Professional Documents
Culture Documents
DA 6238 Vol 2, No 30
www.dhakatribune.com
SECOND EDITION
7 | WHERES MY MONEY?
13 | JURGENSEN QUITS
n Tribune Report
In yet another vitriolic remark, Narendra Modi, a leader of the BJP and prime ministerial candidate for the ongoing Indian election, has said Bangladeshis will be thrown out of India as soon as he comes to power. Modi was speaking on Sunday at an election rally in Serampore, West Bengal, which shares a porous border with Bangladesh. You can write it down. After May 16, these Bangladeshis better be prepared with their bags packed, he said. Modi targeted Mamata Banerjees Trinamool Congress government, and said: You are spreading the red carpet for vote bank politics. If people come from Bihar, they are outsiders to you. If people come from Odisha, they are outsiders to you. However, if some Bangladeshi comes, your face seems to shine. This country cannot run like this. We wont allow you to destroy the country for the sake of your vote bank politics.
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Delaney: More work was needed in implementing labour law reform, safety and inspection
package. Doha Round is yet to be completed. It [DFQF] is tied to the Doha Round, said Assistant US Trade Representative for South and Central Asia Michael Delaney, in reply to a question at a joint press conference with Bangladeshi Commerce Secretary Mahbub Ahmed. They were speaking after the first Trade and Investment Cooperation Forum Agreement (Ticfa) meeting held at a city hotel yesterday. The US has provided duty-free and quota free access to some least developed countries (LDCs) in Sub-Saharan and Caribbean countries, but the ben-
BNP now says 272 activists killed in one year n Mohammad Al-Masum Molla
The BNP has come up with yet another figure of party leaders and activists who, it claims, have been killed and abducted across the country in the past one year, bringing down the numbers from its previous claims. The party now says a total of 272 leaders and activists have been killed and 25 abducted between January last year and this February. At a press conference on February 5, BNP Chairperson Khaleda Zia first claimed that 300 party men had been either killed or abducted in one month from December 26 last year to January 27 this year. In a statement a few days later, the BNP chief cited media statistics, saying 276 opposition leaders and activists had been killed, 34 had been victims to extrajudicial killings following detention, and 29,262 others had been arrested since the then BNP-led opposition started its movement against the January 5 national election. BNP spokesperson Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir yesterday came up with
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INSIDE
Business
B1 The governments subsidy spending may go down by 21% in next fiscal year compared to the revised budget of current fiscal, making a room for the authorities to raise energy and fertiliser prices. for curing the tobacco. The local administration says they know about it, but cannot do anything as there is no tobacco barn control act.
World
News
5 The most dangerous industries in the country on the basis of workplace safety are agriculture, ship breaking and tannery as the workers are vulnerable to exposure to toxic and hazardous chemicals and contamination.
9 The aerial search for the missing Malaysia Airlines jet was called off yesterday, and the underwater hunt will be expanded to include a vast swath of ocean floor that may take at least eight months to thoroughly search, Australian officials said.
Entertainment
Nation
6 Tobacco farming is harming the forest in Khagrachharhi since farmers rely on firewood
12 Movie lovers of the country will be delighted to know that the much anticipated superhero film The Amazing Spider-Man 2 will hit the Star Cineplex on May 2.
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DHAKA TRIBUNE
News
A man climbs the fence built over the central reservation to cross the road near the Mayor Mohammad Hanif Flyover. Though the fences were placed to stop such occurrences, people still risk their lives and opt for a shortcut since there is no foot over-bridge to cross over. The photo was taken yesterday at Shanir Akhra in the capital MAHMUD HOSSAIN OPU
Power Ministry
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Shibli told the Dhaka Tribune that he raised the issue as the frequent foreign visits of the officials hampered the execution of the governments plan to implement development projects as promised in its election pledges. An officer goes on tour 30 times a year. Is it fair? This must stop, he said. He said the Power Development Board had been running a 60-MW power plant in Bheramara, spending Tk32 on electricity (per unit cost) against the Tk16-18 in other power stations. It expired much earlier. Why should it still be operational? the lawmaker asked. Shibli said the Tongi power station fails at least 70 times a year. What else can we expect from this plant? he said. Tajul said his committee had expressed concerns that officials and employees of PDB and Titas gas awarded illegal connections in exchange for extra sums of money while the genuine customers were deprived of their rights. l
Duty, quota-free
PAGE 1 COLUMN 2
the latest figures at a programme in the capital. The acting secretary general of the party alleged that the government was committing crimes against humanity through the killings, abductions and repression of BNP-led alliances leaders and activists throughout the country. The killings, abductions and repression will not stop unless they [the government] are ousted from power, Fakhrul said at the programme protesting cases filed against Khaleda Zia, Tarique Rahman and the killings and repression on BNP men across the country. A total of 272 opposition leaders have been killed and 25 abducted throughout the country since January last year until February this year. As if this was the medieval age.
They want to destroy nationalism, independence and sovereignty of the country, Fakhrul said. He alleged that the government was filing cases against BNP chief Khaleda Zia and her son Tarique Rahman exploiting the Anti-Corruption Commission. Some foreign friends donated money to the BNP and our chairperson decided to utilise it for orphanages. The money is still in the account. The case is completely false, he said. Fakhrul criticised the government for implicating Tarique in the August 21 grenade attack case and alleged that the investigation officer of the case had been changed to implicate Tarique. He called upon party activists and supporters to unite and wage a movement against the government. l
Jabbar was elected Member of Parliament twice with tickets from Ershads JaPa from Mathbaria, Pirojpur, in 1986 and 1988.Helal said Jabbar had not been active in politics for many years. Pirojpur police chief Asaduzzaman told that Dhaka Tribune that he could not say anything about the matter because they had notreceived any instructions from the tribunal as of yet. The investigation agency of the tribunal is currently probing war crimes charges against another suspect, Mohammad Nasir, who allegedly killed around 30 people in Kishoreganj in 1971. Local police, who have not managed to trace Nasir despite continuous drives, suspect that he might not be in
the area at all. Nasir, a former army personnel, used to live in Karimganj, Kishoreganj. Investigation officer Ataur Rahman claimed that he had found evidence that the suspect had committed atrocities in the Ayla village during the Liberation War. When asked what steps were taken to ensure that the suspect could not flee, Ataur said: It is the duty of the local law enforcers. We alerted them about the suspect long ago. Investigation is also ongoing against another suspect named Shakhawat Hossain, a JaPa presidium member. He was arrested in 2009 and a probe began against him in 2013. He, however, secured bail and had been absconding since.
In this situation, the investigation agency filed a petition, asking for direct arrest of suspects. It submitted a proposal to the Law Ministry on April 24 for amending the ICT Act 1973, said an insider. The chief of the investigation agency said as the process of seeking warrant for arrest is lengthy, suspects get sufficient time to flee which is alarming for the trial. Noted writer and war crimes trial campaigner Shahriar Kabir told the Dhaka Tribune that: There must be an investigation to find out whether any monetary transaction is facilitating the fleeing of the suspects. In this case, the investigation agency of the tribunal should remain careful and the media must play the role of a watchdog. l
West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee yesterday retorted that the people of Bengal will throw him [Modi] out. On a day marked by a war of words between her Trinamool Congress party and the BJP leader, a furious Mamata lashed out at Modi for accusing her of welcoming Bangladeshi immigrants for votes. Mr Modi wants to pack off Bengalis from India. Who is he to decide? Mamata said, adding that Bangladeshis came to India under a pact signed in 1971 by then prime minister Indira Gandhi and the first president of Bangladesh, Sheikh Mujibur Rahman. Mr Modi does not know history. He does not know that speaking in Bangla does not make one a Bangladeshi. Modi wants to divide Bengalis and non-Bengalis. Anyone who speaks in Bangla across India is branded a Bangladeshi. This is discrimination. If on Bengals
soil he says Bangladeshis will have to pack their bags and go, people of Bengal will throw him out, she said. Deporting illegal Bangladeshi immigrants has always been a part of the BJPs agenda; however, Modis sharp comments indicate it could move beyond rhetoric if the party comes to power after the national election. If the BJP came to power, it would investigate how so many people of a particular community could enter the country illegally, and settle down, said BJP President Rajnath Singh recently in a statement. Some reports suggest that there are about 20 million Bangladeshi immigrants in India at present, however there are no reliable figures. The BJP calls them a drain on the nations income and resources. Bangladeshi immigration to India results mainly due to the communal tension that periodically rocks
the country, mainly right after election-time. Even though many who cross the border in search of greener grass, ultimately fail and return while the cash and assets they had get lost in transition. Trade with Bangladesh remains a major stimulus for the Indian economy. The growing bilateral trade deficit with India rose from $774m in 2000 to $1.9bn in 2005, and $2.9bn in 2010. Bilateral trade also takes place through informal trade between the two countries. As a consequence, the actual deficit (formal plus informal) would be significantly higher. A survey conducted by the Bangladesh Unnayan Parishad (BUP) almost a decade ago, revealed that, on average, commodities worth Tk832.2m were smuggled every month into Bangladesh from India. Thus, for the states that neighbour Bangladesh as well as Bihar and Odisha, relationship with Bangladesh remains
important, and mostly welcomed. Modis remarks come days after Subramanyan Swamy, another veteran BJP leader and former cabinet minister, said one-third of Bangladeshs land should be compensated to India for the influx of its citizens there. If Bangladesh does not agree to take back its people, then the country should compensate by giving land to India, Swamy said on Friday. In February, Modis comments appearing to draw a distinction between Hindu and Muslim migrants had triggered a row. He said: We have a responsibility towards Hindus who are harassed and suffer in other countries. Where will they go? India is the only place for them. Our government cannot continue to harass them. We will have to accommodate them here. Modis party manifesto also controversially mentions that India is a nat-
ural home for persecuted Hindus, and in its vaguely defined foreign policy, it pursues Nation first, global brotherhood. However, the BJP last week had restricted Pakistani access to its website, and almost 10 days ago, Giriraj Singh, a BJP leader from Bihar, told an election rally in Jharkhand: Those who want to stop Narendra Modi from becoming prime minister will have no place in India in the coming days. They will only have place in Pakistan. Despite a spirited intervention by the Election Commission when it recently banned election speeches in UP by Narendra Modi aide Amit Shah and SP strongman Azam Khan for divisive statements hateful, intimidating and threatening poll rhetoric is showing no signs of ebbing. The BJP, and Modi, a former RSS leader, however, have been advocating communal tolerance as the way forward for the new India. l
Delaney said he was extremely grateful by the government decision to reduce tariff on fire and safety equipment. It enables me to go to United States and tell my government that the Bangladesh government is really facilitating improvement in these factories, they are taking these very seriously and doing everything they can to address the fire and safety issues, he said. However, a trade specialist had earlier told the Dhaka Tribune that Washington demanded a reduction of the duty on fire and safety equipment, as it wanted to export the products to Bangladesh market. About the GSP issue, Delaney said there was more work to be done in the implementation of labour law reform, safety and inspection. These are the things that have been launched but they are very much work in progress and they are not completed, he said. Washington suspended GSP facility for Bangladesh in June last year blaming poor working conditions in the country. When asked about the comment of Finance Minister AMA Muhith that Bangladesh-US political relationship was not comfortable, Delaney said: I did note the finance ministers remark, I read them in the local media and I have seen the record. I would leave it to the finance minister to explain. However, speaking after yesterdays Ticfa meeting, US Ambasador Dan Mozena said Bangladesh-US relationship was never stronger, deeper and broader than now. I would offer the development of the last two weeks. We had last week, security dialogue, and just concluded the very first meeting of Ticfa. I could not be more pleased with this meeting today, he said. About the high duty paid by Bangladesh compared to other countries including China, Delaney said the claim was not correct. Bangladesh and China enjoy most favoured nation status in the US and both of them pay same tariff rate for their exportable items, he said. l
DHAKA TRIBUNE
News
3
Mahmudur indicted in corruption case n Md Sanaul Islam Tipu
A Dhaka court framed charges against the daily Amar Desh acting editor Mahmudur Rahman yesterday, in connection with a case filed by the Anti-Corruption Commission in 2010. The case says Mahmudur, former energy adviser to the then prime minister Khaleda Zia in 2001-06, failed to submit his wealth statement despite several legal notices served to him. He also concealed his source of income.
