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Japanese investors have expressed their willingness to come to Bangladesh to explore areas of their investment after their reluctance following militant attack on the Holey Artisan in Dhaka. The interest was shown in a Bangladesh-Japan business-to-business conference held on August 03 and 04 in Singapore. A high-level Bangladesh delegation, led by Bangladesh Investment Development Authority (BIDA) chairman Kazi Aminul Islam, attended the conference. This was disclosed at a press briefing held Tuesday in a city hotel organised by BIDA to disseminate outcome of the delegation's visit to Singapore. Abul Kalam Azad, SDG coordinator of the Prime Minister's Office and Shubhashish Bose, commerce secretary, among others, were present at the briefing. During the conference, the delegation conveyed what Bangladesh can offer for Japanese investors, the BIDA chairman said. The government agencies will try to adopt best practices of Singapore with a view to improving the ease-of-doing business index and to attract foreign investment in the country, Mr Azad said. "The Japanese are very much willing to come to Bangladesh," Mr Bose said adding that steps have been taken to regain their confidence describing the 'flexible investment regime' of the country.   As a least developed country, Bangladesh enjoys duty-free and quota-free facility in many countries and they can take the advantage of this, he said adding Japanese investors can enjoy the facility in their market by investing in Bangladesh. To ease doing business in the country, the company act and the chartered accountants act would be amended, he informed.   Terming the delegation's visit as 'the first and important attempt' to regain the Japanese investors' confidence, Syed Nasim Manzur, who represented the Metropolitan Chamber of Commerce and Industry (MCCI) during the conference, said, the post-Holey Artisan fear has started to be overcome. Earlier Bangladesh was not in the top 20 investment destinations' list of Japan, he pointed out. "But Japanese companies now in the Asian region informed that Bangladesh has come to the 13th position due to global economic shift," he said terming it as an indication that they are willing to invest in Bangladesh. He, however, stressed the need for continuation of exchange of such delegations. Abul Kasem Khan, president of the Dhaka Chamber of Commerce and Industry (DCCI), said 56 per cent of the Japanese companies operating in Asia are concerned over wage hikes and they want to relocate their industries. Japan annually invests around $20.0 billion in six Asian countries, he said adding, "If we can take the China-plus advantage, $2.0 billion Japanese investment can be drawn to the country." The objectives of the delegation were to promote bilateral business between Bangladesh and Japan, experience Singapore's reform initiatives and networking with key policymakers and network with Singaporean investors to attract their investment in the country, according to a BIDA presentation. About 38 Japanese companies, 24 Singaporean companies including Singapore Business Federation and IE Singapore and 55 Bangladeshi businesses attended the conference while eight focussed meetings took place, the presentation added.   Singapore is potentially a billion-dollar FDI (foreign direct investment) source and is a potential partner in expanding Bangladesh's global economic and investment outreach, the BIDA presentation said adding Singaporean investors' interest in Bangladesh is growing. It recommended strengthening of economic partnership between Bangladesh and Japan, facilitating economic zone for them and ensuring further follow-up of investment missions to and from Japan to capitalise the experiences of the delegation. The other recommendations included implementation of doing business reform actions, building partnership with key Singaporean government agencies and facilitating matchmaking with Singaporean businesses. munni_fe@yahoo.com....

Published at: 2017-08-09 00:00:04

The Bangladesh Bridge Authority (BBA) has taken an initiative to build four bridges in the eastern and southwestern parts of the country to facilitate smooth connectivity. One of these bridges might be a little longer than the Padma bridge, the country's longest and much-talked-about bridge, while three others will be over 1.5 kilometres long, according to officials. The bridges will enhance connectivity within the districts in the regions and with the rest of the country. Once constructed, the bridges will play a significant role in enhancing economic activities, the officials said, adding that one bridge will reduce the distance between Dhaka and Agartala, the capital of Indian state of Tripura. On Tuesday, the BBA signed an agreement with a joint venture firm, comprising Bangladeshi, Indian and UK companies, which will conduct feasibility studies focusing on the length, alignment, locations and importance of the bridges in the socio-economic context. The joint venture firm, comprising STUP Consultant Private Limited of India, Development Design Consultant Ltd., DevConsultant Limited of Bangladesh and CAWI UK Limited, will carry out the year-long feasibility studies. The proposed bridges will be built over Kalabodor and Tetulia rivers on Barisal-Bhola route, over Payra river on Patuakhali-Amtoli-Barguna route, over Karkhana river on Bakerganj-Baufol upazila route and over Meghna river on Araihajar-Banchharampur route. BBA officials said the bridge on Barisal-Bhola route is expected to be as long as Padma bridge, as it will be built over Kalabodor and Tetulia rivers and a char to establish direct communication between Bhola and Barisal districts. During a visit to the area, BBA officials found a char (island) between Kalabodor and Tetulia rivers, said Chief Engineer Kabir Ahmed. However, he said, the length of the bridge will be determined after the feasibility study and is also dependent on the selection of alignment of the bridge over Karkhana river, as it will also connect Bhola with Barisal. Apart from establishing direct link between Bhola and Barisal, this bridge will also play a crucial role in the development of industry in Bhola following the discovery of gas there.   The bridge over Payra bridge will not only serve as an alternative road link on Patuakhali-Amtali-Barguna route, but also establish easy communication between Payra and Mongla ports. At present, Payra port is connected to Mongla Port through Amtoli, Barisal, Jhalakathi. However, another bridge needs to be built at Betagi to establish smooth road communication between Payra and Mongla ports, said the chief engineer. The proposed bridge over Meghna will serve as an alternative route linking Dhaka with Sylhet, Agartala and Brahmanbaria. The joint venture firm got the work order for the feasibility study as the lowest bidder among five short-listed firms. BBA called the expression of interest from firms on January 17 and received responses from a total of 14 firms. smunima@yahoo.com....

