18-07-2018

ECONOMY & BUSINESS
BANGLADESHTODAY 10
THE
WEDNESDAY, JULY 18, 2018
Third Cotton Day held in Dhaka
COTTON USA held a Seminar and a
dazzling Fashion Show in Dhaka to
celebrate the third Cotton Day in
Bangladesh, a press release said.
Cotton Council International (CCI)
introduced in 2016 the observance of
Cotton Day to celebrate US Cotton as
well as Bangladesh being the largest
manufacturer and exporter of cotton
apparel products.
Over one hundred spinning mills,
garment manufacturers, cotton
merchants and traders including
agents attended the seminar, and a gala
evening of reception, fashion show and
dinner.
An eight member COTTON USA
Executive Delegation consisting of Mr.
Raymond Faus, President - American
Cotton Shippers Association (ACSA),
Tim North -ACSA, Carlos Garcia-
AMCOT, John Lindamood, American
Cotton Producers, Steve Wilbur,
American Cotton Producers, Tim
Barry, Vice President ICE Futures- ICE,
Marc Lewkowitz, President, SUPIMA,
William Bettendorf, Director- South
Asia, Cotton Council International
arrived Dhaka on Sunday to meet
Bangladeshi spinning and garment
industry and promote use of US Cotton
Fijian government
constructs 36
homes for low
income earners
The Fijian government had
constructed thirty-six new
Public Rental Board (PRB)
flats to be available to low
income earners at Kalabu
Rental Estate 35 minutesdrive
outside Suva, capital of
Fiji.
Fijian Prime Minister
Voreqe Bainimarama who
officially opened the flats on
Monday said Fijian families
should celebrate this
achievement as they would
benefit from it.
He encouraged Fijians to
use this opportunity as a
stepping stone to one day go
on to build or buy their very
own homes.
Bainimarama said his
government would help
Fijians achieve their dreams.
"Because I assure you,
whatever your dreams for
yourselves and for your
families may be, my
government will be there to
support you and your
ambition. We will always
listen to you, we will always
strive to serve you, and we
will always deliver for you,
for your communities, and
for every one of your
families," he told those
gathered on Monday.
Tenants will pay a
maximum of 50 Fijian
dollars (about 23 U.S.
dollars) per week for the 1
bedroom flats. PRB's Acting
General Manager Patrick
Veu said tenants who are
financially disadvantaged
and cannot pay the 50 Fijian
dollars rent will be given a
government subsidy.
Veu said earlier the
government had given 2.4
million Fijian dollars (about
1.1 million U.S. dollars) in
2014 for the construction of
the flats. He said some of the
flats had already been given
out to those families in
demand while others will be
allocated after the opening
on Monday. Veu said there
was a huge demand for these
flats and the government
was looking into
partnerships for the
construction of more flats of
this kind.
and engage the industries to better
understand US Cotton.
At the seminar the delegation made
presentations on World Cotton
Production, Supply & Demand, U.S.
Cotton Fiber Quality and Sustainability
and Delivery, the data and information
in the presentations would enable mills
to make logical business decision. ICE
vice president presented
Intercontinental Commodity Exchange
(ICE) Futures- in the first ever ICE
official visit to Bangladesh. ICE futures
are closely followed by spinning mills
all over the world for buying cotton.
As guest of honor at COTTON USA,
U.S. Ambassador Marcia Bernicat
spoke proudly of the strong
Bangladesh-U.S. economic
relationship. The Ambassador noted
that the U.S. is the number one
consumer of Bangladesh's exports,
especially from Bangladesh's dynamic
ready-made garment (RMG) sector.
Ambassador Bernicat praised leading
apparel and garment producers in
Bangladesh for choosing top-quality
U.S. cotton to produce products that
are in demand throughout the world.
U.S. cotton is helping to drive growth in
the RMG sector in Bangladesh.
The Ambassador also applauded the
willingness of the Government of
Bangladesh to consider removing
trade barriers that limit access for
Bangladesh importers of U.S. cotton.
Currently, U.S. cotton is the only
cotton required by law to be fumigated
for pests, a law enacted in 1966 to
protect Pakistani cotton from
competing with U.S. cotton. U.S.
cotton exporters take measures at the
port of departure to ensure the quality
of U.S. cotton and to minimize the risk
of pests. Thus, further fumigation is
unnecessary. It drives up the cost of
U.S. cotton in Bangladesh and creates
significant delays of shipments to the
mills.