Mahmudur was served legal notices by the ACC repeatedly to disclose his wealth status, but he did not respond
Garment workers of Tunic Fashion hold a demonstration in front of the National Press Club, demanding compensation and payment of dues before the closure of their factory MAHMUD HOSSAIN OPU Dhakas Third Special Court Judge Basudev Roy passed the indictment order in the presence of the accused and set May 28 for the beginning of the trial with the prosecution witness testimony. During the proceedings, Mahmudur claimed that he was a victim of political vendetta as the newspaper had published articles against Sajeeb Wazed Joy, son of the prime minister. The government filed 70 cases against me to implement its master plan. This is a purely political agenda, he alleged. Before passing the order the court also rejected a time petition and a discharge petition, filed by the defence, after a hearing. Defence lawyer Sanaullah Miah filed the petitions yesterday mentioning that a hearing with the High Court was pending for a leave to appeal. He said the accused had been shown arrested in nine cases. However, ACC lawyer Mosharraf Hossain Kajal said Mahmudur had been served legal notices repeatedly for disclosing his wealth status, adding, But he did not respond to the notices. He should be indicted in this case. ACC Deputy Director Nur Ahammad filed the case with the Gulshan police on April 13, 2010. The charge sheet was submitted to the court on July 15 the same year. Following this, Mahmudur filed a stay petition with the High Court. After it was rejected last year, he had lodged a leave to appeal. Mahmudur was produced before the court from the Kashimpur Jail. Also blamed for instigating violence and spreading religious propaganda, Mahmudur has been in jail since April 11 last year. The arrest was made almost four months after he had been sued for publishing reports on Skype conversations between a judge of the International Crimes Tribunal and an expatriate Bangladeshi legal expert. l
The witness said his father and six others of a food storehouse had been killed for providing the freedom fighters with food
At that time the witness and his younger brother had been inside the go-down. The six others were the then sub-divisional food controller Abdul Aziz, circle inspector Abdul Khaleque, acting of icer Rezaul Karim, handing controller Tara Mia and two guards. Qaisar threatened my father and
his colleagues not to send food outside, continued Ali. The witness said he had seen Qaisar and members of the Qaisar Bahini taking the seven staff, on foot, to a nearby rest house, which was used as a Pakistani occupation forces camp. Around 2pm, the collaborators and the troops had taken the confined persons to the bank of the Khowai River. The witness said he had seen this while hiding in a sugarcane field. Qaisar then asked the Pakistan Army to shoot my father and others to death. The bodies were thrown into the river. As I was helpless, I could not do anything, he said. Witness Mostafa identified the accused in the dock. After his deposition, defence counsel SM Shajahan asked him one question and the tribunal has set today for further cross-examination. l
Administration officials confiscate a property of AM Rashed Chowdhury, a convicted fugitive killer of Bangabandhu, at Chandpur yesterday DHAKA TRIBUNE
DHAKA TRIBUNE
News
Buses often abruptly queue up in the middle of the road to board passengers causing a clog of vehicles behind them. The photo was taken from the capitals Shahbagh area yesterday
SYED ZAKIR HOSSAIN
DHANMONDI PLAYGROUND
Authorities concerned inspect the derailed compartments of a Dinajpur-bound train on the Bangabandhu Bridge on Sunday night. The picture was taken yesterday DHAKA TRIBUNE
DHAKA TRIBUNE
News
Workers in tannery, ship breaking and agro industries are vulnerable to hazardous contamination
The lives of more than 20,000 tannery workers are still at risk, the expert added. Speakers emphasised that workers in the vulnerable sectors should be provided with adequate training so that they can avoid exposure to detrimental substances. State Minster for Labour and Employment Md Mujibul Haque Chunnu, executive director of OSHE AR Chowdhury Repon, Member Secretary of the National Coordination Committee for Workers' Education Chowdhury Ashiqul Alam addressed the discussion. l
Local people block the Dhaka-Chittagong Highway at Siddhirganj in Narayanganj yesterday, protesting abduction of a ward councillor
DHAKA TRIBUNE
Yaba trader shot in gunfight with police n Ashif Islam Shaon US-made automated .22 AK rifle, n Our Correspondent, Coxs Bazar An two magazines and eight bullets were
An alleged yaba trader was shot in a socalled shootout with police at Coxs Bazars Chakaria upazila, yesterday. Three policemen also received bullet injuries in the gunfight at the upazilas Uttaran Residential Area, police claim. Police recovered a shotgun, two cartridges and a bullet shell from the scene. Chakaria police station Officer-in-Charge Md Nasir Uddin says they arrested Mostak Ahmed, the son of Mohammad Fazlul Haq of the residential area, at the Nalbila Forest Station on Sunday morning. When he was interrogated, he confessed that he had a haul of yaba tablets and firearms at some place in the residential area, he said. With that lead, we raided the area and faced an attack from his (Mostak) cohorts in the early hours of today (yesterday), said Nasir. The yaba traders fired at least 15 rounds of bullets while the police fired at least 10, he said. Three police men, Mohammad Hossain, Mohammad Selim and Jane Alam and the yaba trader Mostak were injured in the gunfight. All the four have been admitted to the Coxs Bazar General Hospital. Police filed two cases. Six yaba traders have been killed a in gunfights with law enforcers in Coxs Bazar recently. l recovered and two individuals arrested by police from an intercity train Subarna Express at Airport Railway Station in the capital yesterday afternoon. The lawmen also found three switchgear knives, 10 small packets of power gel, 10 detonators and some electric wire in their possession. The arrestees are Nurul Islam, 35, and Shamim, alias Abdullah, 35, said Railway Range DIG of police Sohrab Hossain. Police suspect that the duo might be JMB operatives. A team of Government Railway Police (GRP) made the arrest and seized the arms and ammunition from the trains compartment before it reached the station around 1:15pm.
TUESDAY, APRIL 29
DHAKA TODAY TOMORROW SUN SETS 6:26PM SUN RISES 5:25AM FORECAST FOR TODAY
Dhaka Chittagong Rajshahi Rangpur Khulna Barisal Sylhet Coxs Bazar 38 34 41 36 40 38 36 34 27 25 27 24 26 26 22 25 College students hold a rally on the premises of the Central Shaheed Minar in the capital yesterday, demanding upholding of carry on system in professional examinations DHAKA TRIBUNE
39.0C Rajshahi
Hearing of revision petition against RAB for laming Limon deferred again
n Our Correspondent, Barisal
The hearing of the revision petition lodged by Henoara Begum, mother of Limon Hossain, challenging the dismissal of the case against six RAB personnel accused of maiming her son, was deferred for the eighth time yesterday. Kiran Shangkar Haldar, acting district and sessions judge, fixed June 26 as the next date for the hearing, said Advocate Akkas Hossain, lawyer of Henoara. According to Jhalakathi district Public Prosecutor Advocate Golam Rasul Mannan, the date was deferred as Shahidullah Baqaul, district and session judge, was transferred from Jhalakathi to Dhaka on January 16, 2014 and his replacement is yet to join duty. Henoara Begum, however, protested the delay of the prosecution and said she would continue her fight for justice. Limon was shot in the leg and maimed in an alleged RAB shooting adjacent to his house at Jamaddarhat in Rajapur upazila of Jhalakathi on March 23, 2011, just about a fortnight before his HSC examination. Limons left leg was amputated from the thigh on March 27 at Dhaka National Institute for Traumatolgy and Orthopaedic Rehabilitation Hospital. Henoara then tried to lodge a case against six RAB personnel, but Rajapur police refused to file one. Later, the police filed a case against the RAB members on April 10, 2011 following a court directive. However, the police on August 14, 2012 secretly filed the final report claiming that they had found no evidence against the RAB men. Limons mother filed a no confidence (Naraji) against the report on August 30, 2012. Jhalakathi senior judicial magistrate on February 13, 2013 rejected the no confidence (naraji) plea and acquitted the six RAB personnel. A plea of revision against the rejection of the no confidence motion was lodged with Jhalakathi District and Sessions Judge Court on March 13, 2013. l
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18.9C Sylhet
PRAYER TIMES
Fajar Sunrise Zohr Asr Magrib Esha 4:07am 5:26am 11:56am 4:22pm 6:26pm 7:47pm
Source: IslamicFinder.org
DHAKA TRIBUNE
Nation
A house lies in damaged condition as norwester hit Sunamganj in the early hours of yesterday
DHAKA TRIBUNE
in Rajbari
nature from the environment pollution they are causing, they said. They condemned the municipality authorities participation in the canals encroachment. The authorities have allowed these destructive activities in the name of different types of public and private development work, they said. We demand the immediate recovery of the canal from the grabbers, they added. Among others, Ahmed Nizam from the Stadium Land Protecting Committee, Mohammad Ali Chowdhury, former municipal mayor, Khan Mohammad Jahurul Haque, president of Rajbari Press Club, Comrade Abul Kalam, Dr Sunil Kumar Biswas, Mohsin Uddin Batu and Awami League leader Ali Hossen Poni addressed the participants of the human chain. Later, the protesters gave separate memorandums in this regard to the deputy commissioner and the police super of Rajbari. l
DHAKA TRIBUNE
Long Form
Wheres my money?
