15-01-2019

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ECONOMY & BUSINESS BANGLADESHTODAY 10 THE TUeSDAy, JANUARy 15, 2019 Chougachha Association-Dhaka has provided blankets to the cold affected people of Chougachha Upazila, Jessore. Chougachha Association always comes forward to help distressed people. In this regard, Mrs. Sabina Rahman Khan, Adviser of Chougachha Association- Dhaka has taken this initiative to distribute 900 pcs. blankets among the cold affected people of Chougachha Upazila, Jessore on 12 January, 2019. Among others, General Secretary of Chougachha Association, UNO and Officer in Charge, Police of Chougachha Thana were also present at the event. Photo: Courtesy China-North Korea trade battered by UN sanctions China's trade with North Korea plummeted last year, data showed Monday, as harsh UN sanctions batter the nuclear-armed country's economy. Beijing is a key ally of the isolated state and its main source of trade and aid - but in 2017 it backed United Nations measures to punish Pyongyang over its nuclear and ballistic missile activities. The sanctions on trade in North Korea's most valuable commodities sent bilateral trade plunging 52.4 percent last year compared to 2017. China's imports from its neighbour dropped 88 percent in 2018 year-onyear to 1.42 billion yuan ($210 million), while its exports slumped 33.3 percent to 14.7 billion yuan ($2.18 billion), according to customs administration spokesman Li Kuiwen. "For trade between China and North Korea, we are strictly implementing the resolutions of the (UN) Security Council," Li told reporters. The trade sanctions seek to cut off the North's access to hard currency by banning its main exports - coal and other mineral resources, fisheries and textile products. They have pummelled the country's economy, which contracted 3.5 percent in 2017 - its worst showing in two decades - South Korea's central bank said last year. The North's mining industry slumped 11 percent in 2017, the Bank of Korea said, after growing 8.4 percent in 2016. Manufacturing output also fell 6.9 percent that year - down from 4.8 percent growth - while agriculture and fisheries slipped 1.3 percent, after also expanding in 2016. China and Russia have both said the UN should consider relaxing sanctions on Pyongyang, while Washington is demanding the North give up its nuclear arsenal before any relief from sanctions is granted. Last week North Korean strongman Kim Jong Un made his fourth visit to China, with Chinese President Xi Jinping backing him in the deadlocked nuclear talks with the US while insisting the two sides should meet "halfway". China will tackle US trade dispute in 2019 China will work to straighten out trade frictions with the US this year, the country's commerce minister told state media, following talks with US negotiators this week. A large US delegation ended a three-day visit to Beijing Wednesday in the first face to face trade talks since President Donald Trump and Chinese leader Xi Jinping in December pledged a three-month truce in the escalating tariff spat. China said the talks had "laid the foundation" to resolve mutual concerns on trade. "We will properly handle the China-US economic and trade frictions" this year, commerce minister Zhong Shan said, according to a Saturday report by state media outlet Xinhua. Zhong said Beijing will also promote outside investment, work to pass a foreign investment law and improve its dispute resolution system, Xinhua reported. Jordan PM hopeful for growth after controversial reforms Jordan's prime minister has voiced hope that his country will turn to a growth path, after he briefed the International Monetary Fund on fiscal reforms that have sparked protests at home. Prime Minister Omar al- Razzaz, a Harvard-educated economist who took office last year, said he spoke to IMF Managing Director Christine Lagarde on next steps. "Now that our fiscal health is in order, we want to promote growth," Razzaz told reporters in Washington late Thursday after his meeting. He said he also met in Washington with the US Chamber of Commerce to draw greater business interest and was organizing a Jordan investment conference to take place in London in late February. Tax reforms were approved by lawmakers in November but Lagarde said that Jordan "still faces challenging economic and social conditions." "The Prime Minister informed me about the extensive national dialogue that led to the adoption of a new income tax law, which is a welcome step in the right direction," she said. Asian markets in retreat after week-long rally Hong Kong led a sell-off across Asian markets Monday as profit-takers moved in following a six-day rally, while traders look ahead to the release of corporate earnings. With