Haque Specialized Group's News

The board of directors of First Security Islami Bank has decided to issue fully redeemable non-convertible subordinated bond worth Tk 4.50 billion, said an official disclosure on Monday. “The board of directors has decided to issue fully redeemable non-convertible “Mudaraba Subordinated Bond (Private Placement)” amounting to Tk 4.50 billion through private placement with 7 years maturity,” said the disclosure. The bond issue is subject to approval from the regulatory authorities – Bangladesh Securities and Exchange Commission and Bangladesh Bank-- for enhancement of Tier-II capital as per requirement of Basel-III and business expansion of the bank, the disclosure added. First Securities Islami Bank was listed on the Dhaka bourse in 2008. The bank belongs to the “A” category. The sponsor-directors own 48 per cent stake in the bank, while institutional investors own 17.81 per cent, foreign investors 3.60 per cent and the general public 30.58 per cent as on January 31, 2017. The company’s paid-up capital is Tk 6788.74 million and authorised capital is Tk 10,000 million, while total number of securities is 678,873,888, the DSE data shows. Each share of the bank closed at Tk 15.50 on Sunday, remaining unchanged over the previous day on the DSE. -bb/rmc//  ....

Published at: 2017-02-13 00:00:04

Oil prices slipped on Monday on signs that global fuel markets remained bloated despite OPEC-led crude production cuts that have been more successful than most initially expected. Brent crude futures were trading at $56.55 per barrel at 0035 GMT, down 15 cents from their previous close. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures were down 12 cents at $53.74 a barrel. The OPEC and other producers including Russia have agreed to cut output by almost 1.8 million barrels per day (bpd) during the first half of 2017 in a bid to rein in a global fuel supply overhang. There was widespread scepticism that all producers would actually make the promised cuts, but compliance with the announced reductions is now estimated to be around 90 per cent. While traders said that crude was well supported in the lower to mid-$50s per barrel due to the curbs, they pointed to a host of reasons that were preventing prices from rising further unless production is cut deeper or for a longer period. In the United States, rising drilling activity is pushing up production and undermining OPEC's efforts to reduce output. Drillers added eight oil rigs in the week to Feb. 10, bringing the total US count to 591, the most since October 2015, Baker Hughes said on Friday. During the same week last year, when prices were around $30 per barrel, there were just 439 active oil rigs. In Russia, which is participating in the cuts, there are signs that output may be falling but that exports remain high, as its producers shield their core export markets at the cost of lower domestic supplies or by cutting into inventories. Given these trends, analysts say that OPEC might have to extend its cuts for a longer period than the currently planned first half of 2017. But since global oil demand is expected to rise be between 1.3 million bpd and 1.5 million bpd in 2017, OPEC's conundrum is that the longer and deeper it cuts, the more it cedes market share to competitors, as seen in the two world's biggest oil consuming markets. In the United States, OPEC is facing the rising flood of shale driven production.  In China, OPEC's de-facto leader Saudi Arabia has already been overtaken by Russia as the biggest oil supplier, according to Reuters.....

Published at: 2017-02-13 00:00:04

The US military detected a missile test by North Korea and is assessing the launch, a US defence official said on Saturday, reports Reuters. "We can confirm that we did detect a missile launch from North Korea," the official said, speaking on condition of anonymity. "We are assessing and will have more information soon." The official provided no immediate information on the type of missile launched.  ....

Published at: 2017-02-12 00:00:07

A college student was beaten to death reportedly by rivals at Navaran in Sharsha upazila under Jessore on Saturday night. The victim was identified as Biplob, 18, a student of Navaran Degree College and son of Nazrul Islam, a resident of Jirengachha village of the upazila, reports UNB. Maniruzzaman, officer-in-charge of Sharsha Police Station, said Shahanur and Hossain, both residents of Jirengachha village, had long been at loggerheads over establishing dominance in the area. As sequel to the problem, supporters of Shahanur group, equipped with lethal weapons, attacked Biplob and beat him up mercilessly around 9.30pm, leaving him critically injured. He was admitted to Sharsha upazila health complex where he succumbed to his injures. Outraged by the incident, Biplob's supporters blocked Jessore-Benapole road for one hour. On information, police rushed in and brought the situation under control.  ....

Published at: 2017-02-12 00:00:07

Several rockets have hit the high security Green Zone in Iraq's capital, Baghdad, hours after clashes at a protest left at least five dead on Saturday, reports Reuters. There were no immediate reports of casualties in the Green Zone, which houses government buildings and foreign embassies in Baghdad. Earlier, thousands of protesters, demanding electoral reform, tried to storm the area. Police fired tear gas. At least 200 people are reported to be hurt. The protesters, mostly supporters of the Shia cleric Moqtada al-Sadr, want changes to the electoral commission that oversees elections. They say the commission is not independent because all its members are linked to political parties. Pro-Sadr protesters have entered the Green Zone during previous protests. It is not clear who fired the missiles into the area on Saturday. However, military officials said several Katyusha-style rockets seem to have been fired from the eastern district of Baladiyat, where Sadr is reported to have a lot of followers.....

Published at: 2017-02-12 00:00:07