02-02-2019

ECONOMY & BUSINESS
6
SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 2, 2019
A view exchange meeting between Islami Bank Bangladesh Ltd and international corporate consultancy
firm Kroll was held on Thursday at Islami Bank Tower. Md. Mahbub ul Alam,
Managing Director and CEO of the bank was present in the program as chief guest. Abu Reza
Md. Yeahia and Taher Ahmed Chowdhury, Deputy Managing Directors, Mohammad Jamal
Uddin Mozumder, Executive Vice President and Md. Rafiqul Islam, Senior Vice President of
IBBL, Omer Erginsoy, Senior Managing Director, Tarun Bhatia, Managing Director and
Samarjit Sawant, Associate Director of Kroll along with other executives of the bank were present
on the occasion. The meeting discussed compliance issues of Banking rules and regulations.
Kroll has been working with IBBL since 2015. IBBL has already complied the first and second
phase of Kroll advises for compliance of banking rules and the progress of implementation of
the third phase is being examined. Transaction Monitoring system for IBBL provided by US
based SAS Institute Private Limited was shown to the team and the Kroll team expressed satisfaction
over the Transaction Monitoring System.
Photo:Courtesy
Deutsche Bank reports first
annual profit in four years
India announces
$10.5 billion
farmer income
scheme ahead of
elections
India's government
announced Friday a $10.5-
billion scheme to help crisishit
farmers, seeking to boost
support ahead of a tough reelection
bid by Prime Minister
Narendra Modi.
Thousands of farmers hit by
low produce prices, crippling
debt repayments and volatile
weather have killed
themselves in recent years.
This and rising joblessness
have hit Modi's popularity.
The new scheme, part of the
current government's last
interim budget before the
election, will give 120 million
"small and marginal" farmers
direct annual handouts of
around 6,000 rupees ($85).
"This amount will be
transferred directly to bank
accounts of farmers in three
equal instalments," Piyush
Goyal, interim finance
minister, told a raucous
session of parliament in New
Delhi.
The programme will be fully
funded by the central
government, Goyal said.
The crisis in Indian
agriculture and rising
joblessness are emerging as
key factors ahead of the
elections due by May, when
Modi will run for a second
term.
Asian markets mixed
as China, US agree to
further trade talks
Asian markets mostly rose
Friday, with investors
treading carefully as China-
US trade talks ended with
no deal but with both sides
sounding notes of optimism
and setting up more highlevel
meetings later this
month.
After the muchanticipated
gathering,
Donald Trump hailed
"tremendous progress"
between the world's top two
economies but warned the
"hard deadline" of March 1
remained in place, after
which US tariffs on billions
of dollars of Chinese goods
will be imposed.
For its part, Beijing said
they held "candid, specific
and fruitful" discussions
and had agreed to increase
cooperation on intellectual
property -a major source of
White House anger with
China - and boost imports of
US goods.
Trump's top two
economic officials will visit
Beijing later this month,
after which he said he will
meet his counterpart Xi
Jinping to hammer out the
final deal.
While the negotiations
ended with no agreement,
Jeffrey Halley, senior
market analyst at OANDA,
said: "For the markets,
which are clearly in 'risk-on'
mood, it was a case of no
news is good news."
However, an early surge
across the region petered
out to leave markets mixed.
Tokyo ended 0.1 percent
higher and Hong Kong was
marginally lower, while
Shanghai jumped 1.3
percent as traders
welcomed news that
authorities had relaxed
certain rules to make
investing easier.
Sydney and Singapore
were both flat and Seoul
dipped 0.1 percent, though
Manila, Mumbai, Bangkok
and Jakarta were all up.
In early trade London rose
0.3 percent, while Frankfurt
and Paris each added 0.2
percent. "The statement
certainly signals progress,
but at best limited progress
on the core long-term
structural issues that
separate the two sides,"
Eswar Prasad, a trade policy
professor at Cornell
University, told Bloomberg
News. "The statement ends
with a not-so-veiled threat
that China will need to offer
more substantive
concessions to enable a deal
that would take further
tariffs off the table."
The tepid movement in
markets also comes after an
impressive month that saw
Hong Kong pile on more
than eight percent and
Tokyo more than four
percent, a much-needed
bounce after December's
hammering.