few catalysts to drive buying, equities were ripe for selling after last week's healthy gains, with the US government shutdown - now in its fourth week and showing no sign of ending soon - instilling a sense of unease. Also on the agenda is Tuesday's key Brexit vote, with British Prime Minister Theresa May making an 11th hour appeal to MPs to pass her agreement with the EU, which is expected to be voted down by a wide margin. In early trade Hong Kong shed more than one percent after chalking up gains of more than six percent over the previous six trading days, while Shanghai eased 0.2 percent and Sydney lost 0.1 percent. Singapore slipped 0.5 percent with Taipei 0.4 percent lower, Manila down 0.9 percent and Jakarta losing 0.3 percent. Tokyo was closed for a holiday. The losses follow a negative lead from Wall Street, where all three main indexes fell Friday, ending a healthy week that had been boosted by optimism China and the US are edging towards a trade deal, while the Federal Reserve indicated it could pause its interest rate hikes. Trifecta Consultants analyst Sukrit Vijayakar said the "optimism surrounding the US-China trade talks faded", pointing out that while statements from both sides were positive, they were vague and "lacked concrete details". Data Monday showed China's trade surplus with the US - a major source of anger for President Donald Trump - widened 17.2 percent last year. There are growing concerns that the partial government shutdown of the US government, which has seen hundreds of thousands of federal workers go unpaid, could also impact the world's number one economy. With Democrats refusing to give in to Trump's demands for cash to pay for a Mexican border wall, there is no end in sight in the row, which Standard & Poor's estimates has already cost the US more than $3 billion. Stephen Innes, head of Asia-Pacific trade at OANDA said that could see markets "pay increased attention to this issue as those numbers are not small potatoes". Dealers are now looking at the business reporting season, which starts in earnest this week, with some fears of weak results as the global economy shows signs of slowing. The tech sector will be closely scrutinised after Apple earlier this month lowered its revenue forecasts for the key December quarter, while rival Samsung flagged a near 30 percent drop in operating profit. LIC's market share falls below 70 pc Detroit auto show, and industry, prepare for transition The auto industry gathered Sunday in Detroit, on the eve of the last winter edition of North America's premiere auto show, as carmakers grapple with a contracting market and uncertainty in the year ahead. Concerns over the health of the global economy and a US-China trade war loomed over the North American International Auto Show, as it prepared to open Monday with the first five days dedicated to the media and industry insiders. The show opens to the general public on January 19. While a number of major announcements were expected - including an anticipated strategic alliance between Ford and Volkswagen - there will be fewer automakers and new car unveilings, making it more subdued. "This is a transition year for the Detroit show," said analyst Michelle Krebs of Autotrader. "It's kind of emblematic of where the industry is. We're in a transition in the industry." GM kicked off the string of new car unveilings by debuting its new Cadillac XT6 - a mid-size crossover in line with similar SUVs from competing luxury car makers. GM aimed squarely at Tesla in releasing concept photos for a future Cadillac electric SUV. The company said the luxury brand would be the first to employ an upcoming electric vehicle platform, the time frame for which was not specified. "Cadillac, being a leader in technology and innovation, it's very important that as we take it to the next level, we lead with Cadillac," GM CEO Mary Barra told reporters. After a 10-year boom, analysts expect North American auto sales to contract in 2019, as consumers face pressures and carmakers grapple with multiple uncertainties. Rising interest rates and car prices have squeezed car buyers, and fewer of them are able to afford increasingly pricey, technology-heavy cars. Kelley Blue Book predicted the average new-car price was up about three percent in 2018 to more than $36,000. Meanwhile, tariffs on imported steel and aluminum products and a potentially intensifying trade dispute between the Donald Trump administration and Beijing has automakers spooked, analysts said. "Tariffs already had an impact in 2018," said Cox Automotive chief analyst Jonathan Smoke, adding that 47 percent of the vehicles sold in the US in 2018 were imported. "We believe about two percent of today's prices are because of the