18-03-2019
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ECONOMY & BUSINESS 10<br />
MONDAY, MARCH <strong>18</strong>, <strong>2019</strong><br />
Islami Bank Bangladesh Limited paid tribute to the Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh<br />
Mujibur Rahman marking his birth anniversary on March 17, <strong>2019</strong>, Sunday by placing floral wreath<br />
on his memorial at 32 No. Road, Dhanmondi. Led by Major General (Retd.) Engineer Abdul Matin,<br />
Chairman, Risk Management Committee and Mohammed Monirul Moula, Managing Director<br />
(Current Charge), a floral wreath was placed on behalf of the Bank. Professor Dr. Qazi Shahidul<br />
Alam, Helal Ahmed Chowdhury, Md. Syful Islam, FCA, FCMA, Md. Joynal Abedin, Syed Abu Asad<br />
and Md. Quamrul Hasan, Directors, Md. Shamsuzzaman, Additional Managing Director,<br />
Mohammad Ali, Abu Reza Md. Yeahia and Taher Ahmed Chowdhury, Deputy Managing Directors of<br />
the Bank along with top executives and officials were present on the occasion. Photo : Courtesy<br />
Crazy week<br />
for UK pound,<br />
a Brexit<br />
thermometer<br />
The pound has experienced<br />
a chaotic week in reaction to<br />
Brexit's twists and turns, with<br />
large swings against rival<br />
currencies a daily occurrence.<br />
Over the week the pound<br />
has jumped 1.8 percent<br />
against the dollar and 1.0<br />
percent versus the euro to<br />
trade at around $1.3250 and<br />
1.1700 euros respectively<br />
Friday.<br />
The rally illustrates markets'<br />
surprising confidence of there<br />
being an eventual smooth EU<br />
exit for Britain despite political<br />
unrest over sealing the<br />
country's divorce.<br />
In normal times, the pound<br />
tends to take its lead from<br />
changes in central bank<br />
monetary policy and economic<br />
indicators, reports BSS.<br />
But for several months now,<br />
"Brexit is definitively the<br />
biggest" trigger for sterling,<br />
Carlo Alberto De Casa, an<br />
analyst for ActivTrades, told<br />
AFP.<br />
This in turn has made the<br />
currency a good indicator of<br />
investor opinion regarding<br />
Brexit.<br />
Generally, Brexit<br />
uncertainty and fears of an<br />
even greater slowdown to the<br />
UK economy than at present<br />
have weighed on the pound -<br />
with current values lower than<br />
before the June 2016<br />
referendum on leaving the EU.<br />
The pound's rollercoaster<br />
began late on Monday when<br />
British Prime Minister<br />
Theresa May announced<br />
securing "legally binding"<br />
guarantees from the EU<br />
designed to get the Brexit deal<br />
through the UK parliament<br />
and avert a chaotic<br />
withdrawal.<br />
Almost immediately, the<br />
pound shot up 1.0 percent<br />
against the dollar - a large<br />
movement for currency<br />
markets.<br />
S&P upgrades Portugal's debt<br />
rating, citing budget surpluses<br />
Global ratings agency S&P on Friday<br />
upgraded Portugal's sovereign debt, citing the<br />
country's declining level of indebtedness and<br />
expectations for "balanced" growth.<br />
The decision followed September's upgrade<br />
to Portugal's outlook as the once troubled<br />
European economy continues its recovery,<br />
reports BSS.<br />
In 2014, Portugal exited an international<br />
bailout program that began at the height of the<br />
European Union debt crisis.<br />
S&P raised its rating to the lower-mediumgrade<br />
"BBB," with a stable outlook, up from<br />
"BBB-."<br />
The agency said Portugal should continue to<br />
run budget surpluses, steadily reducing the<br />
ratio of debt to GDP, while posting growth of<br />
between 1.5 percent and 1.7 percent through<br />
2021.<br />
Last year's primary budget surplus of almost<br />
three percent of Gross Domestic Product was<br />
"one of the highest in the euro area" or among<br />
OECD members, the agency said in a<br />
statement.<br />
Meanwhile, Lisbon's plans to operate at an<br />
overall surplus by next year, including spending<br />
on interest costs, are "credible," despite the<br />
cyclical economic slowdown in Europe,<br />
according to S&P.<br />
Portuguese authorities have also made efforts<br />
to protect the economy from a no-deal Brexit.<br />
"UK residents make up about one-sixth of<br />
tourist arrivals in Portugal, meaning a no-deal<br />
Brexit would at least initially incur a cost," the<br />
statement said.<br />
"The government has introduced measures to<br />
facilitate the arrival of UK nationals in Portugal<br />
in the event of a no-deal Brexit."<br />
IDB is first multilateral lender to recognize<br />
envoy of Venezuela's Guaido<br />
The Inter-American<br />
Development Bank on Friday<br />
officially recognized the<br />
representative named by<br />
Venezuela's opposition<br />
leader Juan Guaido, the first<br />