Published at: 2017-08-09 00:00:04

Less than one per cent of companies registered with the Registrar of Joint Stock Companies and Firms (RJSCF) are listed on the country's bourses, sources concerned said. Currently, approximately 0.15 million companies are registered with the RJSCF. But of them, only 0.198 per cent or 297 companies are listed on the stock market, according to the Dhaka Stock Exchange (DSE) data. "Initially, we may identify 50 large corporates and pursue them for listing on the capital market," they mentioned. A large number of companies, especially multinational companies (MNCs) and foreign companies are running their business in the country. But only few are listed on the stock exchanges, DSE managing director K.A.M. Majedur Rahman told the FE on Tuesday. "We have some regulatory obstacles. Now a company must have a minimum paid-up capital of Tk 300 million for going public," he said. He added: "The share market has huge potential. Unfortunately, we are yet to tap that. We hope that the stock market will be more vibrant in near future." "The authority concerned has formulated regulations to bring small companies into the share market. Under separate trading platforms, a company with minimum paid-up capital of Tk 50 million and below will be eligible to raise funds by using the platform according to qualified investors' rules," the DSE boss said. Currently, merchant banks/asset management companies are busy with trading in the markets instead of doing the activities they are meant for. As a result, there is a large gap in the country's bourses, a senior DSE official said. Earlier, the DSE proposed that the finance ministry should take measures so that the state-owned enterprises (SoEs) and MNCs offload their shares in the country's capital market, the official said, arguing that it would help deepen the market and mitigate vulnerability.  The DSE proposed formation of two or three committees comprising representatives from different ministries, the Bangladesh Bank (BB), Bangladesh Securities and Exchange Commission (BSEC), other relevant state agencies and the two bourses to recommend, rearrange and find out ways of bringing more shares in the capital market. The government, stakeholders and market analysts had long been talking about the need for bringing stocks of more companies in the market, but the SoEs, MNCs and other foreign companies prefer to be non-responsive. The finance ministry is likely to discuss the proposals, made by the DSE, in a next meeting on offloading of shares (SoEs), a high official of the ministry said.   Presently, there are a good number of companies registered with the Registrar of Joint Stock Companies and Firms. A significant improvement in the regulatory support is needed for increasing participation of new companies in the bourses, a stock market expert said. The government is trying hard to get shares of the 26 SoEs offloaded on the capital market. But the ministries and divisions concerned are reluctant towards offloading shares. Only 13 MNCs operating in the country have been listed on the two bourses while only eight SoEs offloaded their shares in the market since 2009. rezamumu@gmail.com....

