Finance
Taka policy in a changing world
It is still widely believed that depreciation of taka vis-à-vis foreign currencies—especially US dollar—will boost Bangladesh’s export earnings. This is true only if our exports are priced or invoiced in Bangladeshi taka. For example, if a shirt made in Bangladesh is invoiced at Tk 1,000, at an exchange rate of USD 1 = Tk 85, the shirt will cost USD 11.76 in the international market.
Privatisation increases corruption
International financial institutions (IFIs) have typically imposed wide-ranging policy reforms—called “conditionalities”—in exchange for country governments to secure access to financial assistance.
The PM’s China visit
It is undeniable that Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina has, quite deftly, made the most of the fast-changing regional and global geopolitics, eventually emerging as a strong leader in South Asia.
2019 SUMMER DAVOS FORUM / An open world economy in a new era of globalisation
The 2019 Summer Davos Forum, also known as the “World Economic Forum’s 13th Annual Meeting of the New Champions,” was held during July 1-3, 2019 in the coastal city of Dalian in northeast China’s Liaoning province.
Consumer Rights Violations / Why filing complaints is absolutely necessary
I assume there is hardly anyone amongst us who has never felt cheated after buying a product or taking a service in exchange for money.
What does Bangladesh gain from the US-China trade war?
As the US-China trade war intensifies, pundits on both sides of the Pacific and elsewhere are wondering: who is the real winner?
The emerging cracks in our external sector
The robust external sector performance has been a strong pillar on which Bangladesh’s impressive macroeconomic stability and growth of recent years was founded. The strong performance was underwritten by several factors.
Smart priorities for the new government’s first budget
Since 2015, Copenhagen Consensus and BRAC have collaborated on Bangladesh Priorities to create a bridge between policy and research. This is driven by the belief that, with limited resources and time, it is crucial that decisions are informed by what will do the most good for each taka spent.
Investing in human capital
Dearth of human capital is a huge problem in this populous country. Of course, the job market is very competitive and getting a job is difficult for a university graduate.
An unconventional perspective
In any case, the lowering of corporate tax is bad for the economy holistically as it will serve to widen inequality between the super-rich and the waged worker.
Thinking Ahead
There are very few programmes that exclusively target the extreme poor. A background paper has revealed the actualw amount allocated in the budget for the extreme poor may be even below 1 percent of the GDP.
Technology for financial inclusion
The success of branchless banking services, like mobile financial services in Bangladesh, helps us to dream of full financial inclusion in future. This is not only because of higher demands by a large population, but also due to the need to have more diversified products of financial services.
Budget 2015-2016: GDP growth and private investment
Bold and aggressive measures are needed to establish specialised economic zones to attract private investment. Large scale public investments are required for special economic zones. Thus, the call for very ambitious growth target for revenue seems justifiable.
A rule of law for sovereign debt
The absence of a rule of law for debt restructuring delays fresh starts and can lead to chaos. That is why no government leaves it to market forces to restructure domestic debts.
Rising trend continues
We shall invariably see that the Defence Budget will be 'Guillotined' in the evening of June 30 with no discussion on the subject. Military issues have often been shrouded under the cloak of secrecy.
Predictable yet unachievable
Writing on budget has become a challenge for me not only because so much has already been discussed, but there is barely anything original in the budget.
EUROPE'S LAST ACT?
The future of Europe and the euro now depends on whether the eurozone's political leaders can combine a modicum of economic understanding with a visionary sense of, and concern for, European solidarity.
On the eve of the budget
It is budget time once again. This is the time to do math on national expenditures and income afresh. This is the most important exercise of the Ministry of Finance