In the fashion show, the country's
leading brands YELLOW and Amanat
Shah as well as COTTON USA Licensee
and Cotton LEADS partner mills-
Envoy Textiles Ltd, Hamid Fabrics Ltd,
and Square Group showcased a
selection of Bangladeshi and western
clothing. The electrifying show
displayed 100 percent US cotton and
cotton-made garments, highlighting
Bangladesh's rich cotton apparel
heritage. The event took place at a local
hotel in Dhaka.
Some manufacturers feeling
trade war pinch: survey
Some US manufacturers are delaying
investments and raising prices as President
Donald Trump escalates trade wars with key
US economic partners but most companies
report no change, according to a survey
released Monday.
The National Association for Business
Economics also found in its monthly report
that members unanimously expected
economic growth to continue in the next
year, with most forecasting inflation
adjusted growth of more than two percent.
"Labor market conditions are tight with
skilled labor shortages driving firms to raise
pay, increase training and consider
additional automation," Sara Rutledge, chair
of the quarterly survey, said in a statement.
Companies reported rising profits and
higher sales expectations. But despite the
scarcity of workers, a survey index of wage
growth slowed after hitting a record in April.
The survey, which polled 98 economists at
private companies and trade associations,
also found signs of rising prices, a possible
sign that inflation and Trump's new import
duties were filtering into the economy.
An index of prices charged hit a 12-year
record, jumping 14 points, while a measure
of materials costs hit a seven-year record,
soaring 15 points.
Trump this week began the process to
impose tariffs on up to $200 billion in
additional imports from China, adding to the
levies imposed on $34 billion in goods which
took effect earlier this month.
Economists say this could boost inflation,
which already is beginning to rise after a
decade of economic recovery, albeit
gradually.
Still, a majority in the NABE survey, 65
percent, said trade concerns were not
causing their companies to change plans for
investment, hiring or pricing.
Things were chillier in the goods
producing sector, however, with only 37
percent reporting no change.
Among manufacturers, 26 percent said
they were delaying planned investments and
16 percent reported having to raise prices.
And, as the same survey had found April,
most respondents, or 65 percent, said they
were not changing plans to hire or invest
because of December's sweeping corporate
tax cuts.
China economic growth
slows in second quarter,
warns on trade war
China said on Monday its
economic growth slowed
slightly in the second
quarter as a trade war with
the United States gained
pace, while it warned of the
global damage that could
be caused if the row
persists.
The world's secondbiggest
economy expanded
6.7 percent in April-June,
down from 6.8 percent in
the first quarter and in line
with a forecasts in an AFP
survey of economists.
The data was released
just as European Council
President Donald Tusk said
at an EU summit with
China in Beijing that trade
tensions could spiral into a
"hot conflict", calling on the
US, China and Russia to
find a resolution.
Despite the quarterly
deceleration, growth was
still higher than the annual
target of around 6.5
percent set by the
government, but China
nevertheless faces an
"extremely complex
environment both at home
and abroad", said Mao
Shengyong, a spokesman
for the national statistics
bureau.
Beijing faces a multifront
battle to defend its
economy, fighting to cut its
debt mountain while the
yuan currency and Chinese
stock markets tumble.
"World
trade
protectionism continues to
heat up, posing a major
challenge to the world
economic recovery and
adding challenges and
uncertainties for us," Mao
said. "From our domestic
perspective, economic
development has still been
unbalanced and unstable,
and is still in the process of
structural adjustment and
transformation."
The impact of the
deepening trade conflict
with the United States was
yet to fully kick in, Mao
said, noting that Beijing
would continue to assess
the situation in the second
half of the year.
But he added that the
fight "will have an impact
on the economies of both
China and the United
States, and now that the
world economy is deeply
integrated, and the
industrial chain is
globalised, many related
countries
will also be affected",
Mao said.
Companies
in UAE's int'l
financial free
zone increase
by 14 pct
The total number of active
registered firms in the Dubai
International Financial
Center (DIFC) reached
2,003 at the end of June, up
14 percent from 1,750 in the
same period last year, DIFC
said on Sunday.
