: United News of Bangladesh

The production at Barapukuria Coal Mine will remain suspended for 15 more days as another 16 workers –six of them Chinese – tested positive for Covid-19, authorities said on Monday.

The production at the state-owned mine was first suspended on Saturday when 90 workers, including 50 Chinese, contracted the virus.

The suspension came for the safety of other unaffected workers at the mine, said Saiful Islam Sarkar, manager at the mine.

He said the virus forced home isolation of 450 local and 300 Chinese workers of the mine, have been asked to remain in home isolation.

In such situation, the authorities concerned suspended coal extraction in the 1306 phase and 1041 phase respectively. The authorities expected that the production will likely to resume after 15 days.

The coal extraction from the 1306 phase started on July 26 on a trial basis and till Friday, “we were able to produce 5,000 metric tonnes of coal,” said Saiful.

However, 40,000 metric tonnes of coal are in stock, which will be used for power generation, he said.

Source: United News of Bangladesh

Mobile financial services provider Nagad and social development organisation BURO Bangladesh have initiated an online payment service to help customers keep savings and make loan payments easier for them.

An agreement was signed in this regard recently between Nagad and BURO, said a media statement Monday.

Maruful Islam Jhalak, executive director of Nagad, said: “Nagad has introduced several cutting-edge innovative solutions for the customers, to enable any form of transaction, from anywhere.”

“Now, customers of Nagad and BURO Bangladesh can pay their savings deposits and loan instalments from their comfort zones.”

Saidur Rahman Dipu, head of business sales of Nagad, Tanveer Chowdhury, head of MFI and government sales operations at Nagad, Farmina Hossain, director of operations ( financial services) at BURO, Pranesh Banik, director of risk management of BURO, and Sirajul Islam, director of special programmes of BURO, were also present at the signing ceremony.

Source: United News of Bangladesh

Bangladesh has got an “International Peace Award ” as one of the founding member of the D-8 Organization for Economic Cooperation.

The award was given in memory of the Prime Minister Prof. Dr. Necmettin Erbakan of the Republic of Turkey.

President of the Board of Trustees of Prof. Dr. Necmettin Erbakan Foundation, Dr. Fatih Erbakan sent a letter to Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina informing her of the matter, said a press release of PM’s press wing.

Mosud Mannan, Ambassador of Bangladesh to Turkey accredited to Georgia, Turkmenistan and D-8 handed over the crest of the award along with the letter from Dr. Fatih ERBAKAN to the Hon’ble Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina.

Source: United News of Bangladesh

Food and grocery delivery platform foodpanda has launched pandapro, a new subscription programme for customers.

The all-in-one subscription offers privileges across foodpanda services – delivery, pick-up, dine-in and groceries – for a monthly fee.

Pandapro subscribers will get 10 free deliveries on orders over Tk350 and discounts on food delivery and pick-up, grocery orders and dine-in.

Pro customers will also get a 25 percent discount on dine-in at over 500 restaurants, including Sushi Samurai, Crimson Cup, Bar B-Q Tonight, 138 East, and Shawarma House.

“Our customers like eating out at restaurants as much as they like home delivery. And pandapro has something for everyone – whether they like online delivery, pick-up or dine-in,” Manisha Safiya Tarek, head of marketing at foodpanda Bangladesh, said.

Customers can subscribe to pandapro by tapping the subscription option within the foodpanda app. They can make payment for their subscription with bKash or debit or credit cards issued by all local banks.

Source: United News of Bangladesh

Four shops and a house were gutted in a major fire at the stadium area in Rangamati district town in the early hours of Sunday.

No casualties were reported.

Witnesses said the fire broke out around 3:30 am on Sunday and soon engulfed other adjacent house and shops.

On information, a fire tender from Rangamati Fire Station reached the spot and brought the blaze under control around 4:30 am.

However, it is not clear yet what actually caused the fire.

Meanwhile, Rangamati District Commissioner Mohammad Mizanur Rahman visited the fire-affected areas in the morning and assured to help the victims.

Source: United News of Bangladesh

Vested group spreads propaganda over electricity-energy: Obaidul Quader

Road Transport and Bridges Minister Obaidul Quader on Monday said an identified group is carrying out propaganda and spreading confusion purposefully saying that the electricity and energy crisis will prolong in the country.

He urged the people not to be misled by the motivated propaganda which are being carried out by those who want to see failures of the country, not its development and who are patrons of communal ill-forces.

The minister made the call while briefing reporters at his ministry’s office, said a PID handout.