Bangladeshs foreign exchange policy regime needs to be more Asia-oriented
Bangladeshs international trade is mostly financed or invoiced in US dollars. Theres no rational basis for that, certainly not if you go by trade figures
REUTERS
n Nofel Wahid
he US only accounted for approximately 19% of Bangladeshs total exports in 2013. The rest went to other countries, mostly European Union economies that use the Euro. And when it comes to imports, Bangladeshs major import sources are China and India, as shown in the table. Given those facts, it is hard to justify why Bangladeshs international trade is mostly financed in USdollars. The use of the USdollar for international transactions rose with US preeminence after the Second World War, and changed little for decades. In that respect it is not too unlike English, which has remained the most widely-used international language, despite British global influence having long since waned. When it comes to international benchmarks, inertia matters. However, the times are changing. With Chinas economic re-emergence the Chinese Renminbi (RMB) is fast becoming an alternative trade currency. Last year, the RMB surpassed
Imports
Country name Market share (%)
1 2 3 4 5
the Euro to become the second most widely-used currency for international trade. Although the Chinese Government is currently promoting RMB invoicing with its key trading partners such as the US, the EU, Australia and a few others, we are not too far away from a future when the Chinese Governments attention will turn to South Asia, primarily India, but also Pakistan and Bangladesh. Dont be surprised if five years down the road the Chinese Government gives the Bangladeshi Government a quiet nudge to encourage local banks and businessmen to start invoicing trade with China in RMB, and not US dollars. If that happens, it will be to our benefit for two reasons. First of all, it will lower the cost of trade. Currently, a Bangladeshi importer pays a transaction fee to a local bank to buy US dollars, which is then used to pay the Chinese exporter. The Chinese exporter then pays another transaction fee to a Chinese bank to convert the USdollars into RMB for
everyday use. These transaction fees at both ends are a cost barrier to more trade between Bangladesh and China. Now imagine if the Bangladeshi importer could buy RMB from a local bank to pay the Chinese exporter. The Chinese exporter would no longer have to pay an extra transaction cost, which creates an incentive to trade more with Bangladesh compared to some other country where RMB invoicing does not happen. The same advantage would work for our exporters too. If Bangladeshi RMG exporters were paid in Taka by the Chinese importer, it would save costs, boost profits and would create an incentive to export more to China. Direct financing of international trade in other currencies would reduce the need for using the US dollar as an intermediary currency. It would reduce the emphasis that is currently placed on the US dollar-Taka exchange rate by BB, and make macroeconomic management less prone to policy coordination and timing errors. The Bangladesh Bank (BB) has an explicit policy of managing the US dollar exchange rate. Whether the focus is on landing the exchange rate at a certain level (say Tk70per US dollar) or managing the volatility of the Taka against the US dollar is a moot point. BBs key priority is essentially to ensure that the US dollar exchange rate doesnt cause headaches, either by appreciating too much and annoying exporters or by becoming too volatile and annoying everybody, exporters and importers alike. That has been the primary motivation behind BBs policy of buying USdollars over the past year or so, which has boosted our foreign exchange reserves to more than $18bn. It is not the only reason why foreign exchange reserves have spiked, but it is the primary policy driver behind that development. However, BBs US dollar-centric foreign exchange policy regime is not without its tradeoffs. Generally speaking, buying foreign exchange from the market (i.e. banks) boosts the monetary base and can lead to higher inflation. In our case, this may not have happened because demand fell due to the political turmoil we witnessed last year. However, the political turmoil also led to supply-side disruptions, which can also lead to higher inflation. How does that make sense! How can political turmoil lead to higher inflation on the one hand and dampen inflation on the other? Well, thats the economy for you. Its complex to say the least. One shock or event can lead to a chain reaction, and untangling each causeand-effect is not easy. It is not easy for any policymaking institution, and much less so for under-skilled developing economy institutions such as the BB. Timing and coordination errors in policymaking are common. BBs mismanagement of its bank loan provisioning policy is a case in point.
Over the past couple of years, BB had moved towards raising bad loan provisioning standards within local banks to international best practice. BB was slowly chipping away at it until a sudden reversal of policy late last year. In fact, BB had tightened loan provisioning standards as late as September last year, before reversing the course a couple of months later. The justification provided was that political turmoil had taken a toll on the economy and businessmen were finding it difficult to service their
ical economy balancing act that now requires them to ensure both exporters and importers are happy with the US dollar exchange rate level. The other significant benefit from having international trade financed in other currencies is that it makes capital account liberalisation easier. BB has slowly come around to undertaking reforms that will liberalise the financial sector and open up the capital account. However, one of the biggest impediments to timely reforms is
If Bangladeshi RMG exporters were paid in taka by the Chinese importer, it would save costs, boost profits and would create an incentive to export more to China
loans. Therefore, loan provisioning standards applied by banks had to be weakened. BB only realised that in December last year? Seriously! It demonstrates the kind of policy timing and coordination errors government institutions make. BB would probably respond to such criticism by saying that hindsight is 20-20 and they had to act, so better late than never. Fair enough. But what is even better is if you are able to create conditions that dont require policy interventions to begin with, and therefore, minimise the risk of policy mistakes. The simple fact is that the BB would not need to closely manage or target the US dollar exchange rate if most of Bangladeshs international trade was not financed in US dollars. It would enable them to avoid a complex politthe strongly-held fear within BB that opening up the capital account will lead to large flights of foreign capital (i.e. US dollars) from Bangladesh. This in turn would lead to higher US dollar exchange rate volatility and cause macroeconomic headaches. Net capital outflows from liberalisation may or may not be large, but US dollars outflows will not matter as much if import payments from China and India are financed in RMB and Rupees. Those two economies alone account for nearly 40% of total imports, and direct financing of trade in those currencies reduces the need to hold vast amounts of USdollars to cushion against balance of payment shocks. The currency mix of foreign exchange reserves may need to be diversified if more trade is financed in other currencies, but that has little to do
with the US dollar volatility argument for adopting a painfully slow approach to liberalising the capital account. Furthermore, initially allowing capital outflows in RMB to Hong Kong or Shanghai is another solution to liberalising the capital account without having any impact on the USdollar exchange rate. This would increase financial flows between Bangladesh and China and increase the liquidity of each currency in the respective economies. Ensuring greater market liquidity is an important hedge against volatility and reduces the need for holding large foreign currency reserves. It is somewhat bemusing to often hear the Bangladesh Bank cite the risk of making policy error when talking about capital account liberalisation. And yet, that does not appear to be a constraint when it comes to its foreign exchange rate policies, where defending a nearly-fixed US dollar exchange rate has led BB to pile up massive foreign exchange reserves and stoke inflationary risks. Overly restrictive capital controls have hampered the development of the Bangladeshi financial system, and is one of the main reasons behind double-digit interest rates. The private sector does not invest as much as it should; and why should they when the money needed to invest attracts a penalty rate of 15%. Not surprisingly, Bangladeshs GDP growth has stagnated at 6% per annum. Changing that story will require a whole raft of reforms. Not all of it falls on the shoulders of the Bangladesh Bank. But taking measures such as promoting the use of other currencies to finance international trade, allowing the US dollar to float more freely and liberalising the capital account lies squarely in the Bangladesh Banks court. l Nofel Wahid is an economist.
If international trade was financed by RMB or rupees, it would incentivise the neighbouring countries to trade among each other more and more SYED ZAKIR HOSSAIN
DHAKA TRIBUNE
World
An Egyptian woman mourns as policemen stand guard after a judge sentenced to death 683 alleged supporters of the countrys ousted Islamist president over acts of violence and the murder of policemen in the latest mass trial in the southern city of Minya, Egypt AP
Those sentenced on Monday were accused of involvement in the murder and attempted murder of policemen in Minya province on August 14, the day police killed hundreds of Morsi supporters in clashes in Cairo. Defence lawyers boycotted the last session, branding it farcical after the mass death sentencing which the United Nations denounced as a breach of international human rights law. Lawyer Elkomy claims 60 percent of the 529 defendants, including teachers and some doctors, have evidence that proves they were not present the day they were accused of attacking the Matay police station in Minya, said the Avaaz human rights group. The government has defended the courts handling of the first mass death sentences, insisting the sentences were passed only after careful study and were subject to appeal. Prosecutor Abdel Rahim Abdel Malek defended the charges against the 529. l
within the Brotherhood. The death verdict was the first against Badie, who along with Morsi
Syria bars refugees who fled via unofficial posts from voting
n AFP, Damascus
Syrians who fled their war-torn country via unofficial crossings will be barred from voting in next months presidential elections, the countrys electoral commission chief said yesterday. Syrians who left Syria illegally do not have the right to vote in host countries, Hisham Shaar was quoted as saying by pro-regime newspaper AlWatan on Monday. Some 88 percent of registered Syrian refugees in Lebanon now home to more than a million people who fled Syrias brutal war entered the tiny Mediterranean country via official crossings, according to the UN. However, most of those who fled to Turkey and Iraq did not go through government-controlled crossings. Shaar said: Electoral law authorises Syrians who reside abroad legally to vote. Syrian territory is open to all Syrian citizens who wish to exercise their right to vote, especially those living in neighbouring countries. Syrias opposition and the West have slammed the June 3 vote as a farce and a parody. l
A bust of former South African President Nelson Mandela after its unveiling by dignitaries at the South African Parliament in Cape Town, South Africa AP ty of all South Africans, Zuma said. The celebration comes just over a week before South Africans head to the polls. The May 7 election is likely to see the ruling African National Congress return to power with a smaller majority than in past elections, reflecting discontent with the movement that led the fight against apartheid. South Africa boasts a widely admired constitution and an active civil society and the government has delivered housing, water and electricity to millions since 1994, but a wide gap between rich and poor overshadows the many achievements of the rainbow nation. l
Five members of the security forces were killed by another suicide bomber at a polling station in the citys north. Attacks elsewhere killed 15 members of the security forces, officials said. In the main northern city of Mosul, six Iraqi journalists were wounded as a bomb exploded while they were in a military vehicle to cover the vote. The blasts shattered an early morning calm as soldiers and policemen queued outside polling stations amid tight security, before leaving with the traditional purple ink-stained finger indicating they had voted. No group claimed responsibility for the bloodshed, but Sunni militant groups are typically blamed for suicide bombings and for trying to derail the political process. Government officials did not publicly comment on the attacks. Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki is seeking a third term with Iraqis frustrated over poor basic services, rampant corruption and high unemployment. l
At least 17 killed as tornadoes rip through Arkansas, Oklahoma n Reuters, Little Rock, Arkansas
Tornadoes ripped through the south-central United States on Sunday, killing at least 17 people in Arkansas and Oklahoma and wiping out entire neighborhoods, authorities said as rescue workers searched in darkness for survivors. Winds ripped houses off their foundations and flipped cars on top of the rubble in the small town of Vilonia in central Arkansas Faulkner county, one of the worst-hit communities, television pictures showed. Arkansas authorities said at least 10 people had died in Faulkner and six more across the state - the first reported fatalities of this years tornado season. Another person was killed in neighboring Oklahoma, said the sheriff s department. Searchers were continuing to dig through rubble in Vilonia and a spokesman for the County Sheriff s office said there was a mass casualty situation. l
DHAKA TRIBUNE
World
9
Video shows S Korea ferry captain escape sinking ship n AFP, Hong Kong
South Koreas coastguard yesterday released a video showing the trouserless captain of a sinking ferry scrambling to safety as hundreds remained trapped inside a move expected to intensify criticism of the crew over the disaster. The 10-minute video taken by rescue officials and aired on the YTN news channel shows 69-year-old captain Lee Joon-seok, wearing a sweater and underpants, hastily escaping from the bridge of the tilting ship before it sank on April 16. All 15 of the surviving crew responsible for sailing the huge ferry are in custody, facing charges including negligence and abandoning passengers. Victims families have bitterly criticised the official response to the disaster, saying delays in accessing the submerged ship may have robbed any survivors of their last chance to make it out alive. The video attracted caustic online comment. Look at the captain running out of the ship without his pants on. How pathetic. Cant believe he didnt think about all the children trapped there while he rushed so quickly to save his own life, said one user. l
How the hunt has led to the depth of the Indian Ocean
Malaysia Airlines MH370, carrying 227 passengers and 12 crew vanished after veering off course on March 8
Lost contact
MALAYSIA
4 The Malaysian PM on March 15 announced that the plane appears to have been flown deliberately for hours Satellite data suggested the last known possible position was somewhere along two radar arcs at 8:11 am 5 The Australia-led
1 Departed
INDONESIA
Actual path of MH370 after 01:30 am March 8 is unknown The dotted line represents the best estimate based on various reports
Southern arc of the radar band that MH370 is calculated to have crossed
INDIAN OCEAN
6 On March 24 the
Areas searched Signal detected by Ocean Shield (Australia) April 6 Possible black box signal detected by Hai Xun (China) April 5
Learmonth AUSTRALIA
Malaysian PM announced that MH370 was presumed crashed in the Indian Ocean Further analysis of satellite data had confirmed that the plane must have flown south
Perth
8 April 5 and 6
Detection of possible black box signals
9 April 14
10 April 28
1000 km
2000
Australia announces an intensified undersea search, says highly unlikely to find surface wreckage
Obama seeks to soothe China while boosting ties with Philippines n Reuters, Bangkok n AFP, Manila Thai opposition leader Abhisit Vejjajiva
President Barack Obama said yesterday he had no desire to contain or counter China despite clinching a defence pact with the Philippines which will inject US forces close to the volatileSouthChina Sea. In the Philippines on the final leg of an Asian tour, Obama directly addressed leaders in Beijing, telling them that maritime territorial disputes needed to be addressed peacefully, not with intimidation or coercion. Chinas claims to various islands, reefs and atolls in the South and East China Sea have been a constant theme of Obamas tour of countries which fear being squeezed by the giant nations emergence as a regional superpower. Obama faced a delicate task in Manila as he sought to reassure an ally concerned about an increasingly assertive China, but to avoid worsening tense Sino-US ties by antagonising leaders in Beijing. We welcome Chinas peaceful rise. We have a constructive relationship with China, Obama said at a press conference with Philippine President Benigno Aquino. Our goal is not to counter China. Our goal is not to contain China, Obama said, taking on suspicions in Beijing that his policy of rebalancing power towards the Asia-Pacific was tantamount to encirclement. The US leader said that Washington did not take a position on the sovereignty of disputed territories variously claimed by China, Malaysia, Japan, the Philippines, Brunei and Vietnam. l
100,000-year-old sea grass meadow is located in a UNESCO-protected waterway between the islands of Ibiza and Formentera, near Spain.
