Inflation eases to 5.37% in August

The general inflation rate in the country has eased to 5.37% in August, the lowest in more than 10 years, due mainly to the lowering trend for the last couple of months and slight downtrend in food inflation. Planning Minister AHM Mustafa Kamal said this on Tuesday while releasing the monthly consumer price index (CPI) after the Ecnec meeting. The general point-to-point inflation rate that is the% change in the CPI during the last 12 months was 5.40% in July, 5.45% in May, 5.61% in April, 5.65% in March and 5.62% in February. According to data provided by the Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics (BBS), the food inflation slightly declined to 4.30-percentage point in August from 4.35-percentage point in July. According to the BBS, the average general inflation rate in the last fiscal year was 5.92%, which was 6.41% in fiscal year 2014-15, 7.35% in fiscal year 2013-14, and 6.78% in fiscal year 2012-13. The BBS data showed the food inflation rate, however, slightly increased to 7.00% in August 2016, up from 6.98% in July, 2016. Besides, the general inflation rate at the urban level in August increased to 7.15% while it was 4.41% at the rural level. At the rural level, the food inflation declined to 3.40% in August, down from 3.59% in the previous month, while the non-food inflation increased to 6.28% in August as against 6.26% in July this year. In urban areas, the food inflation also increased to 6.39% in August, up from 6.11% in July. The non-food inflation rate also witnessed increasing trend with 7.99% in August which was 7.98% in July this year. The national wage index, however, witnessed a declining trend with 6.06% in August down from 6.13% in July.

Source:
http://www.dhakatribune.com/bangladesh/2016/09/06/inflation-eases-5-37-august/
http://www.thedailystar.net/business/urban-consumer-prices-aug-1281754
http://print.thefinancialexpress-bd.com/2016/09/07/151269
http://newagebd.net/250441/inflation-inches-5-37pc-aug/
http://www.observerbd.com/details.php?id=32374

National Savings Certificates net investment increased by 77.0% in July

People continued to invest heavily in national savings certificates and bonds in the first month of the new fiscal year with net investment rising by 77.0% in July compared with the figures of the same month of the last fiscal year because of low bank rates. According to latest Directorate of National Savings data, the net investment in the savings instruments increased to BDT 35.0 billion in July of FY17 compared with that of BDT 19.8 billion in the same month of FY16. The net investment in the national savings tools hit a fresh record at BDT 336.9 billion in FY16 against the government target of BDT 150.0 billion as rate of interest on the tools is almost double the rate of banks’ fixed deposit schemes. In its fiscal budget for FY17, the government set a borrowing target of BDT 196.1 billion from the NSCs. A DNS official told New Age on Tuesday that the government’s borrowing target from the NSCs would cross the annual target within the first half of FY17 if the existing investment trend continued. The savings instruments worth BDT 49.3 billion were sold through banks, national savings bureaus and post offices in July FY17 whereas the sales of the NSCs were worth BDT 32.4 billion in the same month a fiscal year ago.

Source: http://newagebd.net/250443/nscs-net-BDT-3498cr-july/

ADP spending remains slow in July-Aug

The implementation status of the annual development programme in the first two months of the current fiscal year remained in a depressing situation despite experiencing a slight improvement in the period compared with the same months of the previous year. According to the Implementation Monitoring and Evaluation Division of the planning ministry, the government’s ADP implementing agencies could implement only 3.9% worth BDT 44.6 billion of the total outlay of BDT 1107.0 billion for the current fiscal year of 2016-17. In July-August period of the last FY 2015-16, the 54 ADP implementing ministries and divisions had spent 3% or BDT 33.5 billion of the total allocation. Planning minister AHM Mustafa Kamal on Tuesday revealed the data at a press briefing after the weekly meeting of Executive Committee of the National Economic Council held at NEC conference room at capital’s Agargoan. He said that the ADP implementation rate increased both in terms of% and allocation in the first two months of the current fiscal year compared with that of the same period of last year.

Source: http://newagebd.net/250439/adp-spending-remains-slow-july-aug/
http://print.thefinancialexpress-bd.com/2016/09/07/151243

Bourses to get 90 days to recommend an IPO

The Bangladesh Securities and Exchange Commission has initiated a move to allow stock exchanges highest 90 days to give their final opinions on a draft prospectus of a company’s initial public offering. The commission took the move as the bourses — Dhaka Stock Exchange and Chittagong Stock Exchange — have been taking much time in scrutinizing the IPO proposals, creating problems for the regulator. A BSEC official said the commission has to give its final decision on a company’s IPO proposal within a specific period of time set by the rules. But, delays in submitting final recommendations by the bourses leave the commission in a discomfort zone, he said. The BSEC is going to issue a directive to the bourses within a couple of days asking them to submit their final recommendations within 90 days of receiving draft IPO prospectus from the issuer company, he said. Under the amended Bangladesh Securities and Exchange Commission (Public Issue) Rules, 2015, stock exchanges are bound to submit their primary recommendations to the commission within twenty days after receiving IPO prospectuses from issuer companies.
Source: http://newagebd.net/250438/bourses-get-90-days-recommend-ipo/