Dwaipayan Barua

Money laundered out of the country can be legalised in exchange of seven to fifteen percent tax under a new proposal aimed to boost revenue as well as mobilise foreign currency. 

The government is preparing the budget in a cautious way, refraining from increasing expenditure by too much of an extent, keeping in mind the ongoing global economic crisis stemming from the pandemic and Russia-Ukraine war, State Minister for Planning Shamsul Alam said.

Chattogram Port Authority (CPA) has aggravated shipping agents, directing that container vessels irrespective of carrying capacities from today must sail out from the port jetties within 48 hours on completing unloading and loading of containers. 

The second direct container shipping service from the country’s premier sea port in Chattogram to Europe is going to be introduced today.

The country will have to import fertiliser at higher prices from the international market in the wake of the global price hike due to the Russia-Ukraine war.

Pragmatism was the order of the day when the finance division sat down to draft the development budget for fiscal 2021-22.

Operations and navigation at the Port of Colombo resumed yesterday following a two-day hiatus for ongoing political unrest in Sri Lanka, albeit bringing temporary relief to Bangladesh’s exporters, freight forwarders and shipping firms.

Import load containers have piled up at the Chattogram port as importers did not secure their consignments due to the Eid holidays when factories were closed and vehicular movement was thin.

It appears normal service will resume with fiscal 2022-23’s budget, which will see the return of double-digit growth in size -- a practice introduced by former finance minister AMA Muhith.

Acute container congestion may soon hit the Chattogram port if the importers do not get their containers delivered within a few days, the officials said.

Untimely loading and unloading of containers has congested Chattogram port, the country’s premier seaport, with container vessels, which remain anchored due to the disruption.

Following the success of the first direct container shipping service between Chattogram and Italy launched in February this year, several European logistics providers have taken the initiative to commence similar services in order to get rid of the long delays in transporting cargo on the current routes using transhipment ports.

Chattogram City Corporation (CCC) Mayor Rejaul Karim then took the initiative as per which the final competition took place on a makeshift stage on the road beside Laldighi Maidan on due time, Baishakh 12 or April 25.

Another direct container shipping service between Chattogram and two European ports is going to be introduced next month while initiatives are underway for launching direct services connecting a few more destinations in the European Union (EU).

A Singapore-bound container vessel has remained stranded in the Bay of Bengal for the last seven days on sustaining damage in a collision with an oil tanker, leading to uncertainties over shipment of its cargo.

The government has set an ambitious economic growth target of 7.5 per cent for the next fiscal year although the country faces new headwinds owing to higher prices of commodities globally and is still recovering from the shocks of the coronavirus pandemic.

The World Bank yesterday advised the government to reconsider its decision to dip into the foreign exchange reserves for development projects given the elevated balance of payment deficit and the need for exchange rate flexibility.

Bangladesh is not at risk of the crisis that Sri Lanka is currently facing, but the country needs to be cautious and learn from the experiences of the island nation, said Hans Timmer, chief economist of the World Bank for South Asia.

A new weekly China-Bangladesh container vessel service will make its debut in the last week of this month, creating an opportunity to quicken the country’s import and export trade.

Bangladesh’s debt service to revenue ratio rocketed to 81.2 per cent in the last fiscal year amid lower tax collection and higher borrowing, according to the International Monetary Fund.