Newly formed BIDA suffers switchover troubles

Major activities at the newly established Bangladesh Investment Development Authority (BIDA) are being ‘hampered’ as officers drawn from the defunct BoI lack legitimate authority to sign on decisions, sources said. The now-defunct Board of Investment (BoI) used to actually run with officers deputed from different departments, including autonomous organisations. The government formed BIDA with the merger of BoI and the Privatisation Commission aiming to expedite services to businesses in respect of investment and industrialisation. The investment-promotion entity practically came into being on September 01 last. Kazi M Aminul Islam leads it as executive chairman.

Source:
http://www.thefinancialexpress-bd.com/2016/09/19/46449/Newly-formed-BIDA-suffers-switchover-troubles

Government to declare Product of the Year for export push

The government is going to announce the ‘Product of the Year’ for the first time in the current financial year 2016-17 to encourage product-specific exports. Senior officials of the commerce ministry have already held two meetings and prepared a shortlist of three export products. The list will be submitted to commerce minister Tofail Ahmed within short time, officials concerned said. The short-listed three export products are: jute goods, denim and pharmaceuticals. The ministry will select a product every year aimed at diversification of export items and will take necessary steps to augment the export prospect of the product. Zahir Uddin Ahmed, additional secretary (export) of commerce ministry, told New Age on Monday that the work was still on progress and finally the commerce minister would announce the Product of the Year for the FY17. According to the Export Policy, every year a specific product will be picked as the ‘Product of the Year’ to encourage product-specific exports. This is for the first time that the commerce ministry has taken the initiative to select the Product of the Year though the provision was included in the Export Policy 2012-2015, Export Promotion Bureau officials said. Any of the three export products — jute goods, denim and pharmaceuticals — will be declared as the Product of the Year, EPB officials said.

Source: http://newagebd.net/252335/govt-declare-product-year-export-push/

BERC readies draft LPG regulation: Insurance a must for its businesses

The government has finally stepped in to formulate the country’s first-ever LPG (liquefied petroleum gas) operation, storage, supply, distribution and marketing regulation to ensure safety and quality in mounting usages of the fuel. The country’s energy regulator has already drafted the regulation, spelling out necessary safety measures, which would be called as the Bangladesh Energy Regulatory Commission (BERC) LPG Storage, Bottling, Transportation and Dispensing Codes and Standards, 2016. It would cover storage, bottling, transportation and dispensing, including container, piping and associated equipment and appurtenances of LPG, a senior BERC official said. Insurance has been made mandatory for the LPG businesses to cover any loss and damage to the public life and property due to fire or any operational reason or accident etc. A licensee will be responsible for any mishap that takes place at his workstation or LPG outlets, on distributor’s premises or during transportation of LPG due to incompetence, negligence or use of substandard material or equipment, and will be liable to compensate the loss of life and property, it spells out.

Source: http://print.thefinancialexpress-bd.com/2016/09/20/152057

Smartphone imports soar 57.4% in six months

Smartphone imports rose 57.4% in the first half of 2016 from a year earlier, in a development that will bring cheers to mobile operators and the government alike as it strives for a Digital Bangladesh. Between January and June, 3.6 million pieces were brought into the country, according to Bangladesh Mobile Phone Importers Association. Last year, the ratio was one in five, he said, adding that it will definitely become bigger in the next few years. During the January-June period, the industry imported a total of 13.5 million handsets, up 23.8% year-on-year. Smartphones accounted for 26.6% of the imports in the first half of 2016, in contrast to 20.9% a year earlier. This year, the importers aim to sell 9.0 million smartphones. Symphony’s low-cost smartphones are dominating the segment. The local brand accounted for 43.8% of the total smartphones imported during the period. Though Samsung is far behind Symphony in import quantity, it superseded the local brand in import value. Samsung accounted for 18.8% of the smartphone imports in the first half of the year, but the import value of handsets was 34.0%. In contrast, Symphony’s import value stood at 30.3%.

Source:  http://www.thedailystar.net/business/smartphone-imports-soar-57pc-six-months-1286575

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