Mohammad Suman

A tripartite agreement between two local trade bodies and the Japan External Trade Organisation (Jetro) was signed yesterday to strengthen private sector engagement in trade and investment between Japan and Bangladesh.

MS Selim Machinery, a Jashore-based company, imported car parts from India through the Chattogram Port in March this year.

The price of edible oil has risen in local markets amid stockpiling by large economies owing to the potential threat of a second wave of the coronavirus and a rising cost of all products worldwide, according to market players.

The price of onion is declining because of an increased arrival of the key cooking ingredient, much to the respite of consumers, who have already been hit hard by higher prices of rice and vegetables.

Luxury hotels in Chattogram has seen a 60 per cent drop in business due to the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic, according to industry insiders.

A group of individuals are forging the signatures of officials of the commerce ministry, the Department of Livestock, Atomic Energy Commission and the Department of Agricultural Extension to release undeclared goods, according to Chattogram customs.

Chattogram Customs House yesterday seized 36 tonnes of baby food items, citing of finding evidence of the importer -- Siam Enterprise -- using a fake website and forging the commerce ministry’s seal and signature.

Chattogram customs house is going to hold its first online auction on October 27 as it seeks to offer a simplified and transparent participatory process to draw more bidders, attain higher prices and free up space at the port’s yards.

Over the first nine days of the current month, importers brought more than 2,500 tonnes of onion from four countries -- Myanmar, China, Pakistan and Turkey.

Wholesale prices of both imported and locally grown onion shot up by Tk 5 to Tk 10 per kilogramme within a span of 24 hours in Chattogram city’s Khatunganj market despite the arrival of stocks from alternatives to India through the port.

Saint Martin’s island is on the verge of witnessing a new chapter in tourist transport as a vessel formerly engaged in ferrying people in Japan is due to pioneer a route connecting the coral isle to Chattogram via Cox’s Bazar.

Wheat consumption in Bangladesh has more than doubled in the past six years for changing food habits, increasing demand and exports of bakery products.

Onions became Tk 20-25 cheaper per kilogramme (kg) in the last three days thanks to declining prices at the Khatunganj wholesale hub and increased efforts from traders to import the kitchen staple from eight countries.

The Khulna-based Sundarban Enterprise received a consignment of 157 tonnes of onion at Bhomra land port on 14 September. It came from AA Enterprise of India. The import price is Tk 25.70 per kg, according to customs documents.

Taking note of last month’s catastrophic blast in Beirut port, customs authorities in Bangladesh have started auctioning off around 278 tonnes of chemicals and food items lying unclaimed at the Chattogram port since 2008.

The immediate past chairman of Karnaphuli Fertilizer Company (Kafco) created a post called consultant (HR) with the monthly salary of Tk 4.5 lakh just before leaving and appointed a retired joint secretary to it.

With no visitors interfering, the animals of Chattogram zoo have spent a blissful summer this year, thanks to the pandemic. At least 50 offspring of different animals were born at the zoo in the past two months, which includes tiger cubs, deer fawns, and peacocks.

The National Board of Revenue is yet to implement customs valuation (determination of the value of imported goods) rules although those were formulated 20 years ago in a bid to help the country conform to international practices and curb illicit transactions in export and import.

Import of 20 items dropped by 25 percent in the fiscal year 2019-20 compared to the previous fiscal year, shows customs and NBR data.

Many areas of Chaktai-Khatunganj, a wholesale hub for essential commodities, are inundated by rainwater every day and the water enters ground-level shops and warehouses, causing untold damages in the area.