The government has initiated a move to boost competitiveness of the country’s major exportable items and enhance export earnings addressing various problems in the export market of three major sectors—leather, leather goods and footwear, light engineering and plastics, reports UNB. The Executive…

The Executive Committee of National Economic of Council (ECNEC) yesterday approved the 'Countrywide ponds and canals development project' with an estimated cost of Tk 1,334.95 crore in a bid to preserve surface water through development and re-excavation of ponds and canals. The approval came…

Bangladesh and World Bank (WB) yesterday struck a deal for digitising monitoring of the country’s annual development programs and improving public procurement performance, reports BSS. The US $55 million Digitising Implementation Monitoring and Public Procurement Project (DIMAPPP) will help Bangladesh…

Secretary General of the International Maritime Organisation (IMO) Kitack Lim yesterday assured Bangladesh that the IMO will provide all-out support for exploring potentials in the country’s shipping sector, reports UNB. Bangladesh is an important IMO member and it has huge potentials in its shipping…

Many refineries have shut and almost a fifth of oil and gas production in the Gulf of Mexico has been suspended amid the largest storm to hit in the US…

AFP, HONG KONG:  The yen rallied yesterday  and Asian equity markets sank after North Korea fired a ballistic missile over Japan, ratcheting…

AFP,  BANGKOK:  At a hip Bangkok diner, foodies with an adventurous palate tuck into a bug-based menu that includes watermelon salad sprinkled…

AFP, BRUSSELS:  European Commission head Jean-Claude Juncker warned again yesterday that Britain must first agree its divorce terms with the EU before any discussion of post-Brexit ties can begin. “It has to be ultra clear that we will not begin any negotiation on the future relationship…

Stocks continued to maintain upward trend on both bourses as major indices at Dhaka and Chittagong Stock Exchanges witnessed a marginal rise yesterday,…

AFP, SINGAPORE:  Crude prices recovered slightly in in Asian trade yesterday a day after heavy falls caused by the impact of monster storm Harvey on a key US oil-producing region. Harvey battered into Texas on Friday as a Category Four hurricane, tearing down homes and businesses on the Gulf Coast,…

The euro has hit $1.20 for the first time since January 2015 as the prospect of a US interest rate rise recedes, reports BBC. Hurricane Harvey’s impact has led analysts to assume the US central bank will not want to risk curbing economic growth and fears over North Korea’s activities have…

AFP, ZURICH: In Switzerland, one of the world's wealthiest countries, financial planning starts young. The country's number two bank Credit Suisse on Tuesday unveiled a piggy bank with built-in apps allowing children under 12 to set savings goals, check their balance and make payments. "The…

AFP, SEOUL:  Prosecutors yesterday demanded a harsher punishment for the heir to the Samsung empire, appealing against a court ruling that sentenced him to five years in prison for bribery. Lee Jae-Yong, the de-facto head of Samsung Electronics, was found guilty last week of bribery, perjury and…

AFP, BRASÍLIA:  Brazil’s President Michel Temer heads to China with ministers and business leaders yesterday to woo investors as he seeks to privatize a host of state utilities. Temer has announced plans to privatise 58 state firms in a bid to spark an economic revival after two years…

AFP, KARACHI:  Pakistan’s largest private bank is facing a $629 million penalty in the United States over accusations of non-compliance with financial standards and practices at its New York branch. HBL, formerly known as Habib Bank Limited, came under the radar of New York’s state…