Next on the agenda is the
release of US jobs data later
Friday, which comes days
after the Federal Reserve
fuelled a rally by signalling a
slowdown in its pace of
interest rate hikes this year.
The non-farm payrolls
figures will be closely
watched for an idea about
the state of the world's
number-one economy, with
the Fed having warned of a
global slowdown. Sony
nine-month net profit soars
on games, music.
Germany's biggest lender Deutsche
Bank reported Friday a 2018 bottom
line in the black for the first time in four
years, with a cost-cutting drive
delivering results even as revenues fell.
The firm reported 267 million euros
($305 million) net profit, compared
with a loss of 751 million in 2017.
The result was short of expectations
of 505 million euros from analysts
surveyed by Factset.
Pre-tax profits at the financial firm
were up eight percent year-on-year, at
1.3 billion euros.
But revenues fell four percent, to 25.3
billion euros, with Deutsche blaming a
fourth quarter marked by "challenging
financial markets" and "negative"
headlines, including a November raid
by prosecutors on the bank's Frankfurt
headquarters.
Between October and December, the
firm reported a net loss of 425 million
euros.
Nevertheless, "our return to
profitability shows that Deutsche Bank
Honda lifts
forecasts despite
ninth-month
profit drop
Japan's Honda Motor said
Friday it was revising up
forecasts for its full-year net
profit despite logging a fall of
34.5 percent for the nine
months to December.
The country's third-largest
automaker revised up its full
year net profit to 695 billion
yen ($6.3 billion) from the
previous forecast of 675
billion yen, while also lifting
annual sales to 15.85 trillion
yen from 15.80 trillion.
For April-December, net
profit fell to 623.3 billion yen
"due mainly to the impacts
of the enactment of the US
tax cuts and Jobs Act in the
same period last year",
Honda said.
Operating profit fell 3.2
percent mainly because of
decreased sales revenue, as
well as increased sales and
administrative costs and
"negative foreign currency
effects", it added.
The company said auto
sales in Japan grew 4.4
percent but US sales slipped
2.6 percent to 1.242 million
units. Sales in China, where
the economy is suffering a
growth slowdown, also fell.
But motorcycle sales
climbed 6.6 percent in
emerging Asian markets
including India, Vietnam,
Thailand and Indonesia, it
said.
"Honda has been
enjoying strong sales of
motorcycles especially in
Southeast Asia," Satoru
Takada, an analyst at TIW,
a Tokyo-based research
and consulting firm, told
AFP ahead of the earnings
report.
Uzbekistan gives visa-free entry
to visitors from 45 countries
Uzbekistan on Friday
granted visa-free entry to
citizens of 45 countries to
boost tourism, which the
government views as vital for
economic growth.
The countries benefiting
from a 30-day visa waiver
that went into force on Friday
include the majority of
European countries
including Britain as well as
Australia, Canada, Argentina
and Chile. The United States
is a notable exception.
The impoverished ex-
Soviet country has made
tourism a priority to reduce
its dependence on
commodity exports.
The government is keen to
show off the lavish Silk Road
heritage of ancient cities such
as Bukhara, Khiva and
The BSE benchmark Sensex Friday jumped
over 100 points ahead of the Budget
presentation by Finance Minister Piyush
Goyal amid heavy
buying by foreign portfolio investors.
The 30-share index was trading 119.01
points, or 0.33 per cent, higher at 36,375.70.
Similarly, the 50-share NSE Nifty rose
34.15, or 0.32 per cent, to 10,865.10.
On Thursday, the 30-share Sensex rallied
665.44 points, or 1.87 per cent, to close at
36,256.69; and the broader Nifty soared
179.15 points, or 1.68 per cent, to 10,830.95..
Top gainers in the Sensex pack include
Hero MotoCorp, HCL Tech, Bharti Airtel,
Bajaj Finance, Infosys, HDFC, HUL, M&M,
Samarkand. Earlier this year,
Uzbekistan granted a 30-day
visa waiver to Germany while
France became the first
European Union country to
benefit from the measure last
year.
