The New Nation - Internet Edition

Huge food bill, slide in export to slowdown Bangladesh GDP: IMF

BUSINESS REPORT

Bangladesh economy would slow down to 5.0-5.5 per cent this fiscal as a huge food import bill coupled with slide in export saw the country facing the 'biggest' impact on its balance of payment, the IMF said on Tuesday.

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) said the twin disasters of floods and cyclone has damaged some 3.7 per cent of the country's GDP, exacerbating already slowing growth and increasing food prices.

The staff estimates that "without additional balance of payments supports, international reserves would be depleted below three months of import coverage by end June 2008."

"The biggest balance of payments impact arises from the need to import large volumes of food," the IMF said, after releasing an emergency natural disaster assistance worth US$217 million dollars early this month.

The country's food and fertiliser import bills would increase by $630 million due to the twin disasters while the relief and reconstruction costs for the current fiscal are estimated at $850 million.

The Fund said the country's Gross Domestic Product (GDP) is now projected to grow at 5.0-5.50 per cent due to the impact of the twin disasters and the soaring food bill.

"Together with the indirect effect on growth expected from the damage sustained by infrastructure, this is projected to reduce the growth rate staff projected prior to the disasters by ¾ of a percentage point to 5.0-5.5 per cent," the IMF said.

It said much before the twin disasters the country's economy was already slowing down and the inflation was on the rise due to the 'anti-corruption drive' launched by the caretaker government and a downturn in global economy.

"The ADP implementation rate in the early months of the FYO8 was the lowest in a decade, as the government's anti-corruption drive led to greater scrutiny of projects," it said.

And due to the government's continued sale of oil at a far lower than the international rates, new losses incurred by the state-owned enterprises including the Bangladesh Petroleum corporation would hit 1.0 to 1.5 per cent of the GDP, should the oil prices not adjusted this fiscal.

In its assessment, the Fund said inflation, which hit over 11 per cent in January, "is expected to moderate only slightly to 10 per cent by end-FY08 given prevailing high international prices."

"Price pressures emerged on the back of the international commodity inflation, earlier monetary accommodation and supply bottlenecks resulting from the government's anti-corruption and anti-hoarding policies," it said.

IBBL holds workshop on 'Business Promotion, Capacity Enhancement'

BUSINESS REPORT

A workshop on 'Business Promotion and Capacity Enhancement' was held for the Managers, 2nd Officers and all Officers of Chittagong Zone of Islami Bank Bangladesh Limited recently at Agrabad in Chittagong.

It was organized by Chittagong Zone of the IBBL.

Mominul Islam Patwary, Chairman, Executive Committee of the bank was present at the workshop as the chief guest and M Fariduddin Ahmad, Executive President of the bank as special guest. The sessions were presided over by Abul Hossain, Zonal Head and Executive Vice President, Mohammad Abdul Mannan, Deputy Executive President and Head of Investment Wing and Md Habibur Rahman, Deputy Executive President and Head of International Banking Wing.

The workshop was addressed, among others, by Syed Abdullah Mohammed Saleh, Md Amjad Hussain and Md Mahbub-ul-Alam, Executive Vice Presidents, Md Abdul Jabbar, Shaikh Mohammad and Mohammad Ali, Senior Vice Presidents, Abu Reza Md Yeahia and KM Munirul Alam Al Mamun, Vice Presidents and Mohammad Delwar Hossain, Assistant Vice President.

Mominul Islam Patwary said in his speech that IBBL has reached the summit of success in the last 25 years with the cooperation of the people of the country. He urged the bankers to implement the training in order to reach the service of Islamic Banking to the doorstep of the people.

M. Fariduddin Ahmad said in his speech that such workshop plays important role in upgradation of the standards of employees and this type of programme shall be continued in future.

Trading of DBH begins today on DSE, CSE

BUSINESS REPORT

The trading of Delta BRAC Housing Finance Corporation (DBH) begins today (Thursday) on the country's both stock exchanges.

The Dhaka Stock Exchange (DSE) board in a meeting Tuesday listed the Delta BRAC Housing, one of the country's largest private housing financing companies, on the bourse and fixed the date for its share trading.

Delta BRAC Housing will be the 271st listed company on DSE.

Earlier the listing sub-committee of DSE approved the application of the DBH on Sunday last.

On April 8, lottery for share allotment of the DBH was held at the Bangladesh-China Friendship Conference Center in the city.

The initial public offering (IPO) of the company was oversubscribed by more than 50 times.

The DBH floated 0.5 million shares having an offer value of Tk 210 per share with a face value of Tk 100 and premium Tk 110 to raise Tk 105 million from the stock market.

The Securities and Exchange Commission gave the nod for flotation of shares of the DBH in January last.

DBH, incorporated in May 1996, also the country's leading non-banking financial institution (NBFI), provides loans for construction of houses, purchase of flats or houses, extension and improvement of existing houses and purchase of housing plots.