multilateral institution to<br />
take that step.<br />
Self-proclaimed interim<br />
president Guaido named<br />
respected Harvard economist<br />
Ricardo Hausmann, an<br />
exiled former Venezuelan<br />
government minister, to<br />
represent him at the IDB - the<br />
primary source of financing<br />
for development projects in<br />
Latin America and the<br />
Caribbean, reports BSS.<br />
The IDB board of<br />
governors "today approved a<br />
resolution recognizing the<br />
appointment by Mr Juan<br />
Guaido of Ricardo<br />
Hausmann as IDB Governor<br />
for Venezuela… effective<br />
immediately," a statement<br />
from the New York-based<br />
institution read.<br />
It is the latest sign of<br />
international support for<br />
Guaido, the head of<br />
Venezuela's opposition-ruled<br />
National Assembly. Guaido<br />
has already been backed by<br />
more than 50 countries in his<br />
bid to unseat President<br />
Nicolas Maduro, who has<br />
presided over an economy in<br />
freefall and a worsening<br />
humanitarian crisis.<br />
The United States holds 30<br />
percent of the voting power<br />
on the IDB board, against 50<br />
percent combined for Latin<br />
American and Caribbean<br />
members.<br />
A "sufficient" number of<br />
governors have already<br />
approved the nomination,"<br />
even before voting officially<br />
closed, the bank said.<br />
Guaido's envoy to the<br />
United States, Carlos<br />
Vecchio, celebrated "an<br />
important step into<br />
multilateral bodies" and<br />
uploaded a photo alongside<br />
Hausmann to Twitter.<br />
"It is a first step that is<br />
going to allow us to start work<br />
on planning and preparation,<br />
and obviously the real<br />
effectiveness of any financing<br />
depends on if Maduro<br />
actually leaves," Mariano de<br />
Alba, a Venezuelan lawyer<br />
and international affairs<br />
expert, told AFP. But the<br />
International Monetary<br />
Fund, which aims to ensure<br />
stability of the global<br />
monetary system, has said it<br />
is awaiting a decision of its<br />
members before recognizing<br />
Guaido rather than Maduro.<br />
Hausmann served as IDB<br />
chief economist from 1994 to<br />
2000, and was Venezuela's<br />
planning minister when the<br />
government implemented a<br />
major economic reform<br />
package, which was the focus<br />
of a coup attempt in 1992 led<br />
by Hugo Chavez, who was<br />
jailed but later elected<br />
president.<br />
In order to expand the reach of its painting services, BERGER has introduced its EXPERIENCE<br />
ZONE in Chattogram. This is the first time that BERGER has provided franchise ship of EXPERI-<br />
ENCE ZONE to dealers of Chattogram. The inauguration ceremonies took place in M/S Rajib<br />
Hardware, Chawkbazar, Chattogram and M/S Ethu Hardware, South Halishahor, CEPZ Chattogram<br />
recently. BERGER has created a center to provide the customers with one-stop painting solution. It<br />
will cater to all painting related requirements of Chattogram customers through the most modern<br />
method of painting. Customers can get a touch and feel experience in this experience zone through<br />
more than hundreds of shade panels of different brands. On this auspicious occasion, Rupali<br />
Chowdhury, Managing Director, Berger Paints Bangladesh Limited said, "Choosing color combinations<br />
can be intimidating for many people. Color has the power to change the shape and size of furnishings,<br />
as well as the shape and size of the room itself. So, we created this center to help our customers<br />
to choose the best colors for their living space. We always try to seek different ways in which<br />
we can help our valued customers to make a meaningful decision about their homes and office<br />
spaces."<br />
Photo : Courtesy<br />
Stock markets climb<br />
on trade talks<br />
optimism<br />
Stock markets rose Friday<br />
after US President Donald<br />
Trump struck an upbeat<br />
note on trade talks with<br />
China, while the pound<br />
ended a volatile Brexitfuelled<br />
week on a strong<br />
note, reports BSS.<br />
The main European<br />
markets all closed higher,<br />
and US stocks were also up<br />
in the early New York<br />
afternoon with "reports of<br />
progress on the US-China<br />
trade front seeming to buoy<br />
sentiment", said analysts at<br />
Charles Schwab brokerage.<br />
Tokyo's main stocks index<br />
ended the day higher, too,<br />
despite the Bank of Japan<br />
issuing a more downbeat<br />
assessment of the world's<br />
third biggest economy, as a<br />
broader global slowdown<br />
impacts exports and<br />
production.<br />
"Brexit volatility appears<br />
to have calmed," noted<br />
Joshua Mahony, senior<br />
market analyst at IG trading<br />
group. "Meanwhile, US-<br />
China trade talk hopes have<br />
