The parliament today passed the Tk 7,97,000 crore national budget for the 2024-25 fiscal year with the aim of achieving 6.75 percent GDP growth rate and keeping annual inflation at around six percent

But extra duty and tax on telecom, carbonated beverages, water purifiers to hurt potential FDI, it said.

In Bangladesh, the power generation capacity increased to 30,277 megawatts in 2023-24 from 4,942 MW in 2009, said Finance Minister Abul Hassan Mahmood Ali in his budget speech.

Textile millers and garment makers in Bangladesh yesterday demanded that the government include some of their recommendations in the new national budget as many of the issues they raised remain unaddressed.

More than a third of the subsidies allocated in the new budget is for the power sector due to what experts say is the huge spending on capacity charges.

What is a progressive tax system? Well, it means that the income tax rate climbs up as the income increases. But that still doesn't mean that the raised income tax rate will apply for the entirety of someone's income

It fails to commit to reforms and address people’s sufferings

The proposed national budget for fiscal 2024-25 lacks concrete measures for addressing the current economic concerns, such as runaway inflation and depleting foreign exchange reserves, the Centre for Policy Dialogue (CPD) said yesterday.

Tax exemptions provided by the National Board of Revenue (NBR) are estimated to rise to Tk 163,000 crore in fiscal 2024-25 as the tax administration looks to ease the pressure on individuals and facilitate higher economic growth.

Implementation of the new budget will be highly challenging in the current context of the Bangladesh economy, Metropolitan Chamber of Commerce and Industry (MCCI) said in a post-budget reaction yesterday.

Economists say allocation for the agriculture sector in the new budget is inadequate, and it will not only hurt farmers but may also affect food production.

Finance Minister Abul Hassan Mahmood Ali yesterday expressed hope that the government would be able to curb high inflation on the back of budgetary measures and the central bank’s steps.

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina today supported the budgetary provision for legalising black money saying that it should be brought to the legal network first

The Centre for Policy Dialogue (CPD) today said that the government's target to reduce inflation to 6.5 percent in the fiscal year 2024-25 appears overly ambitious

Budget day is turning into our very own Groundhog Day.

Budget at a glance

Under the FY24-25 social safety net programme of Bangladesh, the pension for retired government employees and savings scheme interest payments account for nearly the same allocation as social assistance for the poor, the old and the disaster-struck.

Default loans in the banking sector of Bangladesh hit an all-time high of Tk 182,295 crore, but no reform programme to reduce it has been announced in the budget for the upcoming fiscal year.

In yet another blow to stock market investors, the government plans to impose a capital gains tax on them from next fiscal year.

The food ministry spent less in fiscal 2022-2023 compared to fiscal 2009-2010, according to data on expenditure over the last 13 years.