The pre-IPO paid up capital of the company was Tk 220 million and the authorised capital Tk 500 million, the company said in a draft prospectus for IPO. The earning per share (EPS) of the company was Tk 45 in the year ending in June 2006 and Tk 56 to June 2007.

The company posted a net profit of Tk 107.4 million in the financial year ending June 30, 2007, and Tk 134.2 million in the previous year. The net asset value (NAV) per share is Tk 214 as of June 30, 2007.

Volatility on the rise, risks loom in Asian bond markets, says ADB

Mumbai, India

The most immediate and visible fallout from the global credit market turmoil has been an increase in volatility in emerging East Asian bond markets, says a new report issued by the Asian Development Bank (ADB).

Credit tightening in emerging East Asian economies has not been severe in the wake of the U.S. subprime mortgage turmoil, the April issue of Asia Bond Monitor (ABM) says. But corporate bond yields have edged up as investors seek risk premiums, while some borrowers have delayed bond issues, relying on short-term bank finance rather than longer-term debt issuance.

At the initial stages of the recent credit tightening, emerging East Asian local currency bond markets benefited as investors chased attractive returns outside U.S. markets. But as risk aversion in global markets spiked, foreign investors began retreating from Asian markets causing a rise in volatility in domestic capital markets.

The pace of government and corporate issuance has slowed but not to the same extent as a decline in global bond issuance. The region's offshore bond issuance market has slowed markedly and securitization markets have largely dried up.

ABM says the outlook for emerging East Asian bond markets is of continued growth, but at a slower pace. It highlights that domestic credit, supported by ample local savings, continues to provide resources for investment even as portfolio equity and bond flows taper off.

"Governments in the region carried out key reforms in the secondary market in 2007. They need to continue to improve bond market liquidity and strengthen risk management," says Jong-Wha Lee, Head of ADB's Office of Regional Economic Integration (OREI). ABM includes a survey to identify key determinants of bond market liquidity. The survey finds that amid growing risk aversion, illiquidity of the region's local currency bond markets is a limiting factor in their development.

Increasing investor diversity, availability of hedging tools, consistent secondary market pricing and a more investor-friendly tax structure in corporate bond markets are measures that can help promote more liquid regional bond markets.

ABM says emerging East Asia's local currency bonds outstanding expanded at an annual rate of 21% in the second half of 2007 from 10% in the first half of last year. Government bond markets grew 21%, largely driven by central bank sterilization and fiscal stimulus. Corporate bond markets grew by 20%.

Heightened inflation risks, the slowdown in global growth and fears of external shocks led to increased volatility in local currency yield curves in 2007. Despite the global market turbulence, the ABF Pan Asian Index gained 8% in 2007 in US dollar terms, partly lifted by stronger regional currencies. The index gained 13.6% in 2006. ABM cites three main risks to regional bond market outlook: (i) a deep or protracted U.S. economic contraction, (ii) continued global capital market volatility placing pressure on investors to cover rapidly shifting positions, and (iii) rising inflation in the region constraining policy options as growth slows.

It urges policymakers to focus on five key challenges to make local currency markets more vibrant. These are (i) boosting investor confidence by strengthening legal protection and corporate governance, (ii) reduce barriers to market entry and encourage investor diversity, (iii) development of derivative markets and increase liquidity, (iv) better data compilation, and (v) tighten regulatory oversight.

The April edition of ABM has a theme chapter on bond market developments and challenges in India. It says India's government bond market has grown steadily in size, largely due to the need to finance its fiscal deficit and is comparable to many government bond markets in emerging East Asia. But domestic corporate bond market remains less developed, with private placements dominating.

Like many emerging economies, the investor base in India remains narrow in both government and corporate bond markets, with limited foreign participation. ABM urges regulatory supervision in local bond markets to be streamlined to create a more level playing field for investors.

ABM examines local currency bond developments in emerging East Asia defined as the Association of Southeast Asian Nations member countries, plus the People's Republic of China, Hong Kong, China and the Republic of Korea.

Lead Auditor Course on ISO 22000 held

International Finance Corporation-SouthAsia Enterprise Development Facility (IFCSEDF) works with SMEs to improve their access to international markets and increase the competitiveness of their exports. For SMEs working in the food and agro-processing sector, quality assurance and certification are critical in order to gain access to international markets. However, obtaining certification such as the RACCP or ISO 220000 was an obstacle as there was a lack of service providers who could conduct the audits necessary and assist SMEs to obtain this certification. As such, IFC-SEDF organized a five-day long Lead Auditor Course on HACCP and ISO 22000 Food Safety Management System at a hotel in Dhaka.

The course was conducted by Quality Institute of America (QIA) and URS Bangladesh Limited, in association with CMC International (UK) Limited. The opening session was presided over by Ms Afifa Raihana, Coordinator, Sustainability, IFC-SEDF. Wazir U Alam, Executive Vice President, QIA, Chris McHale, Registered Lead Auditor and Managing Director, CMC International (UK) Limited, Rashid Munir Akhter, Registered Lead Auditor and Managing Director, URS Bangladesh Limited also spoke on the occasion.