Uzbekistan's tourism
committee said last month
that annual visitor numbers
for 2018 were 5.3 million,
double the figure for 2017.
President Shavkat
Mirziyoyev has reversed a
number of policies that
hampered tourism under his
late predecessor Islam
Karimov.
Among the restrictions he
scrapped was a ban on
photography in the capital
Tashkent's ornate metro that
had led to police detentions of
unsuspecting tourists.
is on the right track," chief executive
Christian Sewing said in a statement,
adding that he aims to "grow
profitability substantially" in 2019.
Sewing was named CEO in early
2018 after the bank struggled for years
to escape financial woes and a thicket of
legal entanglements dating back to the
years before the 2008 financial crisis.
He has launched a new round of
restructuring to focus on home market
Germany, cut costs and slash
headcount.
Almost 6,000 departures in 2018
brought the payroll down to 91,700,
while Deutsche reduced costs five
percent, to 23.5 billion euros.
The bank's turnaround may not be
advancing quickly enough for some
shareholders and the German
government, which has said it wants
strong lenders to support the country's
firms in their international business.
Bloomberg News reported Thursday
that executives' talks with Berlin over a
possible merger with partially stateowned
rival Commerzbank have
"intensified" in recent months.
In the bank's different divisions,
operating profit at the retail and
commercial banking unit was roughly
flat, while the flagship corporate and
investment bank unit tumbled eight
percent.
There was a steeper fall for the
smaller asset management arm, whose
profits shed 14 percent.
Deutsche added that by the end of the
year, it had "wholly or partially resolved
19 of the 20 most significant" looming
legal risks identified in 2016, with 1.2
billion euros of provisions set aside for
litigation costs.
Looking ahead to 2019, the group
aims to cut costs to 21.8 billion euros,
compared with a previous target of 22
billion, while shrinking its workforce to
"well below" 90,000.
In financial terms, Deutsche will
target a return on tangible equity of
four percent, compared with 0.5
percent in 2018.
Mirziyoyev's bid to boost
tourism in the immediate
aftermath of Karimov's death
in 2016 suffered a false start.
In December that year, he
issued an order easing or
cancelling visa requirements
for visitors from 27 developed
countries but this was swiftly
reversed before coming into
force.
Observers attributed the
reversal to resistance within
the powerful security
apparatus.
Uzbekistan already offers
visa-free entry to visitors
from Turkey, Israel,
Indonesia, South Korea,
Malaysia, Singapore and
Japan, in addition to longstanding
reciprocal visa-free
entry for citizens of most
former Soviet countries.
Sensex jumps over 100 pts
ahead of Budget 2019
L&T, ITC and Maruti, rising up to 2.91 per
cent.
Vedanta was the biggest loser on Sensex,
cracking over 18 per cent after the metals and
mining giant Thursday reported a 25.54 per
cent decline in consolidated net profit at Rs
1,574 crore for the December 2018 quarter,
on the back of higher expenses and drop in
commodity prices.
Other losers include PowerGrid, ONGC,
Axis Bank, Kotak Bank and Sun Pharma,
shedding up to 1.14 per cent.
According to Hemang Jani, Head -
Advisory at Sharekhan by BNP Paribas, the
government might look to boost the rural and
agri sector ahead of the general election.
The Launching Ceremony of "Modhumoti Digital Banking" at Haridaspur, Nijamkandi, Puisur,
Bethuri, Hatiara, Fukra and Mahmudpur UDC Points was held on 29th January 2019 at Gopalganj
Sadar & Kashiani Upazila, Gopalganj. Kherud Ranjan Biswas, Chairman of Bethuri Union Parishad
inaugurated the Digital Points as Chief Guest. Moklesur Rahman, Senior Vice President and Head of
Agent Banking Operation of Modhumoti Bank Ltd, Chairman of respective Union Parishads and local
elites were present on the occasion. Modhumoti Bank took the initiative of Agent Banking through
signing an agreement with Access to Information (a2i) of Prime Minister's Office, where the entrepreneurs
of Union Digital Center (UDC) shall be the Agent of the Bank. Presently the bank with its 292
Digital Points providing banking services like Account Opening, Cash Deposit, Cash Withdrawal,
Money Transfer, Balance Inquiry, Withdrawal of Foreign Remittance etc. in the name of "Modhumoti
Digital Banking".