tariffs that were already implemented." The US is considering additional tariffs of 25 percent. Should it announce such a move by the February 17 deadline, it could have a substantial impact on the industry and stock markets, Smoke said. "We believe that they are likely to move forward with some form of that tariff, because it becomes then a lever for them to force… further negotiations." Should tariffs raise car prices further, analysts said it could substantially depress the new car market. Consumers would flock to relatively cheaper used cars, which are in ample supply. The auto dealers association which organizes the show also was contending with the uncertainty of the show's very relevance. Almost all German carmakers abandoned the show this year, as more and more important announcements are made at other gatherings. Next year, the Detroit show will move from January, when it has been held for some 40 years, to June. Doug North, the chairman of the 2020 show told AFP that the aim is to provide a more interactive experience for the nearly one million attendees who come to Detroit for the event. "Warmer weather, ride and drives, hill-climbs maybe, all sorts of kind of exhibitions, dynamic opportunities for people to be in and out of the cars, ride in them, for the manufacturers to show what they couldn't previously do inside," North said. Among the few notable unveilings this year will be from Ford, which is expected to display a redesigned Explorer SUV and a more powerful version of its iconic Mustang sports car under the name Shelby GT500. SUVs and trucks will once again be the highlight, indicative of US consumers' drift away from sedans and small cars. Trucks and SUVs made up a majority of new purchases in the US last year. "The SUVs have become cars with SUV bodies sitting on top of them," said Karl Brauer of Kelly Blue Book. Detroit's big three automakers have been ending production of almost all of their sedans and small cars, succumbing to the pressure of falling demand. To hedge against the threat of a global economic downturn, GM has announced plans to close underutilized US plants that made smaller, less profitable vehicles. Ford planned similar cost-cutting moves in Europe. State-owned Life Insurance Corporation's (LIC) market share fell below 70 per cent in the financial year ended March 2018 as private insurers get more aggressive. The market share of private insurers increased to 30.64 per cent in 2017-18, from 28.19 per cent in 2016-17. "On the basis of total premium income, the market shares of LIC decreased from 71.81 per cent in 2016- 17 to 69.36 per cent in 2017-18," said the annual report of the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (Irdai). Further, the market share of private insurers in new business premium also saw an increase during 2017-18 over the previous year. In the case of renewal premium, LIC had a share at 69.35 per cent (down from 72.31 per cent in the previous year). This compares with 30.65 per cent (27.69 per cent in the previous year) share of private insurers. During 2017-18, life insurers issued 281.97 lakh new individual policies, out of which LIC issued 213.38 lakh policies or 75.7 per cent of the total new policies issued and the private life insurers issued 68.59 lakh policies (24.3 per cent). "While the private sector achieved a growth of 8.47 per cent in the number of new policies issued against the previous year, LIC achieved a growth of 5.99 per cent," the report said. At the end of March 2018, there are 68 insurers operating in India, of which 24 are life insurers, 27 are general insurers, 6 are standalone health insurers exclusively doing health insurance business and 11 are reinsurers including foreign reinsurer branches and Lloyd's India. Of the total insurers currently in operation, eight are in the public sector and the remaining are in the private sector. In life insurance business, India is ranked 10th among the 88 countries, for which data is published by Swiss Re. The country's share in global life insurance market was 2.76 per cent during 2017. However, during 2017, life insurance premium in India increased 8 per cent (inflation adjusted) when global life insurance premium rose by 0.5 per cent. LIC's market share falls below 70 pc State-owned Life Insurance Corporation's (LIC) market share fell below 70 per cent in the financial year ended March 2018 as private insurers get more aggressive. The market share of private insurers increased to 30.64 per cent in 2017-18, from 28.19 per cent in 2016-17. "On the basis of total premium income, the market shares of LIC decreased from 71.81 per cent in 2016- 17 to 69.36 per cent in 2017-18," said the annual report of the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (Irdai). Further, the