Published at: 2017-08-09 00:00:04

The VAT Online Project (VOP) may linger for two more years at an extra cost of Tk 1.0 billion following the deferment of the new VAT law.   The project, undertaken for introducing online payment of VAT under the Value Added Tax (VAT) and Supplementary Duty (SD) Act 2012 from this fiscal year, was scheduled to expire in 2019, two years after enforcement of the new law. But, as execution of the new law has been deferred until July 1, 2019 -- amid strong protests by the business community -- the project would now need an extended lifespan until 2021. As such, the project cost might escalate into nearly Tk 7.0 billion from the allocated Tk 5.56 billion, official sources said. The new law was scheduled to replace the existing VAT law 1991, with a pivotal provision of a uniform rate of VAT applicable to all of the VAT-payers. The National Board of Revenue (NBR) has sent a revised development proposal (RDPP) regarding the extension of the project to the planning ministry for its approval. A senior NBR official said the proposal needs consent of the executive committee of the national economic council (ECNEC) for extension of the project tenure with an increased cost as mentioned above. "Implementation of the fully automated VAT system would need support of the software. The project needs to continue for at least two years for successful implementation of the new law," he said. The VAT online project was formally launched in 2013. Vietnamese company FPT is providing technical support for implementing the project. The World Bank (WB) also allocated US$ 60 million for automation of the VAT system. "Delay in implementation of the new VAT law blocked $30 million worth of World Bank funds. The development partner has pledged to disburse half the allocated funds after the launch of automated VAT system," he added. The project has so far received $ 22.2 million from the WB, he said. The VAT online project would modify the contract with the global development-financing agency. Already a draft resolution has been prepared and a meeting was held on the issue, he informed. "I hope the WB would release some funds, worth $15-16 million, after introduction of online VAT-return submission," he said. The NBR planned to introduce online VAT-return submission by October next on an optional basis. The VAT wing will have to amend some of provisions on VAT rule-1991 and needs approval by government high-ups for starting online VAT returns, the official said. In a mass notice, the NBR requested all of the eleven-digit Business Identification Number (BIN) holders to obtain a new nine-digit BIN by December 2017. The existing BIN will stand invalid for business operations including import-export from January 1, 2018. Furnishing BIN is mandatory for several types of business activities. Some 50,000 of the businesses have obtained electronic BIN (e-BIN) so far. As the e-BIN was meant for the new VAT law, some of the provisions in the VAT rules would need amendment for the e-BIN-issuance process to adjust with the VAT law 1991. doulot_akter@yahoo.com....

Published at: 2017-08-09 00:00:04

The country's overall imports grew by more than 10 per cent in the fiscal year (FY) 2016-17 due mainly to higher import of capital machinery, officials said. The actual import in terms of settlement of letters of credit (LCs) grew by 10.47 per cent to US$ 44. 27 billion during the July-June period of FY'17 from $40.08 billion in the previous fiscal year, according to the central bank's latest statistics released Tuesday. On the other hand, opening of LCs, generally known as import orders, rose by 11.05 per cent to $48.12 billion in the FY17 from $43.33 billion in the previous fiscal year. "The overall imports may increase further by the end of the current fiscal year because of rising trend in food grains import," a senior official of the Bangladesh Bank (BB) told the FE. The central bank has already relaxed its policies to encourage rice import to meet the growing demand for the essential in the local markets, he said. Earlier on July 20, the BB relaxed further its foreign exchange transaction rules for opening LCs against rice import to ensure sufficient supply of the staple food in the market. Under the relaxed rules, the commercial banks were allowed till December 31, 2017 to open LCs against deferred or usance bill basis or under buyer's credit up to 90 days term. The central bank had also allowed the banks to open LCs for importing rice with zero-margin on the basis of bank-client relationship. Meanwhile, the import of capital machinery or industrial equipment used for production was up by 37.39 per cent to $4.85 billion in FY17 as against $3.53 billion of the previous fiscal year. "The higher imports particularly in the energy and power sector mainly contributed to the rise in overall capital machinery imports," the BB official explained. In FY17, the import of capital machinery for power and energy sector jumped by more than 133 per cent to $ 1.33 billion from $ 573.06 million in the FY16. Higher imports in sectors including textile, leather and tannery, garment industry, pharmaceuticals, telecom industry and ship building have contributed to raise the overall capital machinery import in the last fiscal, according to the central banker. He said the upward trend in capital machinery import might continue in the coming months due to implementation of different ongoing infrastructure development projects in the country. Currently, the government is implementing nine projects under the Fast-Track Project Monitoring Committee, headed by Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina. The imports of intermediate goods like coal, hard coke, clinker and scrap vessels increased by 11.05 per cent to $3.72 billion in the FY17 from $3.35 billion in the FY16. The import of industrial raw materials rose by 3.52 per cent to $16.22 billion in the FY 17 from $15.67 billion a year ago. Besides, import of machinery for miscellaneous industries witnessed a 7.25 per cent growth to $4.62 billion in the last fiscal from $4.30 billion in the previous FY. "Machinery for other sectors and intermediate goods for industrial consumption also increased substantially, showing signs of boosting production in future," another BB official said. He said lower prices of petroleum products in the global market have contributed to easing import payment pressure on the economy in the recent years. Fuel oils import increased by 3.30 per cent to $2.52 billion in the last fiscal from $2.44 billion a year ago, he added. The import of food grains particularly rice and wheat increased by 2.78 per cent to $1.15 billion in the last fiscal from $1.12 billion in the FY16, the BB data showed. However, import of consumer goods increased by 9.18 per cent to $5.02 billion in the FY17 from $4.60 billion a year ago. siddique.islam@gmail.com....

Published at: 2017-08-09 00:00:04