Bangladesh has urged the United Kingdom to invest more in the country, particularly in the big projects undertaken under Public-Private Partnership. During a meeting with UK Minister of State for Trade and Investment Francis Maude on the sidelines of the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM)…

US-based Halliburton, one of the world's largest oil field services companies, yesterday initiated directional drilling side-tracking at gas well-4 in Comilla’s Salda gas field. The drilling will continue for 16 days at Salda and for 11 days at well-1 in adjacent Mobarakpur gas field. Halliburton…

Bangladesh Telecommu-nication Regulatory Commission (BTRC) is going to conduct a survey to assess the possible impact on the proposed merger of two cellular phone operators Robi and Airtel Bangladesh.    BTRC has sent letters to the Institute of Business Administration (IBA) of University…

Ajay Kanwal, regional CEO, ASEAN and South Asia of Standard Chartered Bank, is visiting Dhaka, the bank said in a statement yesterday. Bharat Padmanabhan,…

Banks and financial institutions (FIs) disbursed Taka 2 thousand 521 crore to women entrepreneurs in the first three months (Q1) of the current 2015-16 financial year (FY16), said Bangladesh Bank (BB) Governor Atiur Rahman yesterday, reports BSS. The governor was addressing a seminar on the sideline…

A Swiss company, Astra Transcor Energy, is interested to invest $1 billion in energy sector of the country. “Yes, the Swiss entity has expressed its keenness to invest about $ 1billion in the energy sector by setting up LNG terminal,” said a foreign ministry official. In order to discuss…

A three-day international tradeshow on machinery, components, leather, chemicals and accessories for leather, footwear and leather goods sector of the country begins at Bashundhara International Convention City in the capital yesterday. ASK Trade and Exhibitions Private Limited is organising the third…

Stock market closed lower for the third consecutive session when transaction fell due to low level of both institutional and individual buying, reports BSS. The DSEX index of Dhaka Stock Exchange (DSE) finished the day almost flat at 4568.01 when the blue-chip DS30 ended marginally lower at 1727.95…

AFP, WASHINGTON: The World Bank announced on Tuesday a plan to help Africa weather climate shocks that requires $16.1 billion in financing through 2020. The goal is to raise the money from several development organizations, countries and private partners, with the International Development Association,…

AFP, FRANKFURT: The European Central Bank yesterday will launch into circulation a new 20-euro banknote with enhanced security features to foil counterfeiters. A new “portrait window” near the top of the hologram stripe becomes transparent when seen against the light and reveals a portrait…

AFP, ZURICH: LafargeHolcim said yesterday its profits collapsed as the cost of building the world's biggest cement company took its toll. In its first earnings report since the merger of Lafarge and Holcim was closed in mid-year, it said EBITDA, a measure of operating profit, fell to 1.3 billion…

AFP, MEXICO CITY:  Mexico and Qatar signed an agreement yesterday to establish commercial flights between their capitals as the Gulf monarchy’s ruler visited the Latin American nation. Mexican President Enrique Pena Nieto hosted Qatar’s emir, Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, at Mexico…

AFP, MOSCOW: Russia's biggest bank, state-controlled Sberbank, said yesterday that it sees signs of recovery in the financial sector which has been in deep crisis. Reporting the bank's "best quarterly results of the year" for the three months to September, finance director Alexander…

AFP, SINGAPORE: Singapore’s economic growth will dip to “close to 2.0 per cent” this year after the city-state avoided a technical recession, the government said Wednesday, with a potential further slowdown seen in 2016. The decline from a growth rate of 2.9 per cent in 2014 reflects…

AFP, HONG KONG: Asian stock markets retreated yesterday, with airlines taking a hit as dealers fret over increased geopolitical tensions following the…

AFP, KUWAIT CITY: Faced with heavy losses from low oil prices, Gulf states have embarked on belt-tightening measures to cut spending and boost non-crude…

AFP, BEIJING: In a martial artist’s white silk pyjamas, a man practised tai-chi in harmony with a motorised arm at a Beijing exhibition showcasing…