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DHAKA TRIBUNE
Editorial
LETTER OF THE DAY
Letters to
the Editor
he finance minister has asked MPs for solutions to what he labels as the problem of money being siphoned out of the country. He is missing the bigger issue. Our basic laws on flows of capital are simply not fit for purpose. Currency regulations need to be modernised so that transactions which are perfectly legal in other countries are not considered money laundering in the first place. The law should differentiate between illegally earned money being sent abroad, and the freedom of citizens to spend their own money as they see fit. Our current currency controls are an affront to freedom and based on an outdated mindset, which believes that policy goals can be willed by bureaucratic fiat. It is the very rigidity of such current controls which actively encourages foreign exchange payments via informal channels, contrary to the very aims of anti-money laundering laws in the first place. It also unnecessarily increases scope for corruption. The government should not see it as its job to restrict people sending legitimately earned money abroad for legitimate reasons. Even countries such as India, which have shared the same outdated restrictive mindset as Bangladesh, now have more liberal exceptions that allow people to transfer money overseas for the purposes of education, health and investment. We should be bolder and have a free currency exchange regime so there is no incentive for people to hide their capital and income. Deregulating controls can help the economy by eliminating incentives for bypassing the law and attracting more capital for investment.
April 26 This decision, taken by the government and effective from April 20, seems utterly meaningless, ineffective, uneconomic and technically unjustified. Shutting any generating unit, even a small one (say 250KW), at the coolest time of night, will not cool it down to any appreciable level. If so desperately needed, why not shut down one unit at a time, say from 11pm to 6am, when power demand is lowest? This is a more realistic solution. Or take out one unit at a time, get its cooling system cleaned out, and put back overnight. That could be far more effective and rational. I have over 30 years of hands-on expertise in the operation and maintenance of industrial plants and their power supply units, but I have never seen or heard of such a crude and ineffective practice. Is something wrong with the ventilation system? If there is insufficient air flow in the generation room, housing may be a number of units, then it may be better to break the outer room walls (from outside) to increase cross ventilation, or fix air supply fans to the outside to increase air flow. Engr SA Mansoor
The government should not restrict the freedom of citizens to spend their own money as they see fit
Completely fair
April 22 Ronnie Yet another polemic where the author seems to be breathlessly venting on an issue with a somewhat exaggerated frustration and fury. :) Darn, Ill reluctantly grant him that because I admit Im almost totally on the same page with him on this specific issue. Id only have liked to see a lot less of the many padded sentences, self-indulgent sarcasm and irritating repetitions, throughout. Everybody would have gotten the authors main message loud and clear in a piece no more than half as long. But yes, the ban brigade behave too much like a bunch of preachy hypocrites and economic Luddites. I dock the author many points for an awful choice of product placement, calling baloney like a Pran mango bar awesome is cringe-inducing. Lol. However, the allusion to allowing the invisible hand be a guide to consumer behaviour and the fate of products earns the author bonus points. The nod to the great Adam Smith is much appreciated. good bro Nice write-up, but dear please dont use such vocabulary again ... as it not easy to digest. :) Mahmudul Islam Why would anyone NOT buy a Pran mango bar, they are awesome - well, but are they hygienic? (an emo expressing sadness should be inserted here) Faruq Hasan Mahmudul Islam: My stomach is made of steel, so I can digest anything. :) Mahmudul Islam Faruq Hasan: I need to develop such a stomach, searching on Google if I can find any tips or guideline. How crazy is this? This article has become the most read piece today on the DT!!
April 23 These should be moved to the Liberation War Museum. Rumi Ahmed
Fugstar Would be interesting if you related this to the crack down last year and the colonial donor matrix Madiha From my previous readings of this writers work, he does tend to focus on specific cases while leaving the door open for readers to draw parallels. This is both due to the sheer number of similar cases available worldwide and the pragmatic consideration of his and
his publications safety. Nonetheless, the comparison drawn by Fugstar is really interesting and one that shows that this piece is not just an indictment of the first world but a warning to our country too. Shabnaz An insightful look at an event that did not get much coverage in Bangladesh. Both interesting and terrifying to read, the possibilities it opens up for the rest of the world are disturbing.
he countrys ranking on the Cato Institutes Misery Index does not reveal any new facts. Being based solely on economic indicators, it misses factors such as literacy and inequalities, so reveals less than the human development and social indices on which Bangladesh scores relatively well for its economys size. The misery index is more useful when comparing economic management by different governments within the same country. However, it is too narrow to meaningfully compare different countries. Bangladeshs score of 20.8 is within a point of major economies such as Italy and Russia and is better than India and Pakistan. Its ranking of 31 is in the lower reaches of the 51 countries found with scores of 15 or above, out of the total 90 countries compared. Scores were calculated under a variant of the traditional misery index (sum of inflation plus unemployment) by subtracting the real percentage change in GDP per capita from the sum total of unemployment rate, bank lending rate, and inflation rates. Were it not for a GDP growth rate above the world average, the countrys ranking would be worse, due to the large number of people not in formal employment. In common with other SAARC nations in the report, high interest rates were the biggest contributor to the countrys score. The underlying figures are still important to note however. Bangladeshs score on this index still needs to be lowered. Finding a sustainable way to reduce borrowing rates will be key as this would create jobs and boost growth.
Write to us at: Dhaka Tribune FR Tower, 8/C Panthapath Sukrabad, Dhaka-1207 Email us at: letters.dt@dhakatribune.com Send us your Op-Ed articles: opinion.dt@dhakatribune.com Visit our website: www.dhakatribune.com Come join our Facebook community: https://www.facebook.com/DhakaTribune
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Finding a sustainable way to reduce borrowing rates will be key to improve our score
PEANUTS
CROSSWORD
ACROSS 1 Ooze (4) 4 Wanderer (5) 8 Incentive (6) 9 Consumer (4) 11 Supple (5) 12 Woody plant (4) 14 Droop (3) 15 Reluctant (6) 19 Quickly (mus) (6) 21 Help (3) 22 Legal document (4) 24 Perfect (5) 27 Notion (4) 29 Country (6) 30 Phantom (5) 31 Does wrong (4) DOWN 1 Former French coin (3) 2 Come forth (6) 3 Skin opening (4) 4 Nothing (3) 5 Sheeplike (5) 6 Encountered (3) 7 Judged (6) 10 Main actor (4) 13 Consume (3) 14 Season (6) 16 Solemn promise (3) 17 Attacker (6) 18 Location (4) 20 Flies upwards (5) 23 Starchy food (4) 25 Self (3) 26 Permit (3) 28 Donkey (3)
SUDOKU
YESTERDAYS SOLUTIONS
Crossword
How to solve Sudoku: Fill in the blank spaces with the numbers 1 9. Every row, column and 3 x 3 box must contain all nine digits with no numberrepeating.
Sudoku
DHAKA TRIBUNE
Op-Ed
11
Many innocent visitors stand at risk also from the weight of their own unsuitable clothing
BIGSTOCK
n Nikhil Seth
he quest for a life of dignity for all present and future generations, is not easy. Ending grinding poverty is undoubtedly the highest priority. But ending poverty irreversibly and reducing risks of future setbacks, implies actions which are both people and planet-centred. Shared prosperity, reduced risk of environmental catastrophe and social cohesion cannot be pursued in silos. Integrated responses hold the key to success. At the international level, largely through the UN family, the discourse on development has matured. The adjective sustainable is now routinely added before the word development. Adding this little adjective brings in the complexities I mention the longer time horizon, people, our planet earth, and the search for integrated solutions. It is this search for an intelligent comprehensive framework that is pre-occupying the UN and its member states, civil society and the private sector, scientists, and academia. Recent experience has shown the fragility of progress in moving people out of extreme poverty as well as the fragility of our planet. Gains can easily be reversed and many recent examples illustrate this vulnerability: Political, ethnic, and social strife, financial / economic crises, volatility in the prices of food and energy, serious health events at the level of the family and the community, increased intensity of disasters especially extreme water events, slow onset events like climate change, drought, and desertification. A meaningful development agenda has to reduce risks, mitigate impacts of shocks, whether natural or man-made, and focus equally on prevention and
on resilience of economies, societies, and ecosystems in order to help people move out and remain out of poverty. How will the new approaches to sustainable development define our actions? Let me quote Gandhiji: Recall the face of the poorest and weakest person you may have seen is the step you contemplate going to be of any use to him will it restore him control over his own life and destiny?
The negative forces are political, economic, social, and environmental. They are crucially linked to what President Roosevelt had called the four freedoms including freedom from want and from fear. It is the integrated vision of development that we are striving to achieve, with a comprehensive vision which looks at priorities in a cohesive way rather than in silos. It is the hope that
While migration presents many opportunities, it also remains a considerable governance challenge at all levels
Think of the poorest person you have ever met and the forces operating to prevent this persons escaping the clutches of poverty. No job, no education, no skills, ill health, hunger and malnutrition, social exclusion, inequality, and discrimination are all self-evident. These were targeted by the MDGs. But there are numerous other forces including the physical and social environment around this individual pollution, lack of hygiene, threat to life and limb, civil strife and threat of violence, violation of human rights, lack of recourse to justice, lack of mobility, lack of opportunity in a stagnant economy. In sometimes imperceptible ways, the natural environment, through climate change, increased risk and intensity of disasters, bio-diversity loss, pollution oceans in crisis, is also acting on this individual.
the adoption of an ambitious post-2015 development agenda will catalyse actions for our people and our planet. This comprehensive vision needs to be informed by trends shaping our world. Looking into the next 15-30 years, four mega trends are clear: Our plant will continue to warm with the risks dependent on the magnitude of our response, which will pose severe impacts on economies, our societies, and the environment. Our population will continue to grow to 9 billion with the bulk of the increase in the developing world and contraction elsewhere. Urbanisation will be a defining trend with 60% to 70% of our world living in cities. The number of international migrants is expected to rise from 232 million today to 405 million migrants in 2050. Migration will also continue to rise from the desire of human beings to
find economic opportunity, escape human insecurity, and in response to changing environmental conditions. To look into a future sustainable development agenda without considering migration would be short-sighted, incomplete, and counterproductive. The broad vision for the sustainable future we want has the following core elements: Universal applicability, with actions differentiated by the capacities, means, and national priorities, promotes integrated vision of the deeply intertwined economic, social, and environmental challenges we face, people-centred, inclusive, and just with respect for the human rights and fundamental freedoms of all. While migration presents many opportunities, it also remains a considerable governance challenge at all levels. We are now entering into a critical phase in the shaping of the post-2015 agenda. Our challenge is now to discuss and find out how migration can become an integral part of the Sustainable Development Goals with giving emphasis on migrants rights for safe and legal migration and reducing costs of transferring remittances. The challenge is to make these targets more specific and weave them subsequently into national, regional, and global actions. We must make sure that the contribution of migration to global prosperity is recognised and the rights of migrants are respected. Humane provisions for managing migration flows must be ensured in all countries and through international cooperation. The migrants and their families deserve this. We should not let them down. l Nikhil Seth is Director of the Division for Sustainable Development of the Department of Economic and Social Affairs of the United Nations.