DIFC, the biggest financial
free zone in the Middle East,
said the trend in the first half
of this year "reflects the
industry's continued
confidence in Dubai and its
leadership's vision."
Arif Amiri, CEO of the
DIFC Authority, said "the
new clients who have
opened in DIFC range from
FinTech start-ups which are
supported by our vast
ecosystem, to global
industry giants."
During the first six months
of 2018, 50 percent of startups
from the first FinTech
Hive program, the region's
first FinTech accelerator,
have set up in DIFC. The
total funding raised by these
start-ups amounts to 10
million U.S. dollars.
The financial free zone
expects Chinese firms to set
up in the center in the future
as it recorded in the first six
months of 2018 "growing
interest" from Chinese
institutions in the center and
its FinTech ecosystem.
Vietnam's insurance
market expands 24.4
pct in H1
Insurance companies in
Vietnam collected 58.6
trillion Vietnamese dong
(nearly 2.6 billion U.S.
dollars) in premium in the
first half of this year, up
nearly 24.4 percent year-onyear.
By the end of June, assets
of insurers totaled 337
trillion Vietnamese dong
(14.8 billion U.S. dollars), up
27.3 percent on-year, local
newspaper VnEconomy
cited the Insurance
Supervisory Agency under
Vietnam's Finance Ministry
as reporting on Monday.
Insurers paid a total of
16.3 trillion Vietnamese
dong (719 million U.S.
dollars) to insurance policy
beneficiaries in the sixmonth
period, up 22.4
percent. Meanwhile, they
poured some 277.4 trillion
Vietnamese dong (12.2
billion U.S. dollars) into the
local economy, up 27.5
percent.
Meeting of the FBCCI Standing Committee
relating to Ministry of Shipping held
To make country's business
activities more vibrant and
effective FBCCI stressed on
improvement of different
services at Chittagong port.
The FBCCI leaders
discussed about the
development of container
congestion in Chittagong
port, construction of Jetties
and other issues. It was
discussed at a meeting of the
FBCCI Standing Committee
relating to Ministry of
Shipping (Maritime Port)
held yesterday at FBCCI
Board Room, a press release
said.
Speakers at the meeting
mentioned that the lose of
businesses has been
decreased due to
improvemet in container
congestion situation by
sincere efforts of FBCCI and
the Chittagong Port
Authority Chairman. They
emphasized on speedy
completion of construction
works of the Potenga
terminal. Besides, they also
urged to keep a particular
portion of the bay terminal
for containers. They
mentioned that, the
problems regarding lighter
ships has been improved,
but the private jettys of
Chittagong Sadarghat need
to be constructed
permanently. They also
Sensex, Nifty turn
choppy on weak
Asian cues
The BSE Sensex turned choppy after rising
over 117 points in opening trade, amid weak
Asian cues and foreign fund outflows.
The broader Nifty, too, slipped below the
11,000-mark.
The 30-share index fell 74.69 points, or
0.20 per cent, to 36,466.94 after touching a
high of 36,558.71 in opening trade.
Sectoral indices led by healthcare, realty,
oil and gas, infrastructure, auto and banking
were trading in the negative zone, falling up
to 1.53 per cent.
The NSE Nifty, after rising to 11,019.50,
turned negative to quote 38.95 points, or
0.35 per cent, lower at 10,978.40.
India's trade deficit widening to a more
than three-and-a-half-year high of USD 16.6
billion due to costlier crude oil imports,
weighed on investor sentiment, brokers said.
Heavy selling activity was witnessed after
investors began booking profits at current
levels, they added.
mentioned about building
few jettys in the
Narayanganj BIWTA. It will
lessen the demerage of
mother vessels and will
make the goods loadunloading
smoother, they
added.
Dr. Md. Pervez Shazzad
Akter, Chairman of the
committee presided over the
meeting. Dr. Shazzad urged
for upgrading the toll road
into 6 lanes for smooth
transportation of the
containars. He also
requested to construct the
rail line from Chittagong
port till the Bay terminal. He
hoped that the container
congestion situation will be
further improved in coming
years by sincere effort of the
Ministry of Railways,
Ministry of Road Transport
and Bridges and the
Chittagong port authority.
