Explore full trade potential with Bangladesh

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina yesterday invited Chinese businesspeople to explore the full potential of business and trade relations with Bangladesh as the country is marching ahead in various areas of economic growth and development.

“As Bangladesh is marching ahead in various areas of economic growth and development, I invite you to explore the full potential of business and trade relations with Bangladesh,” she said.

The prime minister made the request while delivering her keynote speech at a roundtable with Chinese business leaders at the China Council for the Promotion of International Trade (CCPIT).

CCPIT Chairperson Gao Yan delivered the welcome address at the roundtable.

Hasina also hoped that Chinese businesspeople would significantly enhance their imports from Bangladesh in the coming years given the fact that Bangladesh’s export basket is expanding rapidly.

“There are so many areas to further expand your investment, especially in manufacturing sectors such as textile, leather and medium and heavy industries,” she said.

China has already emerged as the largest trading partner of Bangladesh. The total volume of trade between the two countries was $12.4 billion in the 2017-18 financial year.

“However, majority of this trade consisted of imports from China,” she said.

Hasina said Bangladesh is a very close neighbour of China and geo-strategically located between South and Southeast Asia. Population-wise, Bangladesh is the eighth largest country in the world.

Investment in Bangladesh not only ensures a direct market access to 162 million people but also gives indirect access to a market of more than 3 billion population of South Asia and China, she said.

In this connection, the prime minister said Bangladesh will continue to enjoy duty-free and quota-free access to major markets of the world till 2027 although it has graduated to a developing country.

She said Bangladesh is blessed with very hardworking, efficient and low-cost labour force. “Wages of semi-skilled and management grade workers are one of the lowest in the world,” she said.

The prime minister also said Bangladesh offers some of the world’s most competitive fiscal and non-fiscal incentive packages for foreign investors.

These include repatriation of dividend and capital at the exit, tax holidays, cash incentives on the export of selected items, permanent resident permits on investment of $75,000, and citizenship on $500,000.

The prime minister mentioned that Bangladesh is the second largest exporter of readymade garments and clothing after China and there is huge potential to further expand investment in apparel, especially in backward linkage industries.

She said Bangladesh highly values the huge interest demonstrated by the Chinese investors in the country and so it is setting up a special economic zone for the Chinese investors.

Chairman of China International Contractors Association Fang Qiuchen, Vice President of China State Construction Engineering Corporation Zhou Yong, Executive Vice President of Huawei Technologies Zeng Chenggang, Vice President of Haier Electrical Appliances Diao Yunfeng, Chairman of China Railways International Group Company GAN Baixian and President of Overseas Operations of China Railway Construction Group Cao Baogang spoke at the roundtable.

FBCCI President Sheikh Fazle Fahim, Senior Vice President Md Muntakim Ashraf, Vice President Siddiqur Rahman and Vice President of the International Chamber of Commerce Bangladesh Rokia Afzal Rahman also spoke.

   Foreign Minister AK Abdul Momen and PM’s Private Investment and Industry Affairs Adviser Salman F Rahman were present on the occasion.