Many, if not most, of the mobile phone-sponsored lifeguards on the beach, low paid and poorly supervised, represent more of an obstruction to pleasure than a safety precaution. They seem to be unaware of what actually represents a hazard to swimmers in terms of current and sea bed, noisily using their whistles to little effect; the effect being diminished by the habitual use of the vendors of death drawing attention to their speedboats and PWVs with whistles, enhancing a general air of confusion. In most countries with a tourism industry, areas for swimmers are protected, often by well-anchored, buoyed rope enclosures well beyond the low tide mark. Surfing areas also need protection from motor vehicles as much as swimmers need protection from them. Often, corridors are outlined for watercraft with engines, forcing them further away from both swimmers and surfers. Such informed attention can, of course, only help in major resort beaches. Ad hoc swimming, which the tragedy at St Martins Island apparently involved, requires more education in general. Bangladesh already has one of the highest rates of juvenile death by drowning in the world. Organisations such as CIPRB, so limited in resources and mainly focused on younger children in village communities, can only scratch the surface of the problem. There needs to be a concerted effort in schools, universities, and madrassas, promoting education on water safety, addressing subjects such as seabed layouts and tidal flows and currents. Rather than debating over this issue, when disasters occur, the media too could promote awareness about water safety in a nation that is nothing if not water-orientated. I, now a denizen of Coxs Bazar myself, take leave, in the wake of the South Korean ferry horror, to warn that the habitual overloading of ferries to St Martins Island is, like the continuing mixing of bathers and moored craft in the sea and the beach, with holiday makers on an uncontrolled basis, another accident waiting to happen. The commercial aims of tourism businesses around the country need, for their own sake, to begin to pay attention to the comfort and safety of the services they sell. Otherwise, there must come a time when travellers will seek safer places to relax and enjoy the benefits of the time out they save and pay for, returning home safe and sound rather than in coffins or from hospital beds. Such businesses offer pleasure, but all too often provide pain. They are kind neither to their customers nor, in the long term, to themselves. They are in danger of killing their own businesses. l Tim Steel is a communications, marketing, and tourism consultant.
The Indian big business houses are supporting Modi overtly for his economic success in Gujarat. In terms of economic success, is he really the most successful chief minister in India? The stark statistics do not say so. The Indian state of Tamil Nadu, under its chief minister Jayalalithas leadership, is ahead of Gujarat in various indicators including social indices and industry. The percentage of people below the poverty rate is 16.9% in Gujarat while it is 11.3% in Tamil
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DHAKA TRIBUNE
Entertainment
Riaz and Kusum grace judge panel of Handsome: The Ultimate Man
n Entertainment Desk
The second season of Handsome: The Ultimate Man will air on Channel i from June. The audience will enjoy the expertise of the superstars of Bangladesh film industry Riaz and Kusum Sikder as they will join the judging panel of the show. A press conference was held at The Westin yesterday announcing the details of the programme where the show claimed to be the first of its kind in the history of Bangladesh. Men aged between 18 and 30 can register through the website www.htum.tv or Facebook page www.facebook. com/theultimatemen. The registration will end on May 25. After conducting audition in Dhaka, Chittagong, Rajshahi and Khulna, 20 finalists will be selected to compete for the championship and win the title of the ultimate man. Participants will have to prove themselves by going through a grueling elimination process where they have to go through taxing physical challenges and other activities including acting and modeling. l
n Enteratinment Desk
Movie lovers of the country will be delighted to know that the much anticipated superhero film The Amazing Spider-Man 2 will hit the Star Cineplex on May 2. This is the first time an international film is releasing in Bangladesh on the same day of its US release. The latest Marvel superhero film features Andrew Garefield as Spider-Man and Emma Stone as Gwen while Marc Webb directed the film. The sequel of The Amazing Spider-Man (2012) portrays the struggle between the ordinary obligations of Peter Parker and the extraordinary responsibilities of Spider-Man. But this time around, Peter Parker finds that his greatest battle is about to begin. For him, theres no feeling like swinging between skyscrapers, embracing being the hero, and spending time with Gwen. But being Spider-Man comes at a price: only he can protect his fellow New Yorkers from the formidable villains that threaten the city. With the emergence of Electro played by Jamie Foxx, Peter must confront a foe far more powerful than he expected. And as his old friend, Harry Osborn played by Dane DeHaan, returns, Peter comes to realise that all of his enemies have one thing in common. The superhero flick is already sticking with moviegoers overseas. Since launching in a handful of international markets this month, The Amazing Spider-Man 2 had collected an impressive $132m, according to an estimate from distributor Sony Pictures. The movie is currently playing in roughly 40 foreign markets, performing best in the Britain, Mexico and South Korea. l
TODAY IN DHAKA
Exhibition
Germany A Sporting Nation Time: 11am 6pm Goethe Institut Bangladesh Road 9(new), House 10 Dhanmondi Bonded Stitches & Struggle Time: 3pm 8pm Drik Gallery House 58 Road 15A (New) Dhanmondi
Film
Captain America: The Winter Soldier (3D & 2D) Jonakir Alo Boishommo The Legend of Hercules 3D Avatar in 3D
Frozen in 3D Enders Game Time: 10am 10pm Star Cineplex, Level 8 Bashundhara City 13/3 Ka Panthopath
n Entertainment Desk
George Clooney is engaged to an utterly wonderful human-rights lawyer who brings a bright light to everything she is involved in, according to colleagues at her chambers. The praise came as it was confirmed that the actor dubbed the worlds most eligible bachelor is to marry 36-year-old barrister Amal Alamuddin, recently voted Londons hottest female lawyer. Alamuddin was spotted last week sporting a huge ring on her engagement finger during a meal with model Cindy Crawford and actor Ed Norton at Malibus Nobu restaurant. A source close to the couple described reports of the engagement as not nonsense. Alamuddin made her first public appearance with the star only in February, and has kept a low profile throughout their brief relationship,
which is believed to have begun last summer. As recently as December, Clooney, 52, a divorcee who was married to actor Talia Balsam for four years 20 years ago, claimed he had no aspirations to wed again. But now Miss Alamuddin, who is from a wealthy Lebanese family and is described by colleagues as beautiful and fiercely intelligent, has apparently engendered a change of heart. Alamuddin was said to be showing the ring off to Miss Crawford, whose husband, Rande Gerber, is Clooneys business partner. A day earlier, diners at Craigs, another restaurant in Los Angeles, claimed the couple seemed to be celebrating their engagement with other friends. Numerous, although unnamed, sources told media in the United States that the pair were engaged and, while they had not yet set a wedding date, they plan to be together forever. l
Sport
MUMIT M
DHAKA TRIBUNE
13
14 Emotional Barca
15 Three-in-a-row
15 Nishikori eases
regarding a change in the head coachs post which may have hurt the 38-yearold as he made an emotional decision. He might have seen in the media
that some of the board directors are not in favor of the Australian to remain the head coach. This can be the reason of his decision but we never talked officially.
had to prove myself as a team coach and success along with that was important, he added. I have had to work extremely hard and adapt to the conditions and circumstances given to us at times. I would like to think that this has been a huge positivity for all players, support staffs and myself involved that we have had success despite the circumstances. Jurgensen became full-time coach in February 2013 after doing the interim job quite successfully for one series against West Indies in 2012. He was given a twoyear contract, till the 2015 World Cup alongside batting and fielding coach Corey Richards, trainer David Dwyer and physio Vibhav Singh. His resignation is the second in the Bangladesh national dressing room following that of trainer David Dwyer. Dwyer stepped down from his position after 14 months on the job and asked for immediate release while Richard McInnes, the head coach of BCB National Academy, also resigned recently. l
Abahanis Portuguese forward Leonildo Suares shoots to score the winner against Muktijoddha at the BNS yesterday
COURTESY
We have won a title earlier and we want to win the national title now. The boy are in good spirit and will put their best to be the national champion
Both the teams are unbeaten so far and such an irresistible form yielded four wins in qualifying matches and five wins in the final round matches for
Team BJMC celebrate their Walton National Volleyball title at the volleyball stadium yesterday COURTESY
14
Injured Azarenka out of Madrid, Rome
Former world number one Victoria Azarenka pulled out of the Madrid and Rome WTA events on Saturday with a left foot injury which could put her French Open hopes in doubt. The Belarus star has not played since a second round loss to Lauren Davis at Indian Wells in the first week of March. The 24-year-old announced on Facebook that she would be forced to miss the Madrid and Rome events in May, both crucial warm-up tournaments ahead of the French Open, the second Grand Slam of the season, which gets under way on May 25. AFP
DHAKA TRIBUNE
Sport
POINTS TABLE
Team Atletico Madrid Barcelona Real Madrid Athletic Bilbao Sevilla Real Sociedad Villarreal Valencia Rayo Vallecano Levante P 35 35 34 35 35 35 35 35 35 35 W 28 27 26 19 17 16 15 12 13 10 D 4 3 4 8 8 9 7 9 4 12 L 3 5 4 8 10 10 13 14 18 13 Pts 88 84 82 65 59 57 52 45 43 42
Barcelonas players celebrate after scoring during the Spanish league football match against Villarreal CF at El Madrigal stadium in Villarreal on Sunday. Barcelona won the match 3 2 AFP
RESULTS
Augsburg Schalke
3 1
Hamburg
Westermann 44
0 1
Mgladbach
Herrmann 35
Liverpool striker Luis Suarez won Englands Professional Footballers Associations Player of the Year award on Sunday. This time last year the Uruguay international was starting a 10-match ban for biting Chelseas Branislav Ivanovic. But now Suarez has been chosen by his fellow top-flight professionals in England as the outstanding player in the Premier League after spearheading Liverpools title bid. Suarez received the award during a ceremony at Londons Grosvenor House hotel after flying down from Liverpoolon Sunday. The 27-year-old Suarez has scored 30 league goals in 31 appearances, despite his ban for biting Ivanovic carrying over into the start of this season. The Premier League is full of really great players and so it is a great hon-
Barcelona maintained their slight La Liga title hopes as they came from 2-0 down to beat Villarreal 3-2 on an emotionally-charged night at El Madrigal when players and fans remembered Tito Vilanova. However, Atletico Madrid remain in the driving seat for their first title in 18 years as they ground out a 1-0 win away to Valencia. The Catalans paid their respects to former coach Vilanova with a minutes silence before the game, but a miserable week looked set to end with a sixth league defeat of the season as Cani and Manu Trigueros gave Villarreal a commanding lead. However, own goals from Gabriel and Mateo Musacchio brought Barca level before Lionel Messi grabbed the winner eight minutes from time. Atletico continue to lead Barca by four points with just three games remaining, whilst Real Madrid fall to third, a further two points back, but
RESULTS
Espanyol
Stuani 42
1 2 0 1 3 1
Sevilla
Gameiro 79
Villarreal
Cani 45, Trigueros 55
2 3
Barcelona
thing and wont allow us to relax, insisted Atletico boss Diego Simeone. We have to continue being calm and take every game as it comes. Despite the second leg of his sides Champions League semi-final against Chelsea being just three days away, Simeone named a strong side with David Villa and Tiago coming into the side that started the first leg against the English club in midweek. However, Simeone claimed important victories for both Atletico, and Chelsea over Liverpool on Sunday, wont make any difference at Stamford Bridge come Wednesday. Atletico made the vital breakthrough two minutes before half-time when Gabis lofted ball into the area picked out the run of Garcia and he cushioned a header in off the inside of the post to register his 17th goal of the season. Diego Costa should have put the game to bed six minutes into the second half when he was played clean through on goal, but he delayed his shot and allowed Vicente Guaita to save with an outstretched leg. l
Neymar, Aguero and Merthens post these photos on Twitter yesterday Alves has often been subjected to racist taunts and called fighting racism a lost war in January 2013, after segments of Real Madrids fans abused him with monkey chants during a match. Team-mate Neymar immediately gave his support to Alves as well as had his own joke at the racists expense, posting on his Facebook profile the caption #weareallmonkeys along with a picture of himself and his son with a banana.