market share of private insurers in new business premium also saw an increase during 2017-18 over the previous year. In the case of renewal premium, LIC had a share at 69.35 per cent (down from 72.31 per cent in the previous year). This compares with 30.65 per cent (27.69 per cent in the previous year) share of private insurers. During 2017-18, life insurers issued 281.97 lakh new individual policies, out of which LIC issued 213.38 lakh policies or 75.7 per cent of the total new policies issued and the private life insurers issued 68.59 lakh policies (24.3 per cent). "While the private sector achieved a growth of 8.47 per cent in the number of new policies issued against the previous year, LIC achieved a growth of 5.99 per cent," the report said. At the end of March 2018, there are 68 insurers operating in India, of which 24 are life insurers, 27 are general insurers, 6 are standalone health insurers exclusively doing health insurance business and 11 are reinsurers including foreign reinsurer branches and Lloyd's India. Of the total insurers currently in operation, eight are in the public sector and the remaining are in the private sector. In life insurance business, India is ranked 10th among the 88 countries, for which data is published by Swiss Re. The country's share in global life insurance market was 2.76 per cent during 2017. However, during 2017, life insurance premium in India increased 8 per cent (inflation adjusted) when global life insurance premium rose by 0.5 per cent.
MISCELLANEOUS TueSDAY, JAnuArY 15, 2019 11 On the occasion of 85th Founding Anniversary of narsingdi Govt. Girls' High School, 1st reunion was held on Saturday 12th January 2019 at school premises in narsingdi. 2006 SSC- exam batch students of narsingdi Govt. Girls High School is seen in the picture. Photo: Courtesy Cargo plane crash in Iran kills 15, leaves 1 survivor A decades-old Iranian Boeing 707 military cargo plane reportedly carrying meat from Kyrgyzstan crashed on Monday while trying to land west of Iran's capital, killing 15 people on board and leaving a sole survivor, authorities said. The crash of the jetliner marked just the latest aviation disaster for Iran, which hoped to replace its aging fleet under terms of the 2015 nuclear deal with world powers. But instead, President Donald Trump's withdrawal from the accord in May scuttled billions of dollars in planned sales by Airbus and Boeing Co. to the Islamic Republic, only increasing the danger for passengers in Iran planes. The aircraft, which bore the paint scheme of the Iranian air force's Saha civilian airline, was making emergency landing around 8:30 a.m. Monday at Fath Airport, an airfield controlled by Iran's powerful paramilitary Revolutionary Guard. The plane skidded off the runway, crashed through a perimeter fence and into a residential neighborhood. Iranian state television aired images of smoke-charred homes and the fuselage of the aircraft lying on the ground in the neighborhood. Nearby was one of its land gear, torn away. Small fires burned around it. The plane was meant to land at the nearby Payam International Airport, about 40 kilometers (25 miles) west of Tehran, the Iranian capital. Authorities did not immediately offer a reason for the crew's decision to land instead at Fath Airport. That airport is some 10 kilometers (6.2 miles) southwest of Payam. Its runway is some 1,100-meters (3,600-feet) long, compared to Payam's 3,600 meters (11,800 feet). In November, a commercial airline reportedly mistook Fath for Payam, but was able to abort its landing. Iran's state-run IRNA news agency later quoted an anonymous aviation official saying Monday's doomed flight likewise mistook Fath for Payam. Pirhossein Koulivand, the head of the country's emergency medical services, said that of the 16 people on board the plane, only the flight engineer was known to have survived. IRNA reported all 15 bodies of the crew who died had been recovered by Monday afternoon. Iran's air force said in a statement that the fate of the crew, including their possible "martyrdom," is under investigation. It wasn't immediately clear who owns the plane, though Gen. Shahin Taghikhani, an army spokesman, told state TV that the plane and its crew were Iranian. Iranians often use the word "martyrdom" for those who die in war or national service. The plane reportedly was carrying a cargo of meat from Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan's capital, to Iran. Since 2016, Iran has been importing meat from Kyrgyzstan, usually via Saha. It imported 150 tons in 2016 and 350 tons in 2017. Saha Airlines operated one of the world's last commercial flights of the Boeing 707, which was first manufactured in 1958 and helped usher