Developing soft skills a must

Developing the soft skills is urgently needed to be a successful entrepreneur. “Focusing on your communication skills — from reading body language to summing up your value in a few sentences — is one of the most powerful things you can do to advance your career and success,” said Prof Dr Muhammad Mahboob Ali, Entrepreneurial Expert of DScE in a recent seminar, arranged by Dhaka School of Economics. Professor Rajesh Tayal of Tayal Insitute Pvt. Limited was the Chief Guest and keynote presenter. He said entrepreneurs always try to improve their communication skills because it will assist them in sharing their ideas and presenting them clearly and constantly work in a better way with their staff, team members, clients and colleagues. He said “Read first and learn smart” based-training programme, designed by him will be very helpful for entrepreneurs. Sanjay Chechani was the special guest while Rehana Parvin and Sara Tasneem, Assistant Professors of DScE spoke.

Source: https://thefinancialexpress.com.bd/economy/developing-soft-skills-a-must-1572676460

US-China trade deal in sight after progress in high-level talks

The United States and China on Friday said that they made progress in talks aimed at defusing a nearly 16-month-long trade war that has harmed the global economy, and US officials said a deal could be signed this month. The Chinese commerce ministry on Friday said that the world’s two largest economies had reached ‘consensus on principles’ during a ‘serious and constructive’ telephone call between their main trade negotiators. US president Donald Trump said that he hoped to sign an agreement with Chinese president Xi Jinping at a US location, perhaps in the farming state of Iowa, which will be a key battleground state in the 2020 presidential election. US and Chinese negotiators have been racing to finalise a text of a ‘phase 1’ agreement for Trump and Xi to sign this month, a process clouded by wrangling over US demands for a timetable of Chinese purchases of US farm products. A critical date is December 15, when new US tariffs on Chinese imports such as laptops, toys and electronics are set to kick in. Both the United States and China have an interest in reaching a deal and averting those tariffs. Agreements on agriculture, financial services and currency were nearly completed, and there had been ‘excellent progress’ on intellectual property theft issues, Kudlow said, although some additional work remained on that topic. He said that the thorny issue of technology transfer to China would likely be pushed back to a second phase. The agreement covered Chinese purchases of US farm products, and other steps to open up its market to agricultural goods, while in financial services, the agreement would ‘give 100 per cent ownership to American companies in China,’ Kudlow said, citing insurers, security firms, and investment and commercial banks.

Source: http://www.newagebd.net/article/89582/us-china-trade-deal-in-sight-after-progress-in-high-level-talks

Time to improve our Logistics Potential

A new global report titled “Agility Emerging Markets Logistics Index” unveiled a week ago ranks Bangladesh at 39th position out of 50 emerging economies. The survey respondents comprised more than 500 logistics professionals who gave their opinion on the prospects and challenges of emerging markets in the years ahead. Agility, one of the leading logistics companies in the world, has been conducting this global survey since 2009. The key measures used to put the report together were based upon three broad categories: domestic logistics, international logistics and business fundamentals. Bangladesh’s score got dragged down in the business fundamentals sub-index that deals with some major issues like regulatory environment, contract enforcement and anti-corruption frameworks, etc. Unfortunately for the country, the report blames “weak frameworks covering finance, property rights and contract enforcement.” Indeed, we did not score well on the anti-corruption frameworks. While Bangladesh has been highlighted as one of the top performers in Asia over the last decade, with consistent annual growth rates averaging 6.3 percent, respondents also point out concerns over political uncertainty and “a struggling domestic banking system” as potential red flags for future growth. Low wage has been the primary driving factor in attracting foreign investment to the country over the years but that scenario has changed with the upward movement in wages—posting the highest climb in December 2018 with the introduction of a new wage board in the apparel sector, recording a 51 percent hike. The challenge, therefore, will be to make progress in other areas to keep Bangladesh as a preferred destination for low cost manufacturing.

Source: https://www.thedailystar.net/opinion/no-frills/news/time-improve-our-logistics-potential-1713607

A smart Meal Box

We all love a good takeaway but it’s not all just about pizza and fried chicken in the world of food delivery. From busy insurance brokers to workaholic parents to those who simply cannot be bothered to cook — Smartmeal can be a lifesaver! We all start out with the intent of shopping smart. Grand Ideas of smoothies, salads, and a multitude of healthy recipes are dreamt up on a Friday night, only to end up eating greasy and unhealthy food for lunch the rest of the week. As a result, our bank accounts take a hit, as well as our wellbeing. Enter Smartmeal, aka, the superhero of no-time-to-cook!. Due to high demand, the company is expanding its fleet and capacity rapidly. What started out in Gulshan on 1 October, 2019 has now spread to Banani, Baridhara, Bashundhara, Mohakhali, and Tejgaon in less than 2 weeks! Despite a Smartmeal box containing between 450-600 calories, the portions are generous and the food is refreshingly tasty.

Source: https://www.thedailystar.net/lifestyle/recipe/news/smart-meal-box-1819987

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