A Villarreal fan threw a banana at Dani Alves, so he ate it before taking his corner kick
Fenerbahce clinch Del Piero leaves Sydney FC Ibrahimovic likely to return next week Turkish title had wonderful time here, I have comReuters n municated my decision to the club. n AFP, Istanbul n Reuters, Paris Im really grateful for the last two Former Italy and Juventus great AlesFenerbahce won the Turkish league title with three games to spare on Sunday after a 0-0 draw at home to Caykur Rizespor, in front of a crowd made up exclusively of women and children. The Istanbul giants have 68 points and cannot be caught by nearest challengers, and bitter rivals, Galatasaray, who won 1-0 at Elazigspor but trail by 12 points. No adult males were allowed to attend the match after a one-game ban was handed down by the Turkish Football Federation earlier this month. l sandro Del Piero has played his last match for Sydney FC and will not renew his contract, the A League club said on Monday. The 39-year-old strikers two-year contract expired with the clubs 2-1 defeat to Melbourne Victory in the A League elimination play-offs earlier this month. Australia, the moment has arrived to say arrivederci, Del Piero said in a statement on his website. My adventure with Sydney FC is about to be concluded, and, even if it makes me rather sad, because I have years and for the clubs request for me to remain and with whom, I am happy to explore new opportunities to continue our relationship. It hasnt been an easy choice, also because my life on and off the pitch has been fantastic, my family and I have really enjoyed these two wonderful years: Australia will remain in our hearts forever. The Italians arrival in Australia on a A$4 million ($3.78 million) deal in 2012 was hailed as a coup of sorts for the league. l
Fenerbahces players celebrate their 2013 2014 title after the Turkish Super league match against Caykur Rizespor at the Sukru Saracoglu Stadium in Istanbul on Sunday AFP
Zlatan Ibrahimovic is likely to return from injury for Paris St Germains next Ligue 1 game against Stade Rennes, club doctor Eric Rolland said on Monday. He has resumed running and there is a 90 per cent chance that he will be at the coachs disposal in 10 days, Rolland told French sports daily LEquipe. Ibrahimovic, has scored 25 goals from 30 league appearances this season, has been out of action for almost four weeks since he sustained a thigh injury in PSGs Champions League quarter-final first leg at the Parc des Princes. l
DHAKA TRIBUNE
Sport
15
Three-in-a-row for Sharapova in Stuttgart
n
Maria Sharapova claimed a hat-trick of Stuttgart titles on Sunday after coming from behind to win a three-set battle royal with Ana Ivanovic in Sundays final. Having won the 2012 and 2013 titles here, the 27-year-old Sharapova was made to work hard for her 13th consecutive win on Stuttgarts clay-courts for the 30th final win of her career before over-powering Ivanovic to claim a 3-6, 6-4, 6-1 victory in just over two hours. That was a tough bit of work, said Sharapova, who has won all four Grand Slam titles. I have always believed in my chances and the fighting spirit is something that comes from within me. This was the first time Sharapova has claimed a third title at an individual tournament and comes on the back of last years shoulder injury. This time around its been extremely tough, thats why this win is so special, admitted Sharapova. The Russian collects the winners cheque of 96,774 euros (US$133,896) and a brand-new sports car. I will need to build a new garage to get all the cars in, she joked as she collected her third Porsche sports car in as many years from the tournament director. It is the Russians first clay-court tournament in her build-up to the French Open, having lost to Serena Williams in last years final. We have seen what a great player Maria is, admitted Ivanovic. l
QUICK BYTES
Sharapova holds her trophy while posing with the winners price, a Porsche 911 Targa sportscar, after defeating Ivanovic in the final of the WTA Porsche Tennis Grand Prix on Saturday
AFP
EPL TABLE
Team 1 Liverpool 2 Chelsea 3 Man City 4 Arsenal 5 Everton 6 Tottenham 7 Man United 8 Southampton 9 Newcastle 10 Stoke City 11 Crystal Palace 12 Swansea City 13 Hull City 14 West Ham 15 West Brom 16 Aston Villa 17 Sunderland 18 Norwich City 19 Fulham 20 Cardiff City GP 36 36 35 35 36 36 35 36 35 36 36 36 35 36 35 35 35 36 36 36 W 25 24 24 21 20 20 18 14 14 11 13 10 10 10 7 9 8 8 9 7 D 5 6 5 7 9 6 6 10 4 11 4 9 7 7 15 8 8 8 4 9 L 6 6 6 7 7 10 11 12 17 14 19 17 18 19 13 18 19 20 23 20 GD PTS 50 80 43 78 58 77 21 70 21 69 3 66 20 60 7 52 -15 46 -11 44 -15 43 -1 39 -9 37 -11 37 -12 36 -17 35 -20 32 -32 32 -42 31 -38 30
feat that ended their 11-match winning streak and took their Premier League title aspirations out of their hand. Liverpool still lead with 80 points, but third-placed City sit three points behind with a match in hand and with
THEATER OF DREAMS
Airtel Bangladesh flew twelve young footballers to Old Trafford, home of Manchester UTD, the Premier League Champion, to witness English Premier League Football match between Man United v Norwich City on Saturday. The twelve young footballers were chosen after screening sixty thousand participants from various part of the Country. During their stay in the United Kingdom the twelve young footballers will receive special training sponsored by Airtel. After the match the young footballers poses for photo session in front of the stadium entrance with Showkat Aziz Russell, Chairman Sports Academy, Sk. Jamal Dhanmondi Club Limited, Mamun or Rashid -Airtel Executive, Muntasir Alam CEO Interspeed, Salik and Sohel with others. During the gathering Showkat Aziz Russell promised the young footballers all the best in the Sk. Jamal academy. He also invited them to spend a day-long session with the coaches and players of Sk Jamal Dhanmondi Club COURTESY
DAYS WATCH
Ten Action, Ten Sports 12:45AM Uefa Champions League, SF Leg 2 Bayern Munich v Real Madrid Sony Six 8:30PM Indian Premier League Kolkata v Rajasthan NBA Play-off 2013 14 5:00AM Miami v Charlotte 7:30AM San Antonio v Dallas
Japanese tennis player Kei Nishikori celebrates his victory with a replica trophy after beating Columbias Santiago Giraldo during the ATP Final Barcelona Open Conde de Godo tennis tournament in Barcelona on Saturday AFP
16
DHAKA TRIBUNE
Back Page
In a bid to take a shortcut to their destinations, a truck and a covered van drive on the wrong side and head towards a rickshaw on the Dhaka-Aricha highway yesterday. Such reckless driving is one of the major reasons behind accidents on busy highways SYED ZAKIR HOSSAIN
A law has been enacted mentioning the responsibilities of stakeholders and punishment for ignoring those
But the death toll from November 15, 2007 cyclone Sidr was reduced sharply as the government had taken precautionary measures. Around 3,406 people and 1,873,694 livestock died and 8,923,259 people became homeless in the Sidr. Besides, only 190 people and 150,131 livestock died while 3,928,259 people became homeless when the cyclone Aila lashed parts of the country. According to the database of the government and different non-governmental organisations working with disaster management, the loss of lives and properties was reduced gradually. Gautam Kumar Bhattacharya, joint secretary of the Disaster Management Ministry, told the Dhaka Tribune that though the government had taken several initiatives to tackle disasters, it was not fully satisfied with the measures and achievements.
Mothers feud with school stops students education n Our Correspondent, Jessore
In a shocking move, a class VIII girl in Jessores Abhayanagar upazila has been barred from attending school by the school authorities because of its feud with her mother. I have been asked not to go to school, Afreen Jahan Nisha of Nawapara Shankarpasha High School told reporters yesterday. Her mother Shikha Islam alleged that her daughter had also been threatened with a transfer certificate. On January 11, Nishas mother was assaulted by Shammi Akhter, a member of the schools managing committee. Later, Shikha filed a general diary about it. Nawapara Shankarpasha High Schools Headmaster Mahbubur Rahman admitted the incidents. l
A rickshaw-van puller defies the scorching sun and carries load of goods on his vehicle on the capitals English Road yesterday SHAKIB HASAN
Editor: Zafar Sobhan, Published and Printed by Kazi Anis Ahmed on behalf of 2A Media Limited at Dainik Shakaler Khabar Publications Limited, 153/7, Tejgaon Industrial Area, Dhaka-1208. Editorial, News & Commercial Office: FR Tower, 8/C Panthapath, Shukrabad, Dhaka 1207. Phone: 9132093 94, Advertising: 9132155, Circulation: 9132282, Fax: News-9132192, e-mail: news@dhakatribune.com, info@dhakatribune.com, Website: www.dhakatribune.com
B4 Industrial internet: A
Meanwhile, State Minister for Power and Energy, Nasrul Hamid Bipu in a seminar last week said the price of electricity will be increased in phases in next five years as implementation of the coal-based power projects lingers. On March 12, Bangladesh Energy Regulatory Commission raised retail power tariff by 6.96% The regulator said the power tariff hike, effective from March 1, was to help distributor companies cut their losses. But for the lifeline users consuming up to 50 units and for irrigation pumps, the tariff has been kept unchanged. The consumers criticised the hike as standard of service has not been improved in last one decade. Dulal Miah, an electrician in Dhaka, said they still suffer power outage four
times a day. Repeated load-shedding (power outage) making us sick in this unbearable hot weather, he said. We want good service at affordable price from the government. It is possible if corruption and irregularities are controlled. Meanwhile, the government raised subsidy allocation for power by Tk500 crore last week in the revised budget of current fiscal to address probable increase in power purchase from the costly private sector plants. The increased subsidy in power sector stands at Tk6,000 crore. As per the latest estimations, the subsidy on fertiliser will be increased to Tk7,000 crore in the next fiscal year. Export subsidy may be raised to Tk2,850 crore from Tk2,750 crore while
the fuel subsidy is estimated to be increased to Tk2,700 crore and food subsidy will be Tk1,803 crore in next fiscal. The remaining Tk3,000 crore will be used as subsidy in other sectors. The total subsidy was Tk37,399 crore in FY2012-13, Tk30,163 crore in 2011-12, Tk17,141 crore in 2010-11, Tk9,334 crore in 2009-10 and Tk10,546 crore in 2008-09. The government will keep subsidy at a reasonable level in the next fiscal, Finance Minister AMA Muhith told the Dhaka Tribune. He said subsidy amount will not be more than 2% of GDP in next fiscal year, but the donors always insist we are giving huge subsidies. They (donors) want to reduce the subsidy to zero, finance minister said. l
representatives through a new system before the tenure of existing elected representatives expires is ill-motivated, the statement reads. If the government wants to conduct election, they should do it among 86 lakh member voters in 2,567 branches. The statement said it was no room for Dr Mohammad Yunus to make any influence over the board. It said Grameen Bank directors do not gain any wealth from the bank and there was no loan scam in last four decades of its operation.