in the jet age. The four-engine, narrowbody aircraft were built until 1979. Maintenance information regarding the Boeing 707 that crashed Monday was not immediately available. However, Iran has struggled obtaining parts for its aging fleet of airlines, nearly all purchased during the time of the Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi and before the 1979 Islamic Revolution. China leads in space exploration, says scientist China is the global leader in space exploration, a Cuban geophysicist and science popularizer has said. The landing of the Chang'e-4 probe on the far side of the moon on Jan. 3 is an important milestone in the exploration of the Earth's natural satellite, Bruno Henriquez told Xinhua in an interview. "It is something very significant, because it is the first time that there is a soft landing on the far side of the moon, which can be explored in site and not from the lunar orbit," he said. Russian, U.S., Japanese and Indian spacecrafts had explored that part of the moon from the lunar orbit, but none have landed there before. Henriquez also praised the fact that the Chinese probe landed on the moon's Von Karman crater in the South Pole-Aitken basin, and China's excellent deployment of the Yutu remote-controlled vehicle. "The Chinese are today on top in terms of outer space exploration, not only in launching spacecraft, but also in their approach to the space program and everything they have developed on land to support it," Henriquez said. The science fiction writer and former researcher at Cuba's Institute of Geophysics and Astronomy believes that Western mainstream media remains an outdated narrative that claims China lags behind the United States in space. "They have accomplished many things, such as the first quantum communication satellites. They have the largest radio telescope on earth of the spherical reflector type, very similar to the one at Arecibo (Observatory) in Puerto Rico," he said. China's scientific achievements have motivated Henriquez to create a collection of popular science books about everything related to space exploration, including the development of rocketry, the number of manned space flights, China's taikonauts and new uses for satellites. 15 killed in cargo plane crash in northern Iran At least 15 people were killed on Monday in a Boeing 707 plane crash near Iran's northern city of Karaj, the Iranian Student News Agency (ISNA) reported. Among the 15 killed, 14 men and one woman on board, 10 could be identified and five others need further genetic examinations, Hamid Davood Abadi, head of Forensic Medicine Center of Alborz Province, told ISNA. The cargo plane with 16 on board crashed in a residential area, 45 km west of the capital Tehran, ISNA quoted Pir Hossein Kolivand, head of Emergency Center of Iran, as saying. The plane had planned to land in Karaj's Payam Airport but chose to land in the Fath airport for some unknown reason, Naser Charkhsaz, chief of Iran's Red Crescent Society, told ISNA. After landing in the wrong airport, the plane got out of control and slid out of the runway, hitting an empty residential building and catching fire. The plane, flying from Kyrgyzstan's capital Bishkek, was carrying a cargo of meat to Iran, according to an announcement by the Public Relations of the Iranian Army. According to the latest reports, the plane belonged to Iran's army. The plane, flying from Kyrgyzstan's capital Bishkek, was carrying a cargo of meat to Iran, according to an announcement by the Public Relations of the GD-74/19 (9 x 4) GD-78/19 (7 x 3) Iranian Army. Yemen, Iran, Khashoggi murder top Pompeo's talks in Saudi U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo held talks in Saudi Arabia Monday on a range of Mideast crises, topped by the conflicts in Syria and Yemen, threats from Iran and the Saudi response to the killing of Washington Post columnist Jamal Khashoggi last year. Pompeo met with Saudi King Salman and Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman on the latest stop of his Middle East tour that has so far been dominated by questions and concerns about the withdrawal of U.S. troops from Syria. The State Department said Monday that Pompeo would cancel his planned final stop in Kuwait on Tuesday due a death in his family. He will still travel to Oman later Monday. In Riyadh, the Saudi-led fight against Iranian-backed rebels in Yemen, where the situation has been deemed the world's worst humanitarian crisis, will be a major agenda item, as well as holding perpetrators accountable for Khashoggi's slaying. Pompeo told the crown prince that his Middle East journey, which has taken him to Jordan, Iraq, Egypt, Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates, had been "good" so far. "I