He said the world’s energy supply chain has become unstable due to the Russia-Ukraine war during the global economic recovery from coronavirus pandemic, which led to an abnormal rise in fuel prices in the international market.

Quader, also the general secretary of Bangladesh Awami League, said more than 90 per cent of the countries across the world depend on imports for primary energy. As an energy importer, this situation has had a negative impact on Bangladesh as well, he said.

Now almost all countries of the world including Europe and America are facing the energy crisis and they have drastically reduced the consumption of electricity and fuel in a bid to tackle the situation, he said.

The minister said the government of Bangladesh has taken various preemptive measures to face the negative impacts caused by the Russia-Ukraine war, resultant economic sanctions, as well as price hike of fuel, gas and fertilizers in the international market.

He said the high inflation rate in the developed world indicates the severity of the global economic crisis.

June last year, the inflation rate was 9.1pc in the United States, while 9.4pc in the United Kingdom, 8.9pc in Germany, 15.9pc in Russia, 78.6pc in Turkey, 9.4pc in the Netherlands, 39.9pc in Sri Lanka and 21.3pc in Pakistan, he noted.

But the inflation rate was 7.56pc in Bangladesh in June, said the minister, adding that many quarters are trying to mislead people by talking about only Bangladesh inflation.

“In Bangladesh, the situation remains relatively tolerable due to the precautionary measures taken by the Sheikh Hasina’s government,” he added.

Source: United News of Bangladesh

Barcelona has sold part of its production hub for 100 million euros ($102 million) to boost its finances in a bid to use its newly signed players right away.

Club president Joan Laporta announced Monday the club sold a 25% stake of Barça Studios to Socios.com, a blockchain provider in the sports and entertainment business.

The club said the sale will “accelerate” the club’s strategies related to audiovisual, blockchain and online products.

The money should also allow Barcelona to meet Spanish league financial requirements and sign the players it has acquired recently, including Robert Lewandowski, Raphinha and Jules Koundé, who was officially introduced on Monday.

The club spent more than 160 million euros ($163 million) on the three players, becoming Europe’s leading spender in the offseason despite being mired in financial difficulties until recently.

Laporta has been criticized for burdening the club’s future with its current tactics to find new cash. Barcelona had already sold 25% of its Spanish league TV rights for the next 25 years for 667 million euros ($682 million).

“The risk is under control,” Laporta said. “We need to save the club and have the possibility of bringing in new players.”

The mismanagement blamed on previous president Josep Bartomeu, combined with the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, left the club with a debt of more than 1.3 billion euros ($1.3 billion).

The team struggled on the field as well, failing to win a major title last season after not being able to hold on to Lionel Messi.

France defender Koundé, who had also been sought after by Chelsea, praised Barcelona’s new approach to keep thriving.

“I chose Barça because it’s clear to me that the club has a very ambitious project,” the former Sevilla player said.

Barcelona will make its Spanish league debut on Aug. 13 against Rayo Vallecano.

Source: United News of Bangladesh

Nova Intima, a Hong Kong-British Virgin Island-owned ladies’ undergarment manufacturing company, will invest $28 million in BEPZA Economic Zone (BEPZA EZ) in Mirsharai, Chattogram.

The company signed an agreement with the Bangladesh Export Processing Zones Authority (BEPZA) in Dhaka Monday.

Ali Reza Mazid, member (investment promotion) of BEPZA, and Vijay Uttam, managing director of Nova Intima, signed the deal. Major General Abul Kalam Mohammad Ziaur Rahman, executive chairman of BEPZA, was also present.

Nova will annually produce 60 million units of ladies’ undergarments and fabrics and accessories for producing those clothing items, employing more than 5,625 Bangladeshis.

Two other companies in Chattogram and Karnaphuli EPZs, under the same owner, invested around $22 million in the production of ladies’ undergarments, employing around 6,000 Bangladesh nationals.

Source: United News of Bangladesh

Expatriates have sent inward remittance worth USD $2.09 billion in July, first month of current fiscal year, Bangladesh Bank (BB) report said.

The BB report released on Monday stated that the remittance flow of July is the highest in 14 months.

The bankers and concerned people said that the holy Eid-ul-Azha is celebrated in July. Expatriates usually send additional money to their relatives during the Eid.

Md Serajul Islam, executive director and spokesperson of BB told UNB that the central bank has simplified various processes to attract more remittance through banking channels.

The government is also extending remittance incentives as well as providing policy support. Now the dollar rate is getting higher, he said.

