N’ganj-Dhaka-Joydebpur route: Electric trains on the cards
14 September 2026
The government is set to introduce electric trains for the first time in Bangladesh on the 52km Narayanganj-Dhaka-Joydebpur route.
14 September 2026
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
Expenses tightened for ministers, civil servants
Cabinet ministers cannot spend more than $700 in entertainment purposes and $250 for other expenses during their official trips abroad as the government has moved to consolidate its expenditures under development and revenue budgets.
25 August 2020
Revenue collection, exports disappoint while reserves, remittance shine last fiscal year
Record remittance earnings and foreign currency reserves are among a few positive takeaways for the government in an otherwise painful fiscal year as the devastating coronavirus pandemic pushed revenue collection to an unprecedented fall and exports to collapse.
24 August 2020
8 state banks still account for a disproportionate share of classified loans
Classified loans in the banking sector rose 3.9 per cent quarter-to-quarter to Tk 96,117 crore in June largely because of a higher volume of risky assets at private and state-run specialised lenders.
24 August 2020
All hands on deck to get China-funded projects back on track
The government would hold talks with Chinese officials tomorrow as part of its desperate efforts to give impetus to the mega projects held up by the coronavirus pandemic.
23 August 2020
Rupali’s secondary offering plan back on track
The plan to offload an additional 15.2 per cent shares of state-run Rupali Bank has been revived after a delay caused by the coronavirus pandemic and the lender’s preoccupation in disbursing stimulus packages.
22 August 2020
Inflation drops again
Inflation fell 49 basis points to 5.53 per cent in July compared to a month earlier, led by the fall in food prices.
20 August 2020
Factory activity slumps by more than a quarter in April
Manufacturing activity in Bangladesh dropped as much as 28.78 per cent in April from a month earlier, official figures showed, in a first glimpse of the major blow the coronavirus pandemic dished out to the economy.
20 August 2020
Youth unemployment to double this year
Youth unemployment in Bangladesh may more than double in 2020 if the country takes six months to contain the coronavirus pandemic, which has caused economic output and demand to fall drastically, said a new report.
19 August 2020
Only high-priority projects this fiscal year
The government has directed ministries and divisions to pick high-priority projects from the list of the unapproved schemes in the annual development programme as development work has been hamstrung by revenue shortage caused by the coronavirus pandemic.
17 August 2020
Two-thirds new poor received cash support
The government has distributed cash support among 35 lakh beneficiaries rendered poor because of the coronavirus pandemic after preparing a database through multi-layer scrutiny of the people who needed it most.
15 August 2020
Little progress in recovering the Tk 18,253cr lost in financial scams in recent years
The financial regulators and the government organisations are still struggling to resolve the much-talked five financial scams in the country as the embezzled fund worth Tk 18,253 crore are yet to be recovered.
15 August 2020
Development Projects: Where disorder reigns supreme
The planning ministry yesterday expressed disappointment over frequent amendments in projects, one after another missed deadlines, and the directors’ absence at project sites.
13 August 2020
The rise in investment-GDP ratio confounds
Bangladesh’s investment to gross domestic product (GDP) ratio rose in the just-concluded fiscal year, data from the Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics showed on Tuesday, in what can be viewed as an inexplicable development as most indicators were pointing towards a contrary scenario.
12 August 2020
Decent GDP growth amid extraordinary circumstances
In the end, the final data from state-run Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics (BBS) shows the economy grew at a respectable 5.2 per cent last fiscal year, when large swathes of the global economy plunged into recession for the outbreak of coronavirus from Wuhan, China.
11 August 2020
Trade with Nepal to get a leg-up after govt approves a new transit route
The government yesterday included a rail route in the Bangladesh-Nepal’s existing transit agreement to give a much-needed boost to bilateral trade by cutting distance.
10 August 2020
Pandemic derailed development works. Planning minister is buckling down to get it back on track
The government has decided to prepare a roadmap to ensure full implementation of the annual development programme this fiscal year after development expenditure fell to a 27-year low in fiscal 2019-20.
9 August 2020
Govt rallying behind off-colour Navana Group
A silver lining seems to have appeared in front of Navana Group at last.
8 August 2020
Dhaka gets first tranche of $1b Japanese loan
Bangladesh yesterday got the first tranche of the $1 billion loan pledged by Japan to bounce back from economic whiplash brought on by the global coronavirus pandemic.
5 August 2020
Tax cheats can whiten money until Nov 30
Amnesty to black money has always been a nonstarter, so Finance Minister AHM Mustafa Kamal’s move to tuck in the facility with added benefits in this fiscal year’s budget has left many scratching their heads.
4 August 2020
Not a frenzied day for banks before they broke for Eid holidays
Banks came under milder than usual strong fund withdrawal pressure ahead of Eid-ul-Azha this year because of the coronavirus pandemic, countrywide floods and job and income losses.
30 July 2020