A man uses a potter's wheel to make a traditional vase in a ceramic factory are ready to pay revenue with 20% growth in the coming fiscal year 2014-15. You have to maintain 15% revenue growth in the coming FY. We have been instructed to manage 22% revenue growth in the coming budget comparing to the FY-13-14. You will witness a development in the sector if we withdraw 15% duty. We will withdraw the duty, but give us 20% revenue growth from your sector, he said. The association leaders also demanded a proper literature of the Harmonized System (HS) codes to avoid any sort of misleading tax imposition. Due to the misleading H.S codes, we need to pay 10% tax on import of Aluminum Liner although we are supposed to pay 2% tax. For importing Zirconium Silicate, we are supposed to pay 5% tax, but now we are paying 10% tax as the taxmen consider the products as others category, he added. Replying to this demand, NBR chairman said, We will modify the literatures by amending it with proper definition of the products. The other demands include reduction of customs duty from 10% to 5% at auxiliary materials and import tax on machineries from 25% to 2% etc. The businesses also proposed NBR
REUTERS
to increase the supplementary duty on imported tiles, sanitary-ware, and tableware products from existing 60% to 80% and on opal glass tableware and pyrex products from existing 45% to 80% to protect local industry, collect increased revenue, prevent under-voicing etc. In response, Ghulam Hussain said: We cannot provide over 50%-60% protection for the local industries. Except some products mentioned under 147 H.S. codes, which are harmful for health and environment, the NBR will cut down supplementary duty and regulatory duties on all other products to zero level from July 1, 2015. NBR member Barrister Jahangir Hossain said: We are going through a discriminatory rate of protection as the difference between standard rate of protection between the domestic manufacturers and the importers are witnessing a difference of 140%150%, which is ideally set at 40%50% difference. He also said the NBR has already started working on to come out from this discriminatory system. The meeting was attended, among others, by the association secretary M Sirajul Islam Molla, representatives from RAK ceramics and Madhumoti ceramics. l
Meanwhile, Finance Minister AMA Muhith said the nine pro-Yunus board members have been dismissed as the new election rule to constitute Grameen Bank board has already been circulated. Nobel laureate prof Yunus had picked the directors through a socalled election process for the last 30 years, which is an utterly undemocratic practice, he told the Dhaka Tribune, following a press conference at his secretariat office on Saturday. Asked about taking opinion from pro-Yunus board of directors for the new election rule, Muhith said those are pro- Yunus people. So, why we would take opinion from them. The government issued the new Grameen Bank (Election of Directors) Rules 2014 early this month, giving the central bank authority to hold elections to elect nine independent directors. The election should be held within six months of issuing the circular. l
n Tribune Report
Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency (MIGA) has expressed interest to invest $250m in private power plants of Bangladesh. Its executive vice president Keiko Honda disclosed this to journalists after a meeting with Finance Minister AMA Muhith in Dhaka yesterday. Honda, who is on a four-day visit, said they have already invested $330m in private power plants in Ashuganj, Siddhiraganj and Shahjibazar, as well as in the countrys telecom sector. The interest to invest in the Ghorashal power plant has also been discussed with the minister, Honda said. l
B2
DHAKA TRIBUNE
Stock
DSE GAINERS Company
Closing (% change) 6.23 6.19 5.18 4.62 4.35 4.15 3.81 3.81 3.23 3.02
Dhaka Ins. Ltd.-A Berger Paints-A Bata Shoe Ltd. -A National Bank - B IFIL Islamic M.F.1 A Eastern Bank - A United Insur -A Premier Bank -A City Bank - A AIMS First -A CSE GAINERS Company Prime Insur -A Dhaka Ins. Ltd.-A Berger Paints-A National Bank - B Bata Shoe Ltd. -A Premier Bank -A Grameen M F One-A R. N. Spinning-Z City Bank - A Padma Oil Co. -A
Average (% change) 5.14 5.69 2.34 4.39 3.43 2.12 3.68 4.08 3.44 1.88 Average (% change) 6.67 6.55 4.00 5.27 2.31 4.64 3.36 3.85 3.42 1.29
Closing average 35.62 1,159.31 1,083.36 13.78 7.24 27.43 35.25 10.98 19.27 43.93
Closing 35.80 1,167.40 1,088.90 13.60 7.20 27.60 35.40 10.90 19.20 44.30
Daily high 36.40 1,168.10 1,099.70 14.00 7.40 28.00 35.90 11.30 20.00 44.70
Daily low 34.40 1,100.00 999.00 11.00 6.90 24.00 33.80 9.50 17.00 42.50
Turnover in million 10.669 78.891 55.624 114.928 3.107 4.135 0.685 29.224 79.261 23.963
Latest EPS 2.24 57.68 59.44 1.49 0.88 4.15 2.77 -2.95 1.09 5.00
Latest PE 15.9 20.1 18.2 9.2 8.2 6.6 12.7 -ve 17.7 8.8
Closing (% change) 6.67 6.65 5.03 4.62 4.08 3.77 3.30 2.84 2.67 2.40
Closing average 25.60 35.31 1140.14 13.79 1089.97 11.04 47.08 29.69 19.34 344.17
Closing 25.60 35.30 1150.50 13.60 1090.00 11.00 47.00 29.00 19.20 346.10
Daily high 25.60 35.90 1160.00 14.10 1110.00 11.30 47.40 31.00 20.00 350.00
Daily low 25.60 34.70 1071.00 13.30 1079.90 10.80 46.60 28.20 18.60 339.50
Turnover in million 0.006 0.388 0.627 22.196 0.654 4.938 0.612 4.253 8.548 13.919
Latest EPS 2.23 2.24 57.68 1.49 59.44 -2.95 3.40 6.11 1.09 21.40
Latest PE 11.5 15.8 19.8 9.3 18.3 -ve 13.8 4.9 17.7 16.1
'Investors continued centralising their positions on the basis of quarterly earnings announcement and expectation'
The benchmark index DSEX was down 42 points or 0.9% to 4,625. The blue chips index DS30 fell 16 points or 1% to 1,689. The Shariah index DSES shed 17 points or 1.7% to close at 1,017. Chittagong Stock Exchange (CSE) Selective Categories Index, CSCX, dropped 95 points to 8,902. With marginal improvement in participation, turnover recorded at Tk435 crore from previous sessions Tk433 crore.
(-) 0.89% (-) 1.68% (-) 0.97% (-) 1.20% (-) 1.09% (-) 1.05%
Traded Issues Issue Gain (Avg. Price Basis) Issue Loss (Avg. Price Basis) Unchanged Issue (Avg. Price Basis) Market Capital Equity (Billion. Tk.) Market Capital Equity (Billion US$)
Average (% change) -23.79 -10.07 -9.58 -7.49 -5.55 -6.51 -6.50 -7.25
Closing average 13.74 31.35 12.08 29.26 162.76 62.65 26.47 463.75
Daily high 14.80 31.60 12.50 31.30 172.00 64.50 28.00 464.00
Daily low 13.20 30.00 10.80 28.40 155.80 60.50 26.00 463.00
Turnover in million 15.449 1.198 35.374 3.248 17.049 26.347 4.294 0.371
Latest EPS 0.24 3.19 1.47 0.36 4.07 0.95 2.27 3.04
-7.30 -6.76
-4.62 -2.72
42.49 367.00
41.90 357.20
44.10 390.00
41.50 349.80
1.827 8.918
-1.00 3.92
-ve 93.6
Closing (% change) -25.41 -9.97 -9.02 -8.54 -8.26 -6.97 -6.65 -6.64
Average (% change) -23.92 -9.93 -9.02 -7.40 -9.36 -2.46 -6.18 -6.92
Closing average 13.74 92.10 12.11 29.42 21.10 23.79 161.87 22.46
Daily high 14.10 92.10 12.40 31.20 21.10 24.40 170.20 23.60
Daily low 13.40 92.10 11.40 28.50 21.10 22.60 158.00 22.20
Turnover in million 3.222 0.184 2.489 2.001 0.011 0.416 0.397 0.629
Latest EPS 0.24 5.33 1.47 0.36 1.51 0.80 4.07 1.10
-6.12 -6.05
-1.96 -5.10
65.01 29.75
64.40 29.50
69.00 30.00
63.50 29.50
29.842 0.030
2.16 1.56
30.1 19.1
ANALYST
SECTORAL TURNOVER SUMMARY
Sector Bank NBFI Investment Engineering Food & Allied Fuel & Power Jute Textile Pharma & Chemical Paper & Packaging Service Leather Ceramic Cement Information Technology General Insurance Life Insurance Telecom Travel & Leisure Miscellaneous Debenture
Selling stimulus triggered by the fear of further fall put a drag on the bourse
CSE Total
DSE TURNOVER LEADERS Company LafargeS Cement-Z Meghna Petroleum -A Padma Oil Co. -A Olympic Ind. -A Grameenphone-A Southeast Bank-A
HeidelbergCement -A
DSE Million Taka 816.20 130.78 132.63 251.43 255.47 739.37 1.98 293.10 471.95 0.63 32.98 83.74 14.28 617.28 39.66 65.10 119.58 195.91 47.37 48.95 0.25
% change 18.73 3.00 3.04 5.77 5.86 16.96 0.05 6.72 10.83 0.01 0.76 1.92 0.33 14.16 0.91 1.49 2.74 4.49 1.09 1.12 0.01
Million Taka 77.97 7.10 6.65 18.13 12.25 46.89 35.77 20.46 9.84 1.70 13.95 1.78 44.71 3.11 0.85 7.68 18.92 8.30 5.27 0.03
% change 22.84 2.08 1.95 5.31 3.59 13.74 0.00 10.48 5.99 2.88 0.50 4.09 0.52 13.10 0.91 0.25 2.25 5.54 2.43 1.54 0.01
Million Taka 894.17 137.88 139.29 269.56 267.72 786.26 1.98 328.88 492.41 10.47 34.68 97.69 16.07 661.98 42.77 65.94 127.26 214.83 55.67 54.22 0.29
% change 19.02 2.93 2.96 5.74 5.70 16.73 0.04 7.00 10.48 0.22 0.74 2.08 0.34 14.08 0.91 1.40 2.71 4.57 1.18 1.15 0.01
City Bank - A Berger Paints-A UCBL - A Delta Life Insu. -A Renata Ltd. -A
Volume shares 5,770,550 1,038,879 511,625 736,963 583,797 5,480,308 207,450 8,339,893 341,989 649,455
Value in million 377.79 319.41 176.64 176.02 153.74 122.97 121.29 114.93 93.70 89.30
% of total turnover 8.67 7.33 4.05 4.04 3.53 2.82 2.78 2.64 2.15 2.05
Daily closing 64.90 306.30 344.30 237.20 262.80 22.40 580.30 13.60 272.50 134.80
Price change -5.39 0.43 1.89 -1.78 -1.13 0.90 -2.59 4.62 -1.23 -6.00
Daily opening 68.60 305.00 337.90 241.50 265.80 22.20 595.70 13.00 275.90 143.40
Daily high 69.90 315.00 350.90 241.50 266.90 23.00 600.00 14.00 278.70 143.40
Daily low 63.60 279.00 330.00 221.00 249.80 20.00 571.10 11.00 260.00 134.00
Daily average 65.47 307.46 345.24 238.84 263.35 22.44 584.69 13.78 273.98 137.50
Volume shares
Prepared exclusively for Dhaka Tribune by Business Information Automation Service Line (BIASL), on the basis of information collected from daily stock quotations and audited reports of the listed companies. High level of caution has been taken to collect and present the above information and data. The publisher will not take any responsibility if any body uses this information and data for his/her investment decision. For any query please email to biasl@bol-online.com or call 01552153562 or go to www.biasl.net
National Bank - B Padma Oil Co. -A Meghna Petroleum -A BD Submarine Cable-A Square Pharma -A Southeast Bank-A City Bank - A Grameenphone-A Square Textile -A UCBL - A UNITED AIR A Delta Life Insu. -A HeidelbergCement -A Matin Spinning-N
459,000 1,609,565 40,442 41,904 52,605 34,207 417,136 441,902 31,600 69,920 266,712 539,960 29,300 10,800 147,800
Value in million
29.84 22.20 13.92 12.88 10.60 9.37 9.34 8.55 8.32 7.55 7.42 7.04 6.46 6.31 5.85
% of total turnover
9.70 7.22 4.53 4.19 3.45 3.05 3.04 2.78 2.70 2.46 2.41 2.29 2.10 2.05 1.90
Daily closing
64.40 13.60 346.10 305.70 200.00 272.60 22.40 19.20 262.10 103.60 27.70 13.00 214.80 580.80 39.20
Price change
-6.12 4.62 2.40 0.26 -2.01 -1.48 0.90 2.67 -1.39 -5.82 0.73 -1.52 -6.04 -2.63 -3.21
Daily opening
68.60 13.00 338.00 304.90 204.10 276.70 22.20 18.70 265.80 110.00 27.50 13.20 228.60 596.50 40.50
69.00 14.10 350.00 310.90 205.00 279.00 22.70 20.00 266.50 12.50 28.20 13.20 228.00 598.00 40.80
63.50 13.30 339.50 304.00 199.00 271.00 22.10 18.60 261.00 102.00 27.40 12.90 213.00 573.00 39.00
Daily average
65.01 13.79 344.17 307.43 201.59 273.94 22.40 19.34 263.19 107.99 27.80 13.03 220.41 584.25 39.58
DHAKA TRIBUNE
Business
B3
not careful, said Wahyu Widodo, director of wages and workers social security at Indonesias Manpower and Transmigration Ministry. It will be dangerous for Indonesias agriculture.