FBCCI Vice President
Md. Muntakim Ashraf at the
Meeting, highlighted the
great potentials of our sea
ports and pointed out the
Shares of Infosys, however, topped the
gainers list by rising about 2 per cent even as
company's earnings fell below market
expectations.
Top laggards that dragged key indices were
ICICI Bank, Tata Motors, Sun Pharma, Yes
Bank, RIL, Hero MotoCorp, SBI, M&M, Tata
Steel, Vedanta, Coal India, Adani Ports and
Axis Bank.
Meanwhile, foreign portfolio investors
(FPIs) sold shares worth a net Rs 1,104.65
crore, while domestic institutional investors
(DIIs) bought shares worth a net Rs 872
crore on Friday, provisional data showed.
In Asian region, Hong Kong's Hang Seng
was down 0.13 per cent, while Shanghai
Composite fell 0.47 per cent in early trade.
Financial markets in Japan are closed today
for a public holiday.
The US Dow Jones Industrial Average,
however, ended 0.38 per cent higher in
Friday's trade.
Asian markets in
retreat as data shows
China growth slowing
Asian markets fell Monday as data
showed that China's economic growth
slowed in the second quarter on the brink
of a potential trade war with the United
States.
After a positive end to last week's rollercoaster
ride for equities, investors shifted
back into defensive mode in early
business, with concerns about the impact
of tit-for-tat tariffs on the world's top two
economies.
Beijing said growth in April-June came
in at 6.7 percent, in line with forecasts in
an AFP survey and better than the
government's annual target but a shade
down from the previous three months.
While the reading refers to the three
months before US levies on billions of
dollars of Chinese goods were imposed,
observers had already said the country
was likely to struggle with a trade face-off
as leaders battle a debt mountain and
pollution.
At the same time the yuan and local
stock markets are tumbling.
News Friday that China's trade surplus
with the US, a major cause of Trump's
anger, hit a record in June has further
fuelled tensions.
Mao Shengyong, a spokesman for the
national statistics bureau, warned that
the trade row "will have an impact on the
economies of both China and the United
States, and now that the world economy is
deeply integrated, and the industrial
chain is globalised, many related
countries will also be affected".
Shanghai closed down 0.6 percent and
Hong Kong lost 0.2 percent in the
afternoon, while Sydney eased 0.4
percent. Singapore, Seoul, Wellington
and Taipei were also lower. Tokyo was
closed for a public holiday.
There are hopes that Beijing and
Washington can reach an agreement to
avert
an all-out trade war, with some experts
optimistic at China's relatively
muted response to Donald Trump's
threats of further tariffs on $200 billion
of goods.
"Should the US eventually move ahead
with these tariffs, China could not
escalate on an even basis given China only
imports roughly $130 billion annually
from the US, suggesting they would either
need to levy higher trade tariffs on a small
number of selected products or take the
least attractive measure of tactically
weakening the yuan," said Stephen Innes,
head of Asia-Pacific trading at OANDA.
"Hence the lack of immediate response
from China, as administrators will be
ultra-careful not to send the wrong signal,
triggering another market melt in China."
On Monday EU Council President
Donald Tusk called on the United States,
China and Russia to cool tensions,
warning they could spiral into "conflict
and chaos".
On currency markets the pound held its
own against the dollar after fluctuating on
Friday in reaction to an interview in
which Trump hit out at Prime Minister
Theresa May's handling of Brexit and
appeared to dampen hopes of a future
trade deal.
He later took the edge off his remarks.
Traders are now looking ahead to
congressional testimony by Federal
Reserve chief Jerome Powell, hoping for
some insight on its plans for raising
interest rates in light of the trade war.
In early trade London rose 0.1 percent,
Paris was flat and Frankfurt lost 0.1
percent.
activities of this committee.
FBCCI
Directors
Nizamuddin Rajesh,
Tabarakul Tosaddek
Hossain Khan Tito and
Hafez Harun also spoke on
the occasion. Co Chairmen
of the committee Ahsanul
Haque Chowdhury, Mahbub
Chowdhury,Captain Shahed
Chowdhury
and
Shamsuzzaman Rasel
participated in the
discussion. Members of the
committee also took part in
the discussion.