“Besides, last month was Eid-ul-Azha, expatriates sent money to celebrate the family’s Eid festival beautifully. Remittances have increased due to these reasons. I hope this trend will continue,” Serajul said.

In June, the ending month of the last fiscal year, the expatriates sent $1.83 billion inward remittance through the banking channel.

Bangladesh received the highest $24.77 billion inward remittance in FY2020-21, amid global movement restrictions along with air flight due to the worsening situation of Covid-19 pandemic.

After that in FY 22 remittance income fell to $21.03 billion.

The sector insiders and experts believed that around $2 billion remittances entered Bangladesh on illegal paths despite different initiatives, including incentives as stimulus to send remittance in the legal channel.

Sources said a number of Bangladeshi expatriates in the Middle East, Malaysia, the USA, and Europe who cannot send money to the country in the banking channels lack valid documents.

As a result, they have to depend on the illegal hundi and other informal channels for sending their earnings to relatives in Bangladesh.

Source: United News of Bangladesh

Islami Bank Bangladesh Limited (IBBL) has launched a month-long fintech campaign.

Mohammed Monirul Moula, managing director and chief executive officer of the bank, inaugurated the “All of Your Banking Through Fintech” campaign as the chief guest in Dhaka Monday.

IBBL additional managing directors Muhammad Qaisar Ali and Md Omar Faruk Khan addressed the function as special guests.

Md Mostafizur Rahman Siddiquee, deputy managing director, presided over the programme. AFM Kamaluddin, deputy managing director, delivered the welcome speech.

Monirul Moula said: “IBBL has been working to attain the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in line with the initiatives of the government. We are contributing to the digital transformation of the country through the expansion of modern fintech services.”

Source: United News of Bangladesh

The fiscal year 2021-22 ended with a record USD $18.70 billion deficit in the Balance of Payments (BOP) due to a big jump of imports, said Bangladesh Bank (BB) updated report released on Monday.

In the previous fiscal year (2020-21), this index was only $4.57 billion deficit in the balance of payment.

Never before such a large deficit has been seen in any financial year. Economic researchers believe that the important indicators of the economy have deteriorated due to the jump in imports.

Ahsan H Mansur, executive director of the Policy Research Institute (PRI), economist and a researcher, believes that this shortfall has emerged as a concern in the macroeconomy.

He told UNB, “Due to the abnormal increase in imports, this huge shortfall in foreign transactions has occurred. It is true that there is a positive side to increasing imports. Investment in the country increases; creating employment. There is momentum in the economy.”

But the balance of payments deficit of about $19 billion is really a matter of concern. Due to this shortage, instability or crisis has occurred in the foreign exchange market market, Mansur said.

He said, “The higher price of all kinds of things including fuel oil, food products in the world market is a reason for the increase in import cost.”

“Despite taking various initiatives from the government and Bangladesh Bank, the cost of imports cannot be controlled. Due to this increase in expenditure, inflation is also increasing. All in all, the crisis in the economy is increasing,” Mansur added.

In this situation, Mansur suggested the government and central bank take more strict measures to reduce imports.

According to the Central Bank data, the outgoing FY 22 started with a deficit in the current account balance. In the first three months July-September, this deficit amounted to $2.31 billion. At the end of four months (July-October) it increased to $4.77 billion. In this way, the balance of payment deficit has increased every month along with the increase in import expenditure.

Source: United News of Bangladesh

Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) on Monday sent a letter to Grameen Telecom after starting an investigation into the alleged misappropriation of money.

The ACC sent a letter on Sunday (July 31) asking for the information of four members of the board of directors of Grameen Telecom including Muhammad Yunus.

Earlier, ACC Secretary Mahabub Hossain informed that the ACC has started an inquiry against the board of directors of Grameen Telecom.

An inquiry committee has been formed to investigate the allegation, he added.

According to sources of ACC, ACC Director Syed Iqbal Hossain has been appointed as the supervising officer in the investigation committee while deputy director Gulshan Anwar Pradhan has been made the team head and the other members are assistant director Jasmine Akhtar and Noore Alam Siddiqui.

Alongside, the four members of the board of directors have been asked to know various information.

The ACC is investigating the charges against them, including misappropriation of 5 percent of the dividend reserved for distribution among workers, illegal deduction of 6 percent as advocate fees and other fees while paying workers’ dues, interest allocated to workers’ welfare fund, embezzlement of Tk 45 crore 52 lakh 13 thousand without distribution and embezzlement by transfer of Tk 2977 crore from the company to the bank accounts of various subsidiaries for the purpose of money laundering.

Source: United News of Bangladesh