Technology lags
Of the 550,000 Indonesian plantation workers currently in Malaysia, about 95% are in the oil palm industry, embassy data showed. About 80% of Malaysias palm oil workforce are Indonesians, with Indians accounting for most of the rest. Planters prefer Indonesians because they are seen as harder working, may have had prior experience in palm oil estates, and share a somewhat similar language. A plantation worker can earn an average of about 900 ringgit ($280) per month in Malaysia, up to about 2,000 ringgit, compared to an average of about 700 ringgit in Indonesia. But a foreign worker in Malaysia may also have to pay more in taxes and for utilities.
Indonesian worker Abdul Rahim Gani, carries oil palm fruits at Felda Bukit Cerakah in district of Klang outside Kuala Lumpur But salary was not the only factor for workers, said Mohd Emir Mavani Abdullah, chief executive of the worlds third-largest palm plantation operator Felda Global Ventures Holdings. Theyre looking at social benefits, wellbeing and so on, he said. Robust economic growth in Indonesia, averaging an annual 6% in recent years, has boosted consumer confidence and opened up more jobs outside the agriculture industry and narrowed the salary gap between the two countries. The capital Jakarta, one of 505 administrative districts and with a population of about 10 million, raised its minimum wage level by 11% late last year and 44% in 2012. Agriculture contributes about 15% to the GDP of Indonesia, with around 35% of the 240 million population dependent on agriculture for their main source of income. McKinsey Global Institute (MGI) estimates that the share of the
REUTERS
population living in cities could reach 71% in 2030, from 53% now as people seek greater opportunities and higher paid jobs. Urbanisation could result in about eight million fewer farmers by 2030, said MGI, the research arm of consultancy McKinsey & Co. That could eventually strain the labour force in Indonesias palm oil sector as well as Malaysias. It will be a problem for the next five years if the government is
Major palm oil firms operating in Southeast Asia include Malaysias Sime Darby, PT Sinar Mas Agro Resources and Technology, and Wilmar International. Malaysia is expected to produce between 19.5 and 19.7 million tonnes of palm oil this year, only slightly higher than 19.2 million tonnes in 2013, while Indonesia is forecast to churn out 28-30 million tonnes. Malaysias average yield of crude palm oil per hectare was 3.85 tonnes in 2013. Growers said a lack of labour would limit programmes such as planting superior seeds that can boost yields up to 7.0 tonnes a hectare. Harvesting palm fruit bunches that weigh up to 25 kilograms (55 pounds) each is labour intensive, especially as trees mature and grow taller each year. While mechanized tools are widely used in manuring and to cut fruit from shorter trees between 3 and 8 years old, robotic technology to harvest from mature trees does not exist. A Malaysia-based inventor whose company specializes in labour-saving devices in the palm industry told Reuters his team is working on a mechanical cutter for trees above 8 meters tall that may be ready in the next three years. If this works, it can increase productivity by about 100-200%. So far we have had some drawbacks, but we are still doing a lot of research and development, said the inventor who did not want to be identified. The cutter would still have to be operated by a worker. l
As the private, power, and even the corporate sector could be the engine of growth, these sectors are crucial for the economic development, said the minister. Companies and corporate are the driving forces for the overall development of a country, said Muhammed Aziz Khan, chairman of Summit Power and Khulna Power Ltd, after winning an award. Like the previous year, the ICMAB had selected best corporate houses in seven sectors banking, non-banking financial institutions, insurance, pharmaceuticals, power, multinational and other sectors. The award recipients are Rupali Bank Limited in nationalised bank/ state-owned bank category, Islami Bank Bangladesh Ltd, Shahjalal Islami Bank Limited, Al-Arafah Islami Bank Ltd in private commercial bank (islamic operation) category, Prime Bank Limited, Eastern Bank Limited, Standard Bank Limited in private commercial bank (traditional operation) category, HSBC Ltd, Standard Chartered Bank and Commercial Bank of Ceylon Ltd in foreign bank category, IDLC Finance Limited, Delta Brac Housing Finance Corporation Ltd, Uttara Finance & Investment Limited in non-banking financial institution category, Square
Finance Minister AMA Muhith seen giving an award to Muhammed Aziz Khan, chairperson of Summit Power and Khulna Power Ltd at the ICMAB Best Corporate Award 2013 in a city hotel on Sunday MAHMUD HOSSAIN OPU Pharmaceuticals Ltd, Beximco Pharmaceuticals, Renata Limited in pharmaceuticals category, Summit Power Limited, Khulna Power Company Ltd, Barakatullah Electro Dynamics Limited in power sector category, Berger Paints Bangladesh Ltd, Singer Bangladesh Limited in multinational category while Bangladesh Submarine Cable Company Ltd (BSCCL), Investment Corporation of Bangladesh, Power Grid Company of Bangladesh received the award in others category. On behalf of the awardees, chief financial officer of HSBC Steve Ball, Islami Bank managing director and CEO Abdul Mannan and chairman of Summit Power and Khulna Power Ltd Muhammed Aziz Khan shared their feelings after receiving the awards in their respective sectors. ICMAB President Mohammad Salim and chairman of the selection committee Muzaffar Ahmed spoke on the occasion while ICMAB Secretary Jamal Ahmed Chowdhur also attended the function. The Institute of Cost and Management Accountants of Bangladesh (ICMAB) introduced ICMAB Best Corporate Award in 2007 to encourage the corporate world to act more responsibly and publish more informative and transparent annual reports. l
Kaspersky Lab tops AV Test for Android devices n Tribune Business Desk
Kaspersky Internet Security for Android recently earned top marks in an independent testing of mobile security products conducted by AV Test in March 2014. Kaspersky Labs solution successfully blocked all threats and its performance received the highest rating from the test lab, said a press release. l
Transcom Beverages Limited recently handed over Aquafina drinking water bottles to the traffic police officers of the Dhaka Metropolitan Police (DMP) and will contribute providing for the next 10 days. Khurshid Irfan Chowdhury, the companys executive director and joint commissioner of DMP, Mir Rezaul Alam was present on the occasion
The Duke of Edinburghs Award Foundation, Bangladesh and the National Award Authority recently arranged a two-day long award leader training programme to ensure standard of the different award units at BACE Training Centre in Sonargoan, Narayangonj. A total of 34 participants from 17 prominent educational institutions of Dhaka, Rangpur, Tangail and Sylhet received certificates from the director of National Award Authority, professor Dr KM Shariful Huda
Singer Bangladesh Limited yesterday held its 34th annual general meeting at the Spectra Convention Centre at Gulshan in Dhaka. The companys shareholders approved 125% dividend including 100% cash and 25% stock for the year 2013. Mahbub Jamil, chairman of Singer Bangladesh Limited chaired the meeting
CSR Centre, Bangladesh recently held the 25th board meeting of the trustee at City Banks head office. Farooq Sobhan, chairperson at the board of trustee, chaired the meeting
Pubali Bank Limited recently held its first conference for the managers of Chittagong region at BGMEA building. The banks managing director and CEO, Helal Ahmed Chowdhury attended the conference as chief guest
First Security Islami Bank on Saturday held Children Science Congress 2014 at a hotel in Dhaka. Dr Muhammed Zafar Iqbal, author and president of the Society for Popularisation of Science, Bangladesh (SPSB) was present at the event
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'There is a possibility that Abenomicsrelated measures could prove less effective in boosting growth than envisaged unless strongly supported by structural reforms'
Asia remains the most dynamic region despite tapering, Rhee said in the press conference. But a faster-than-thought slowdown in China and a sluggish Japan are two big risks to the regions economic outlook. China is expected to grow by 7.5% this year before slowing to 7.3% next year, IMF said. Japan could grow by 1.4% this year before lowering to 1% next year, it said. There is a possibility that Abenomics-related measures could prove less effective in boosting growth than envisaged unless strongly supported by structural reforms, the lender said in the report. l
in New York in 2012, which manufactures advanced sodium-nickel batteries for powering cell-phone towers. The factory hosts 10,000+ sensors spread across 180K square feet of manufacturing space, all connected via high-speed intranet. And these monitor intricate component quality, power usage, temperature to even specific air pressure or humidity in the plant. Whenever, any parameter needs adjustment, the different machines are able to communicate with each other and execute the requisite action. However, according to GE this is just the beginning. Right now the communication
network is just intra-factory but it is possible to encompass all the products that ever went out of this factory within the network. In that way all shipped products would be constantly monitored and whenever there is mal-function, remedial action can be dispatched within the shortest possible time. The whole structure in itself has immense possibilities. Different machines are able to communicate with each other, make decisions and take actions. Just think whatever machines and equipment we have at our home today may one day be connected so that when we go to sleep, the app on our phone will start sleep monitoring, the alarm
clock will adjust itself, the TV will shut down and a soft music will start playing whilst the light slowly dims. And before we wake up, the shower water heater and coffee machine will starthumming. Seems like sci-fi dream now, but just wait out three years and we would possibly get to see things even more amazing. l Bijon Islam is the director of strategy at LightCastle Partners, an emerging market specialized business planning and intelligence firm. The write-up was originally published in the LCP blog (lightcastlebd.com/blog)
A picture taken on April 25 in Tirana shows different cheeses displayed during the opening ceremony of the first French Agriculture Fair in Albania AFP
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U.S. President Barack Obama (standing right) and Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak (standing left) witness the signing of a major business agreement between GE and AirAsia X in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia yesterday REUTERS