Photo: Courtesy
Sony nine-month
net profit soars
on games, music
Sony said Friday its ninemonth
net profit jumped 63.2
percent from the previous
year, led by its games and
music divisions.
The electronics and
entertainment giant lowered
its annual sales forecast but
raised its annual net profit
forecast thanks to tax benefits.
Sony said its April-
December net profit reached
828.4 billion yen ($7.6
billion).
Operating profit rose 13.9
percent to 811.5 billion yen,
while sales reached 6.54
trillion yen, down 0.8 percent.
"Sony remains on recovery
track," Hideki Yasuda, an
analyst at Ace Research
Institute in Tokyo, told AFP
ahead of the announcement.
"Its game sector has
continued spearheading its
recovery although sales of PS4
consoles are gradually slowing
down."
Sony's movie segment also
drove home more profits, said
Yasuo Imanaka, an analyst at
Rakuten Securities.
"Its recent box-office
movies are now generating
profit through sales of DVD
and Blu-ray discs as well as
profits from their television
license fees," he told AFP
ahead of the announcement.
In the three months to
December, including the allimportant
holiday shopping
season, Sony said it continued
to enjoy robust game software
sales, although sales of
PlayStation4 consoles slowed
down.
Tokyo's Nikkei index ends flat
as investors seek fresh clues
Tokyo's benchmark
Nikkei index ended flat on
Friday as investors sought
fresh trading clues and
watched individual corporate
earnings reports.
The Nikkei 225 index
closed up just 0.07 percent
or 14.90 points at
20,788.39, while the
broader Topix index was
down 0.18 percent or 2.86
points at 1,564.63.
The twin indexes were
trading in positive territory
in early trade but lost
steam later, with some analysts
also pointing to a negative
impact from a weak
Chinese manufacturing
data released during Tokyo
trading time.
"Following rallies on
Thursday after the US Fed
signalled a dovish view on
rate hikes, investors are
seeking fresh clues," Hiroaki
Hiwata, strategist at
Toyo Securities, told AFP.
"Having said that, it is
increasingly difficult for
investors to buy as the
Nikkei index is approaching
the 21,000 mark"
which is considered psychologically
important, he
said.
Investors are watching
individual shares as company
earnings are being
released, he also added.
The dollar fetched
108.86 yen in Asian trade,
against 108.88 yen in New
York late Thursday.
In Tokyo, high-tech
shares were higher, with
Sharp surging 10.32 percent
to 1,272 yen while
Murata Mfg advancing
8.46 percent to 16,725 yen
after it said its net profit for
the nine months to December
jumped nearly 40 percent.
Fanuc gained 1.98
percent to 18,725 yen
despite the industrial robot
manufacturer revising
down its full-year earnings
forecasts.
Brokerage giant Nomura
closed down 4.02 percent
at 4,241 yen after it posted
a net loss for the nine
months to December.
Nintendo dived 9.19 percent
to 30,720 yen despite
its net profit jumping nearly
a quarter for the nine
months to December.
The game giant lowered
its Switch game console
sales forecast for full year
to 17 million units from 20
million units and pushed
back the release date of
Mario Kart smartphone
game.
Japan's labour shortage
hits 45-year high
There were 161 jobs for every 100 jobseekers on average
last year in Japan, the highest ratio since 1973, highlighting
the labour shortage in the world's third-largest economy and
its ageing society.
According to labour ministry data released on Friday, the
ratio was even higher in December, at 163 jobs available for
every 100 people looking for work. The Japanese labour
market has been tight for many years as the workforce
shrinks with a rapidly ageing population and a low childbirth
rate. The country's unemployment rate also remained at low
levels in December, hitting 2.4 percent, a 0.1-percentage
point drop from the previous month, according to separate
data from the internal affairs ministry.
Along with a labour shortage, Japan has also been engaged
in a lengthy battle against deflation. Last month, the Bank of
Japan lowered its inflation forecasts for the fiscal year ending
March next year to 0.9 percent from 1.4 percent.
Japan's economy shrank in the three months to September
after a string of natural disasters hit consumer spending and
exports.