Ms. Raihana asserts "Our processed food and agribusiness sector has great potential to grow. This course is a critical step to help SMEs in the sector access service providers who can help them reach their potential."

The Lead Tutor for the course was Chris McHale of CMC International (UK) Limited, Co- Tutor, Rashid Munir Akhter of URS Bangladesh Limited, Co-Tutor, Mukesh Singhal of URS Group, India and Dr. Ashis Ratan Sen, local food law expert. Senior management, production and quality control executives from BSTI, Food Industries and Consulting firms participated in the training course. The course tutors discussed at length the basic and fundamental guidelines of ISO 22000 as well as the mandatory regulatory requ irements.

Gulshan Club opts for GP Business Solutions

BUSINESS REPORT

Grameenphone Ltd has recently signed an agreement with the Gulshan Club Limited to provide complete communication facilities under its Business Solutions package. Grameenphone Business Solutions is an integrated telecommunications service, specially designed for the business entities of Bangladesh, providing customised telecommunications solutions through a consultative approach, tailored to the needs of individual businesses.

Gulshan Club, established on December 30, 1978, is one of the renowned clubs of Bangladesh with around 1200 members. The prestigious family club is located in the heart of Dhaka, blending the Bengali traditions with eastern and western cultures-making it a charming place with modern services combined to create a home away from home. Business Solutions, comprising of modern mobile telecommunications services for any business needs, provides voice, text messaging and mobile data and internet services. Also on offer is a complete Mobile-Office solution, including mobile email, mobile high-speed data access, internet access, mobile fax and more, providing the freedom to work from anywhere within Grameenphone's wide network coverage.

According to the agreement, Gulshan Club Limited is being provided complete communications solutions tailored to its needs, including voice, data and other services. Gulshan Club Limited will use the services to further improve its communication, at an affordable cost.

The agreement was signed by Engr M Faizul Islam (Selim), President of Gulshan Club Limited, and Laszlo Barta, Director Sales of Grameenphone Ltd, on behalf of their respective organizations.

Khwaja Shafiqur Rahman, Member, Finance, Ali Ahmed, E. C. Member and Sabrina Samad (Moppy) of Gulshan Club Limited, and Tania Ahmed, Additional General Manager, Segments Marketing, Khandaker Omar Farhan, Deputy General Manager, Direct Sales, Md Mahbub Ullah and Ehatasham Haider, Group Manager, Mehjabin Ali, Account Manager, Chowdhury Farzad Ali, Relationship Manager Sales Division of Grameenphone, were present at the signing ceremony.

Ali Hossain appointed Krishi Bank GM

Ali Hossain has been appointed General Manager of Bangladesh Krishi Bank recently.

He has also preformed as an Additional General Manager of Sonali Bank from 2001 to 2008 before joining his new post as General Manager of Krishi Bank on April 10 last.

Besides, he also served at the Legal Matters Division of the Principal Office in Dhaka and Principal office Noakhali, Chittagong, Faridpur in the Sonali Bank.

Ali Hossain has started his career as a Banker after securing M.Sc degree from the University of Dhaka in 1977. Later, he obtained LLB degree and got Diploma from the Institute of Bankers of Bangladesh.

Hossain also attended a series of training courses during his banking career. Ali Hossain was born at village Paramtala under Muradnagar thana in Comilla district.

Rafique, Bhuiyan new chairman, vice-chairman of Padma Islami Life Insurance

Recently in 5th meeting of the Board at Radisson water Garden Hotel Dhaka, A.T.M. Rafique has been elected as Chairman and A. R. Bhuiyan as Vice-Chairman or the Company. Both of them are sponsor directors of the Company having long experience in insurance profession.

Prime Islami Life Insurance holds Divisional Confce

Prime Islami Life Insurance Ltd arranged its Barisal, Khulna and Rajshahi Divisional Conference 2008 on April 19. The function took place at Barisal Club in Barisal city.

Managing Director of the company Kazi Md Mortuza Ali presided over the day-long conference. The member of company's Shariah Council Maulana Abdul Hakim AI-Madani was present as the chief guest at the opening ceremony of Divisional Conference.

The adviser of the company Alhaz MA Khaleque, principal of Barisal Sagordi Alia Madrasha Maulana Md Asraf AIi, principal of Barisal Karnokathi Alia Madrasha Maulana Kazi Ansar Uddin, Vice President and In charge of Islami Bank Bangaladesh, Barisal Branch Md Faijul Kabir were present as special guests.

Habibur Rahman, Company Secretary, Md Faruq Ahammed Siddiquee, SEVP and In-charge Dev Admin were present among others. About 300 field officers in different categories from concerned divisions were present in the conference.