It came down to $1.59 billion from last year August's $2.03 billion

Chinese President Xi Jinping said on Saturday that China would widen market access in the service industry and promote cross-border services trade.

US job growth picked up in August, but the unemployment rate jumped to 3.8 percent and wage gains moderated, suggesting that labour market conditions were easing and cementing expectations that the Federal Reserve will not raise interest rates this month.

Indian farmers have planted 39.8 million hectares (98.3 million acres) with rice, up 3.7 percent on the same period last year, farm ministry data showed on Friday, as record high prices prompted farmers to expand the area.

The dollar gained against the euro and Japanese yen on Friday after the August jobs report showed a still strong labour market, despite some signs of deterioration.

The Indian government will cut the windfall tax on petroleum crude to 6,700 rupees ($81.03) per metric ton from 7,100 rupees starting on Saturday, according to a government notification issued on Friday.

India’s factory growth accelerated at the fastest pace in three months in August, driven by strong growth in new orders and output, according to a private survey that however also showed job creation was at a four-month low.

Professor Wahiduddin Mahmud says at ERF event

Govt opens a wholesale flower market in Dhaka's Gabtoli

China's economic growth is slowing down as policymakers try to fix a property market downturn, with troubles at major developer Country Garden in focus. Concerns are mounting over whether the world's second-largest economy is coming closer to a crunch point:

Oil prices rose on Friday to their highest in over half a year and snapped a two-week losing streak, buoyed by expectations of tightening supplies.

US job growth picked up in August, but the unemployment rate jumped to 3.8 percent and wage gains moderated, suggesting that labor market conditions were easing and cementing expectations that the Federal Reserve will not raise interest rates this month.

China’s factory activity contracted for a fifth straight month in August, official data showed on Thursday, as pressure mounts on Beijing to offer more policy support to bolster its sluggish economy.

Rice prices in key exporting countries including Thailand and Vietnam have climbed around 20 percent since India, the world’s biggest shipper of the grain, banned shipments of a key variety in July, tightening global supplies.

Chinese exporters are using a complicated currency swap strategy to avoid converting their dollar earnings into yuan for fear of losing out on potential gains in the US currency, official data and conversations with companies show.

Tk 109.5 for purchase, Tk 110 for sell

Russian gas giant Gazprom reported Tuesday an 8.5-fold drop in its net income for the first six months of the year as Europe moves away from Moscow’s energy supplies over Ukraine.

The European Union’s fossil fuel energy production hit a record low in the first half of the year, think tank Ember Climate reported Wednesday, although green sources are struggling to fill the gap.

India has allowed traders to ship out their non-basmati white rice cargoes sitting at ports due to a sudden ban on exports of the category, a government order said late on Tuesday.

An unusually dry August has taken a toll on cereal and oilseed crops in Asia as El Nino intensified, and forecasts for lower rainfall in September are further threatening to disrupt supplies.