Reserves on rise despite fuel, fertiliser shock
12 September 2026
When war in the Middle East sent fuel prices climbing, Bangladesh looked like an obvious casualty. An import-dependent economy with a thin reserve cushion and a recent history of dollar shortages had every reason to buckle. It has not.
12 September 2026
Energy: Govt okays 18 LNG cargoes from Total Energies
10 September 2026
After approving a long-term deal to buy liquefied natural gas (LNG) from a US-based firm, the government yesterday decided to import at least 18 LNG cargoes from France’s TotalEnergies over the next nine months under a direct purchase arrangement.
10 September 2026
Another metro getting on track
7 September 2026
The MRT-5 southern route is finally getting a move on, with the project set to be placed before the Executive Committee of the National Economic Council (ECNEC) next week for approval.
7 September 2026
Where access to freshwater is a daily struggle
5 September 2026
Sharmin Begum, who lives in Barguna’s Patharghata upazila, may have done little to contribute to global warming, but she is suffering severely from its adverse impacts.
5 September 2026
LNG bill to triple as war drags on
4 September 2026
The escalating conflict in the Middle East threatens to nearly triple Bangladesh’s liquefied natural gas (LNG) subsidy bill to Tk 40,000 crore ($3.3 billion) this fiscal year, forcing the government to turn to multilateral lenders for additional assistance.
4 September 2026
Bangladesh paying near-peak prices for LNG
3 September 2026
Bangladesh is paying its highest spot price for liquefied natural gas (LNG) since the onset of the US-Israeli attacks on Iran, approving a cargo at over $28 per unit as geopolitical supply shocks and domestic infrastructure failures converge to create a severe energy crisis.
3 September 2026
National pay scale: Hurrah for government employees
1 September 2026
The government yesterday approved the largest pay hike for civil service since independence, doubling the basic salary of top officials and raising the lowest pay by a record 142 percent.
1 September 2026
Fertiliser shock raises poverty risk
31 August 2026
US war on Iran could cause a 30% price hike this year
31 August 2026
Stop hasty year-end spending
The Finance Division has urged all government offices to rein in hasty expenditures at the end of each fiscal year as it destroys fiscal discipline and increases the government’s borrowing cost.
12 September 2022
Anomalies take shine off OMS
As the Covid-induced lockdown was taking a heavy toll on the poor back in 2020, the food directorate sold rice at subsidised rates under special and regular Open Market Sale programmes across the country.
12 September 2022
ADB scales up funding by 85pc
The Asian Development Bank would be providing $9.05 billion over the next three years, up 84.7 percent from the preceding three years, as the Manila-based lender is mobilising greater resources to prepare the country well for graduation from the LDC bracket in 2026.
12 September 2022
Tk 30cr lost in irregular purchase of Covid-19 medical equipment
Public hospitals in the capital purchased medical equipment at astronomical prices during the first four months of the Covid-19 pandemic in 2020, according to an audit report.
10 September 2022
Indo-Bangladesh Transshipment: Execution proving tricky
The much-talked-about transshipment facility for Indian goods to its landlocked northeastern states using Bangladesh’s two seaports and inland waterways, roads and rail network has failed to take off in a big way due to the absence of proper infrastructure and awareness.
6 September 2022
Govt to appoint consultant for Bay Terminal works
The government will appoint a German joint venture as the consultant for the construction of a breakwater and channel dredging work at the proposed Bay Terminal, a long-awaited project of Chattogram port.
1 September 2022
Subsidised rice for 1.5cr poor
The government today starts selling rice at subsidised prices in an effort to give respite to the poor and low-income earners and bring stability to the volatile rice market.
1 September 2022
Foreign aid sees higher utilisation
The use of foreign aid for development projects in Bangladesh jumped 49 per cent year-on-year in July, providing some relief to the government amid the ongoing pressure on the country’s foreign exchange reserves.
31 August 2022
All-out effort to tame rice prices
The government yesterday slashed the import duty on rice and is also working to import about 12 lakh tonnes of food grain including rice as it looks to rein in the price of the staple amid a cost of living crisis.
29 August 2022
Foreign trips for bureaucrats: The purpose defeated
Good intentions gone wrong -- sums up best the government initiative to send officials abroad for training and upskilling.
28 August 2022
Austerity hits July’s ADP spending
The government’s austerity measures have hit implementation of the annual development programme (ADP) in the first month of the current fiscal year, with just 0.96 per cent of the total allocation being spent, the lowest in the last four years.
25 August 2022
WB to give $6.05b over next 3 years
The World Bank Group is scaling up its lending to Bangladesh in non-concessional terms by as much as three times to prepare the country for its impending LDC graduation, which would close the doors to low-cost funds.
21 August 2022
Bangladesh not in crisis: IMF
Talks for the support package from the International Monetary Fund are likely to begin after the third week of October, said the Washington-based multilateral lender yesterday.
16 August 2022
3 more projects may get costlier
Four years ago, the government approved a project to construct a container port on the Meghna river in Brahmanbaria’s Ashuganj at an estimated cost of Tk 1,293 crore.
13 August 2022
External debt situation more comfortable now
Bangladesh gravitated towards external borrowing to finance its budget deficit in fiscal 2021-22, leveraging the country’s capacity to absorb more of the relatively economical foreign loans.
12 August 2022
Forex pressure may ease by Dec but inflation to stay
The record fuel price hike last week has thrown a spanner in the works to the finance division’s projection of bringing the twin problems of inflation and delicate foreign currency reserves under control by December.
11 August 2022
Amnesty to black money falls flat
The tax authority’s receipts from black money dropped 94.4 percent year-on-year in fiscal 2021-22 after the increase in tax rate and additional penalty dulled the black money holders’ interest to legalise their undisclosed wealth.
7 August 2022
"Should’ve been done in phases", say experts on fuel price hike
The record fuel price hike yesterday would put Bangladesh in a favourable position as the country enters into negotiations next month with the International Monetary Fund for financial assistance to ease the pressure on the precarious balance of payment and foreign currency reserves.
7 August 2022
Medical kit purchase: Tk 117cr lost to anomalies
When a piece of Personal Protective Equipment (medical coveralls) was Tk 1,200, the authorities bought 50,000 of them for Tk 3,900 each from a motor parts supplier.
5 August 2022
IMF stands ready to help Bangladesh
The International Monetary Fund yesterday conveyed its interest to support Bangladesh with its request for loan to prop up its strained foreign currency reserves.
4 August 2022