improved."<br />
While concerns about the<br />
global growth outlook<br />
remain, investor confidence<br />
has been supported by<br />
ongoing optimism that the<br />
United States and China will<br />
eventually hammer out a<br />
deal to end their longrunning<br />
trade row.<br />
Trump on Thursday<br />
provided fresh cheer by<br />
telling reporters "we are<br />
doing very well with China<br />
talks", adding that "we are<br />
getting what we have to get".<br />
He also said "one way or<br />
the other, we're going to<br />
know over the next three to<br />
four weeks". On Friday,<br />
China approved a foreign<br />
investment law that will<br />
abolish the forced transfer of<br />
technology from foreign<br />
firms to local joint-venture<br />
partners, addressing a key<br />
point of anger in the White<br />
House.<br />
"There's still no guarantee<br />
that these (US-China talks)<br />
can be concluded, but at<br />
least we've seen an<br />
indication that the wait will<br />
only be another three to four<br />
weeks," said James Hughes,<br />
chief market analyst at<br />
Axitrader.<br />
"This has the potential to<br />
fuel risk appetite in the<br />
interim period."<br />
On currency markets the<br />
pound climbed versus the<br />
dollar and euro after a week<br />
that saw wild fluctuations<br />
for the UK unit triggered by<br />
Brexit twists and turns.<br />
British Prime Minister<br />
Theresa May's EU<br />
withdrawal agreement was<br />
this week rejected by<br />
parliament for a second<br />
time.<br />
But the divorce deal could<br />
yet return from the dead<br />
should hardcore Brexiteers<br />
fear a delay could produce a<br />
softer Brexit that what is<br />
currently on offer.<br />
"There's still a significant<br />
amount of tail risk in being<br />
overly exposed to sterling"<br />
because of Brexit<br />
uncertainty, said Michael<br />
Hewson, chief market<br />
analyst at CMC Markets UK.<br />
"Ultimately talk is cheap,<br />
and markets require<br />
certainty, something that<br />
still remains in short<br />
supply."<br />
Canadian, Chinese,<br />
U.S. investors discuss<br />
new economy,<br />
innovation in<br />
Toronto<br />
More than 500<br />
participants, including<br />
investors, entrepreneurs and<br />
scholars, gathered in Toronto<br />
on Saturday for a two-day<br />
summit on innovation and<br />
the new economy.<br />
The China-U.S.-Canada<br />
New Economic Innovation<br />
Meeting is aimed at bringing<br />
together the players for<br />
discussions on the latest<br />
international industrial and<br />
innovation trends.<br />
During the two-day event, a<br />
number of roundtables will<br />
be held, reports BSS.<br />
It is expected to focus on<br />
the most promising startups<br />
as well as the different areas<br />
where startups are growing,<br />
said Wang Wanli, an investor<br />
from San Francisco, United<br />
States.<br />
Wang said he is looking<br />
forward to discussions on<br />
integration of big data<br />
intelligence and finance.<br />
The event is hosted jointly<br />
by the University of Toronto,<br />
Chinese Business Industry<br />
Association (CBIA) and the<br />
North America Developing<br />
Leaders Entrepreneur<br />
Association (NADLEA).<br />
On the occasion of Bangabandhu's birthday & National Children's Day, a huge rally was held at<br />
Kartikpur, Shariatpur under the leadership of Parveen Haque Sikder, MP. The rally included 4000<br />
school students and a number of local people. It started from 12 no Hogla Govt. Primary School &<br />
ended at ZH Sikder University of Science & Technology. Honorable MP & Director of National Bank<br />
Ltd, Parveen Haque Sikder distributed educational items and snacks to about 4000 school students.<br />
In her speech she encouraged the students to be more attentive in their studies, lead their lives on the<br />
ethics set by the Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Muzibur Rahman. She expressed her hope<br />
that by leading their lives this way, these children, may one day be in good positions and lead the<br />
nation in future. She said that Bangabandhu used to love children vary dearly, he had a great feelings<br />
for them. That is why his date of birth was declared as National Childre's Day. Photo : Courtesy<br />
Prime Bank Cricket Tournament-<strong>2019</strong> successfully concluded recently at Lalmatia Housing Society<br />
School & College, Dhaka. Managing Director & CEO of Prime Bank Rahel Ahmed was present as the<br />
chief guest. Additional Managing Director Habibur Rahman, Deputy Managing Directors - Md.<br />
Touhidul Alam Khan & M Habibur Rahman Chowdhury and other officials of Prime Bank were also<br />
present on the occasion. "Pitch Burners" became champion and "Thunderbolt" runners-up in this<br />
tournament.<br />
Photo : Courtesy