Economy
TCB goods starts to sell amid Ramadhan ahead
The state-run Trading Corporation of Bangladesh (TCB) has taken an initiative to sell 6 essential items to some 1 crore low-income groups of families ahead of the holy month of Ramadan.
TCB will start selling 3 essential items – edible oil, sugar, dates and chickpeas and lentils—among such families from Thursday (March 9). These essential items will be sold in two phases. In the first phase selling of the items will start from Thursday across the nation.
Commerce Minister Tipu Munshi will inaugurate the sales of essential items formally through a function at Tejgaon in the capital on Thursday.
The cardholders can buy the six goods at subsidized rates from the TCB’s specific sales points and dealers’ outlets. Any cardholder can buy 2 litres of soybean oil, 2 kg lentil, sugar, chickpea and 1 kg date at a time. All the specific card holders can buy sugar at Tk 60/per kg, date at Tk 100, lentils at Tk 70, chickpeas at Tk 50 and soybean oil at Tk 110 per liter.
In November, the overall point-to-point inflation rate in the country exhibited a marginal decline to 9.49 percent, attributed primarily to decreases in both food and non-food inflation.
The monthly Consumer Price Index (CPI) released by the Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics (BBS) reported a general inflation rate of 9.93 percent in October. Specifically, food inflation decreased to 10.76 percent in November from 12.56 percent in October, while non-food inflation saw a slight dip to 8.16 percent from the 8.30 percent recorded in the previous month.
Breaking down the data, the rural areas experienced a slight decrease in the overall inflation rate to 9.62 percent in November, down from 9.99 percent in October. Similarly, urban areas witnessed a decline in the general inflation rate to 9.16 percent in November, compared to 9.72 percent in October.
The national wage index rate for November increased to 7.72 percent, showing a slight uptick from the 7.69 percent reported in October.
Export earnings for the current fiscal year (FY24) from July to November reached $22,232.28 million, marking a 1.30 percent growth compared to the same period last year, according to the latest data from the Export Promotion Bureau (EPB).
In the corresponding period of the previous fiscal year (FY23), export earnings amounted to $21,946.07 million. However, there was a notable decline in single-month export earnings for November, witnessing a 6.05 percent fall, reaching $4,784.81 million, as opposed to $5,092.56 million in November of the previous year.
The Ready-Made Garments (RMG) sector remained the primary contributor to export earnings during July-November, securing $18,835.65 million. Within this category, knitwear exports accounted for $10,989.42 million, followed by woven garments at $7,846.23 million.
Notable performances in other exportable categories during the July-November period include primary commodities at $601.42 million, agriculture products at $420.59 million, manufactured commodities at $21,630.86 million, plastic products at $92.60 million, leather and leather products at $427.02 million, jute and jute goods at $361.91 million, and specialized technologies [remaining text not provided].
The Foreign Minister, in a meeting today with the outgoing Kosovo ambassador Güner Ureya, urged Kosovo to recruit skilled human resources and consider importing high-quality readymade garments and pharmaceuticals from Bangladesh. The ambassador paid a farewell call on the Foreign Minister at the foreign ministry this afternoon.
During the meeting, the Foreign Minister commended the ambassador for actively advancing bilateral relations and emphasized the importance of enhancing people-to-people contact for stronger mutual relations. The outgoing envoy, in turn, expressed appreciation for Bangladesh’s progress and development across various sectors. Additionally, the envoy briefed the Foreign Minister on the shared interest of business communities in both Bangladesh and Kosovo to boost trade and investment between the two countries.
Discussions also encompassed topics such as women empowerment and the necessity of peace for sustainable development. The outgoing envoy lauded the people, culture, and the beauty of Bangladesh.
