Trade facilitation emerged as key issue for world trading
Trade facilitation has emerged as the key issue for the world trading system in recent years. In November 2014, WTO members adopted a Protocol of Amendment which is a necessary step towards making the Trade Facilitation Agreement (TFA) an integral part of the WTO Agreements. TFA was successfully negotiated at the Bali Ministerial Conference in December 2013 as part of a wider set of ministerial decisions, according to the editorial of the current News Bulletin of International Chamber of Commerce-Bangladesh (ICCB) released on Thursday.
TFA will enter into force with the ratification by at least two-third of WTO members. So far, 72 countries have ratified the TFA. Since WTO members have a shared interest in facilitating
Governor to meet Fed chief, SWIFT official to recover heist money
Bangladesh Bank (BB) Governor Fazle Kabir is likely to meet the head of the Federal Reserve Bank of New York and a senior executive from global financial messaging service SWIFT next week to seek their firm steps to help recover the heist money, reports BSS.
“The governor will go to Basel, Switzerland next week”, the chief spokesperson of the central bank, Subhankar Saha, told BSS on Wednesday.
Basel is the headquarters of the Bank for International Settlements (BIS), a group of major central banks.
Shaha, also an executive di...
Basel is the headquarters of the Bank for International Settlements (BIS), a group of major central banks.
Shaha, also an executive di...
Contagious disease destroying Bangladesh wheat fields
Only desperate farmers would burn down their own fields before harvest. But, in Bangladesh, that’s exactly what wheat farmers are doing. They are trying to contain a devastating fungal infection, and their last option is to set fire to infected fields.
The infection, called wheat blast, was first detected in 1985 in Brazil. Since then, it has spread rapidly through South America. Its effects are so severe that many affected districts no longer grow wheat.
Caused by fungus Magnaporthe oryzae, wheat blast has now reached Bangl...
Caused by fungus Magnaporthe oryzae, wheat blast has now reached Bangl...
WB Bangladesh Development Update
The Bangladesh Development Update, April 2016 notes that Bangladesh economy remained strong and resilient despite external and internal challenges. Bangladesh is among the top 12 developing countries with a population of over 20 million, who achieved 6 plus percent growth in 2016. By any standards, Bangladesh economy has done well. Bangladesh needs to focus on a growth agenda centered on sustainable and inclusive growth.
Stable macro-economy. Overall inflation declined from 6.5% in March 2015 to 5.65% in March 2016. Food inflation declined from 6.4% to 3.9%, thanks to a good rice harvest, declining international food prices and a stable exchange rate. However non-food inflation rose from
UNESCAP expresses optimism on BD economy
A UN body namely United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (UNESCAP) has expressed its optimism about Bangladesh’s potential though trimmed its growth forecast for the economy in 2015-16 fiscal year (July 2015-June 2016) at 6.8 percent.
UNESCAP made the projection in a latest report it published in Dhaka on Thursday, reports Xinhua.
“The outlook for growth remains optimistic, with growth being projected at 6.8 percent in 2016 and 7 percent in 2017,” said the report, titled “Economic and Social Survey of Asia and The Pacific 2016.”
According to the report, Bangladesh has sustained a robust and resilient economic growth rate ![]()
Fitch affirms Bangladesh at ‘BB-‘; outlook stable
Fitch Ratings has affirmed Bangladesh's Long-Term Foreign- and Local-Currency Issuer Default Ratings at 'BB-'. The Outlooks on the Long-Term IDRs are Stable. The Country Ceiling is affirmed at 'BB-' and the Short-Term Foreign-Currency IDR at 'B'. KEY RATING DRIVERS Bangladesh's rating balances strong foreign-currency earnings and high and stable real GDP growth against significant political risk and weak banking-sector health.
Strong and relatively stable foreign-currency revenue from remittances and garments exports, two main pillars of Bangladesh's economy, support the external balances and overall credit profile. Bangladeshi exports have only been moderately affected by the current global trade slowdown: exports grew 5.9% over the year to January 2016, compared with 9.0% a year ea...
