A Rouf Chowdhury reelected Bank Asia chairman

A Rouf Chowdhury has recently been reelected chairman of Bank Asia at the 453rd meeting of its Board of Directors. Chowdhury is the bank’s main sponsor. He is the chairman of Rangs Group and Sea Resources Group and one of the directors of Mediaworld which owns The Daily Star.His business entities are engaged in transport, medicine, real estate, IT, banking and deep sea fishing, says a press release.

Source: https://www.thedailystar.net/business/news/rouf-chowdhury-reelected-bank-asia-chairman-2087325

Remittances past $20b in 10 months

Remittance inflow surpassed the $20-billion mark in the first 10 months of this fiscal year riding on the relentless efforts of migrant workers to send their hard-earned money home through banking channels.Between July and April, the Bangladeshi diaspora sent $20.66 billion, up 39 per cent year-on-year, according to data from the central bank.For the first time in the country’s history, remittance inflow crossed the $20 billion mark in a single fiscal year, a development that has given a breathing space to the government to absorb the economic shocks deriving from the coronavirus pandemic.Remittance inflow also increased 89 per cent year-on-year to $2.06 billion in April as the migrant workers sent a whopping amount of funds ahead of Eid-ul-Fitr.

The inflow usually skyrockets before Eid-ul-Fitr and Eid-ul-Azha, the two biggest religious festivals for Muslims, as migrant workers send a hefty amount to their near and dear ones during these periods.The monthly remittance exceeded the $2-billion mark after four months. The expats sent $2.05 billion in December.The stagnation of hundi, an illegal cross-boundary financial transaction, has largely pushed the country’s remittances up in recent months, experts said. A good number of countries have adopted strict restrictions on movement since the Covid-19 outbreak last year, putting an adverse impact on the operation of the global hundi cartel.Imports have nosedived in recent months as businesses have adopted a go-slow policy in setting up new industrial units or expanding existing ones.The government will have to lay great emphasis on exporting manpower abroad in order to keep remittance inflow stable in the years ahead.

Source: https://www.thedailystar.net/business/news/remittances-past-20b-10-months-2087357

Stock turnover hits 3-month high

Investors are pouring money into stocks pinning hopes on the higher profit declarations by the listed companies for the latest quarter.As a result, index and turnover both are rising.Turnover at the Dhaka Stock Exchange (DSE) crossed Tk 1,400 crore yesterday for the first time in the last three months.The important indicator of the stock market rose 19 per cent from the previous day’s Tk 1,172 crore.DSEX, benchmark index of the DSE, increased 37 points or 0.68 per cent to end the day at 5,517.01.Investors are hopeful of making higher profits at the end of 2020-21 as the listed companies are announcing their quarterly reports and most of them booked higher profits, said Sharif Anwar Hossain, president of DSE Brokers’ Association.The companies’ higher profits are a good sign for the market, he said.

Reckitt Benckiser announced 1,400 per cent cash dividend for the year ended on December 31 of 2020 when its earnings per share (EPS) stood at Tk 156, which was Tk 131 the previous year.The multinational company’s EPS rose to Tk 29.39 during the January to March period of the current year, up from Tk 24.04 in the same period previous year.The EPS of Eastern Lubricants surged to Tk 37.69 in the nine months of the current fiscal year, up from Tk 6.09 a year earlier. Institutional investors are also active now as the rate of infection and demise from the Covid-19 has reduced, Hossain said, adding that: “Investors will not be loser if they invest in well-performing companies and then hold those.”Patience is the key to success in the stock market, he added.At the DSE, 180 stocks advanced, 104 declined and 77 remained unchanged.

Padma Life Insurance topped the gainers’ list with a 23 per cent rise followed by Khulna Power, Maksons Spinning, Generation Next, and Matin Spinning.Stocks of Beximco Ltd traded the most with shares worth Tk 277 crore changing hands followed by Provati Insurance, National Feed Mills, Beximco Pharmaceuticals, and LafargeHolcim Bangladesh. Associated Oxygen Ltd shed the most that dropped 7 per cent followed by Rupali Insurance, Paramount Insurance, Midas Financing and Northern Insurance.The Chattogram Stock Exchange also rose yesterday. The CASPI, the general index of the port city bourse, surged 128 points, or 0.80 per cent, to stand at 15,973.Among 267 traded stocks, 145 rose, 82 dropped and 40 remained unchanged.

Source: https://www.thedailystar.net/business/news/stock-turnover-hits-3-month-high-2087345