NBR sees 16.72pc growth in Q1 ’22

The collection of tax revenue registered a 16.72 per cent growth in the first quarter (Q1) of the current fiscal year (FY) as compared to the same period last FY, thanks to economic reopening after the Covid-induced lockdown. Increased prices of imported commodities, particularly fuel oil and food items, in the global market have helped enhance the collection of duties and taxes by the customs wing, suggested an analysis of import data. Tax officials, however, considered that close monitoring, economic rebound, automation move, easing of the tax payment procedures, legal reforms and transparency were the main reasons behind the higher collection growth rate. The average tax revenue collection growth was 11.36 per cent during the last five years. However, the overall collection fell by Tk 63.43 billion short of the period’s target, according to provisional data of the National Board of Revenue (NBR). In the July-September quarter, the NBR collected Tk 583.51 billion in tax revenue against its target of Tk 646.95 billion. According to Bangladesh Bank data, the value of imports as measured by the settlements of letters of credit (LCs) surged by 30.62 per cent to US$ 5.17 billion in August 2021 from $3.96 billion in the previous month. The opening of import LCs also increased by more than 48 per cent to $6.29 billion in August from $4.25 billion a month ago. The VAT collection also grew by 16.45 per cent in the period under review as consumption of goods increased following resumption of economic activities and domestic tourism. The income tax wing also achieved 12.74 per cent growth in the Q1, collecting Tk 179.49 billion in the Q1. The NBR collected Tk 210.92 billion VAT and Tk 193.09 billion customs duty in July-September period this FY. However, the income tax wing suffered a collection shortfall of Tk 19.78 billion, followed by VAT Tk 19.47 billion and customs wing Tk 24.17 billion as compared to their respective targets for the period. Following the sluggish economic activities since March 8, 2020, the VAT collection growth dropped to 1.25 per cent, followed by income tax 2.04 per cent and customs duty 6.79 per cent.

Source: https://today.thefinancialexpress.com.bd/first-page/nbr-sees-1672pc-growth-in-q1-22-1635008878

 BRAC EPL to use OMS platform

A tri-party agreement involving BRAC EPL Stock Brokerage Ltd, Magnus Corporation Ltd and DirectFN has been signed for the order management system (OMS) recently. Ahsanur Rah-man, Chief Executive Officer of BRAC EPL Stock Brokerage Ltd., Primal Silva, Business Development Manager-Asia of DirectFN, and Arman A Khan, Mana-ging Director of MAGNUS Corporation Ltd., signed the agreement at the BRAC EPL office in Dhaka. The ‘Order Management System (OMS) Platform’ will provide investors a robust and modern trading platform and enable them to executive trades more efficiently.

Source: https://today.thefinancialexpress.com.bd/stock-corporate/brac-epl-to-use-oms-platform-1635004852

Small businesses struggle to repay stimulus loans

Lenders are failing to implement the second phase of the stimulus package for the CMSME sector as clients struggle to repay the loans secured under the first round. In April last year, Bangladesh Bank unveiled a stimulus package worth Tk 20,000 crore for the CMSME sector to protect it from the impacts of the coronavirus pandemic. Of the sum, 77 per cent was disbursed. The tenure of the first round of the stimulus loans expired in June. The central bank has allocated another Tk 20,000 crore for the current fiscal year as the economy is yet to return to normalcy from the slowdown. The stimulus programme will continue for three years. They lent out only Tk 1,555 crore between July 1 and October 23 under the second round. The higher NPL of the stimulus loans would put lenders in a difficult situation because the central bank deducts the money from the current accounts of the lenders maintained with the BB if clients fail to pay back.

Source: https://www.thedailystar.net/business/economy/banks/news/small-businesses-struggle-repay-stimulus-loans-2204806

MNCs shed up to 11pc on DSE

Shares in most listed multinational companies (MNCs) slumped in the last week — up to 11 per cent — amid continuous price correction witnessed by Dhaka Stock Exchange (DSE). Of 12 listed MNCs, share prices of 10 firms declined while the two others saw their prices go up. Of the companies, Heidelberg Cement Bangladesh witnessed the highest price correction of 11 per cent. Its share price closed at Tk 319.60 each on Thursday, the last day of the week. LafargeHolcim Bangladesh shed 8.03 per cent to close at Tk 88.20 each on Thursday. The share price of Singer Bangladesh fell 7.2 per cent to finish at Tk 174.10 each on Thursday. RAK Ceramics (Bangladesh) saw a loss of 6.6 per cent as it closed at Tk 45.20 each on Thursday. Linde Bangladesh declined 4.4 per cent to settle at Tk 1528.40 each on Thursday. The share price of Bata Shoe Company (Bangladesh) closed at Tk 881 each on Thursday, shedding 2.2 per cent. Berger Paints Bangladesh declined 0.9 per cent, Grameenphone 0.4 per cent, Reckitt Benckiser (Bd.) 0.4 per cent and British American Tobacco Bangladesh Company 0.3 per cent during the week.

Source: https://today.thefinancialexpress.com.bd/stock-corporate/mncs-shed-up-to-11pc-on-dse-1635004756