want to talk to you about a couple of places we've been. We think we learned a lot along the way that will be important going forward," he said. The prince replied that the Saudis would "try to add more positivity, as much as we can." Speaking with senior Saudi officials on his arrival in Riyadh late Sunday, Pompeo stressed the importance of supporting a political solution to end Yemen's civil war and "the need for continued regional efforts to stand against the Iranian regime's malign activity and to advance peace, prosperity, and security," the State Department said. The department said Pompeo also made clear the importance of a credible investigation into Khashoggi's killing at the Saudi Consulate in Istanbul in October. Pompeo "emphasized the importance of Saudi Arabia continuing its investigation into the murder of Jamal Khashoggi in order to ascertain facts, assess information, and hold those responsible accountable." The relationship between Riyadh and Washington remains tense following Khashoggi's brutal slaying and dismemberment at the consulate. Members of Prince Mohammed's entourage have been implicated in the killing and U.S. lawmakers have demanded America pull back its support of the Saudi-led war in Yemen. "We will continue to have a conversation with the crown prince and the Saudis about ensuring that the accountability is full and complete with respect to the unacceptable murder of Jamal Khashoggi," Pompeo told reporters in Qatar on Sunday before heading to Riyadh. "We'll continue to talk about that and make sure we have all the facts so that they are held accountable certainly by the Saudis, but by the United States as well, where appropriate." The ongoing dispute between Qatar and four of America's other close Arab partners will also feature in Pompeo's talks as it continues to be a major hindrance in a U.S.- led effort to unite the Gulf Arab states, Egypt and Jordan in a military alliance to counter Iran. Bahrain, Egypt, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates began a boycott of Qatar in June 2017, alleging Qatar funds extremist groups and has too-cozy ties to Iran. Palestinians, Israeli police scuffle at Jerusalem holy site Scuffles broke out at the Dome of the Rock in Jerusalem's Old City on Monday after guards at the mosque refused to allow an Israeli policeman to enter for a routine security check because he was wearing a Jewish skullcap known as a kippah. Firas Dibs, a spokesman for the Islamic authority that oversees the site, says dozens of worshippers scuffled with police after the guards closed the doors to the mosque and barricaded themselves inside. He says the director of the mosque was lightly wounded. Israeli police could not immediately be reached for comment. The gold-domed mosque is part of the Al- Aqsa mosque complex, which Muslims consider their third holiest site after Mecca and Medina. It is the holiest site for Jews, who refer to it as the Temple Mount because it was the location of the biblical temples. The holy site is at the core of the Israeli- Palestinian conflict, and past clashes there have sparked widespread violence. Dibs said the police carry out routine security checks every morning, and that the policeman was only prevented from entering because he was wearing a kippah. The Palestinians have long feared that Israel plans to take over the site so it can rebuild the temple, allegations denied by Iqvmv-Rt Zt- 20/19 the Israeli government, which says it has no plans to change the status quo. Earlier on Monday, the Gaza Health Ministry said a 14-year-old Palestinian who was shot by Israeli forces during mass protests along the perimeter fence over the weekend died of his wounds. The ministry said Abdelraouf Salhah was shot in the head during the protest on Friday. A 43-year-old female activist was also killed, and two dozen Palestinians were wounded. Hamas has been orchestrating weekly mass protests along the perimeter fence since last March to protest an Israeli and Egyptian blockade imposed on Gaza when the Islamic militant group seized power in 2007. At least 187 Palestinians have been killed since the protests began, including 35 who were 18 or younger, and thousands of Palestinians have been wounded. An Israeli soldier was also killed. Israel says it's protecting its border from infiltrators who could carry out attacks. Qatar has long denied funding extremists, but Doha shares a massive offshore natural gas field with Tehran that gives its citizens the highest per-capita income in the world. It restored diplomatic relations with Iran after the crisis erupted, marking a setback for Saudi Arabia, which views the Shiite power Iran as its main regional rival.
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