05-01-2022

WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 5, 2022
8
Islami Bank Bangladesh Ltd and Parkview Hospital signed a Memorandum of Understanding
(MoU) regarding corporate facilities recently at IBBL Chattogram Zone Office. In presence of
Mohammed Monirul Moula, Managing Director and CEO of IBBL, JQM Habibullah, FCS,
Deputy Managing Director of IBBL and Talukder Ziaur Rahman Sharif, General Manager of
Parkview Hospital signed the agreement on behalf of their respective organizations. Md. Nayer
Azam, Deputy Managing Director, Mohammed Shabbir, Senior Executive Vice President, Md.
Mizanur Rahman Bhuiyan, Meah Md. Barkat Ullah, Mohammad Yakub Ali and Miftah Uddin,
Executive Vice Presidents of IBBL along with Executives and Officials of both the institutions
were present on the occasion. Under this agreement, Islami Bank's officials and their family
members and Debit & Khidmah Credit Card holders will enjoy discount facilities from the
Parkview Hospital.
Photo: Courtesy
Padma bank launches ACS officially
Fourth Generation Padma
Bank Limited has officially
launched Automated Chalan
(A-Invoice) system service at
its Mirpur Branch, a press
release said, a press release
said.
Under this service,
treasury invoices can be
deposited at any branch of
Padma Bank Limited
including Mirpur Branch.
Passport fees, company
income tax, personal income
tax, VAT on imported goods,
customs duty, land
development tax, VAT on
domestic goods and
services, excise duty and all
kinds of government service
fees are collected.
The Automated Chalan
System (ACS) service was
officially inaugurated by the
Managing Director and CEO
of Padma Bank Md. Ehsan
Khasru at Mirpur on
Tuesday (04 January,
2022). During the occasion
he said Padma Bank will
take advantage of the
opportunity to provide
direct government services
to its customers. Padma
Bank has spent the year
2021 well; the path of the
New Year will also be
technology dependent and
modern. Padma Bank
Managing Director and CEO
greet all a Happy New Year.
Zabed Amin Chief
Operating Officer,
Muzahidul Islam Head of
Internal Control &
Compliance Division &
Mirpur Branch Manager
Shamim Rashed Khan and
other senior officials and
employees of Mirpur branch
were also present at the
occasion.
The fourth generation
Padma Bank Limited,
which is owned by the
government-owned Sonali,
Janata, Agrani, Rupali
Bank and ICB, has been
providing modern banking
services to its customers
through 58 branches
across the country.
German unemployment
declines in December
amid virus uncertainty
FRANKFURT : Germany's joblessness rate
fell slightly in December despite the return of
health restrictions to tackle a new wave of
coronavirus cases, official figures published
Tuesday showed, reports BSS.
The seasonally adjusted rate dropped to
5.2 percent from 5.3 percent the previous
month, the BA federal labour agency said,
the equivalent of 23,000 fewer unemployed
people.
"The recovery seen in recent months
continued in December," agency head Detlef
Scheele said in a statement.
In raw figures, the number of unemployed
sat just under 2,330,000, down around
378,000 since December 2020.
Unemployment in Europe's top economy
climbed as high as six percent in the months
following the rapid spread of the coronavirus
through Europe in the first half of 2020.
Germany has relied heavily on subsidised
short-term work schemes to help businesses
and workers whether the pandemic storm,
with nearly six million Germans placed on
reduced hours at the peak of the crisis in
April 2020.
The scheme was still supporting some
710,000 people according to the latest
available figures from October, the BA said.
An uptick in applications made for the
short-term work scheme at the end of the
year showed the "uncertainty" caused by
rising numbers of coronavirus cases and the
emergence of the highly transmissible
Omicron variant, the BA said.
Around 286,000 people were signed up to
the programme in December, up from
104,000 the month before.
The overall improvement in the job
market over 12 months was "encouraging"
but "the new virus variant will be a difficult
test for the German economy," said Fritzi
Koehler-Geib, chief economist at public
lender KfW.
UCB celebrated the moment of surpassing foreign trade figure of USD 9 Billion
during 2021. The growth rate compared to year 2020 is 50%. By achieving this
landmark; UCB positioned itself at top among the local conventional banks in
terms of foreign trade. Arif Quadri, Managing Director of UCB attended the
event along with other senior executives.
Photo: Courtesy
Singapore economy rebounds
from virus-induced recession
SINGAPORE : Singapore's economy grew 7.2
percent last year, rebounding from its worst
recession since independence sparked by the
coronavirus pandemic, government data
showed Monday, reports BSS.
The city-state plunged into its worst
economic performance in 2020 as businesses
and international borders shut down, choking
its trade and tourism economic lifeline.
Authorities initially imposed tough measures
to restrict movement and gatherings but later
shifted to a policy of living with the virus as the
majority of residents got fully vaccinated.
Singapore has logged a total of 280,290 cases
with 829 deaths as of Sunday. The trade
ministry released advance estimates Monday
showing the economy expanded by 5.9 percent
year-on-year in the fourth quarter to
December. This brought full-year economic
growth to 7.2 percent, reversing a 5.4
contraction in 2020, the country's worst since
independence in 1965. Manufacturing, a pillar
of the trade-reliant economy, surged 12.8
percent year-on-year driven by global demand
for semiconductors and semiconductor
equipment, the ministry said. Construction, a
driver of domestic growth, rose 18.7 percent for
the full year. Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong
however said in his New Year message that
Singapore was not out of the woods yet.
"Entering the new year, the fight against
Covid-19 is not over. The Omicron variant has
brought new uncertainties," Lee said.
He added, however, that Singapore was in a
better position to deal with the virus compared
to two years ago as booster jabs have been
rolled out and vaccination of children under 12
years is underway.
Spain's jobless
number posts
record fall
in 2021
MADRID : The number of
registered jobless in Spain
posted a record drop in 2021
as the relaxation of
pandemic restrictions
boosted its key tourism
sector, official statistics
showed Tuesday, reports
BSS.
The number of people
registered as being out of
work dropped by 782,232
last year over 2020 to stand
at 3.1 million at the end of
December, the labour
ministry said.
That is the biggest drop
since the current statistical
series began in 1996 and the
lowest number of jobless in
the month of December
since 2007, it added.
The number of registered
jobless fell by 2.4 percent, or
76,782 people, in December
from November-the 10th
consecutive month of falling
unemployment figures.
"The date once again
reflects the progress of
Spain's recovery," Socialist
Prime minister Pedro
Sanchez tweeted.
tourism-
economy
Spain's
dependent
contracted by 10.8 percent
in 2020, one of the worst
results among industrialised
countries.
US removes
Ethiopia, Mali
and Guinea
from trade pact
WASHINGTON : President
Joe Biden's administration
announced on Saturday that
it had excluded Ethiopia,
Mali and Guinea from a US-
Africa trade agreement,
saying the actions of the
three governments violated
its principles, reports BSS.
"The United States today
terminated Ethiopia, Mali
and Guinea from the AGOA
trade preference program
due to actions taken by each
of their governments in
violation of the AGOA
Statute," the US Trade
Representative (USTR) said
in a statement.
The African Growth and
Opportunity Act (AGOA)
was put in place in 2000
under the administration of
former president Bill Clinton
to facilitate and regulate
trade between the United
States and Africa.
But the United States is
"deeply concerned by the
unconstitutional change in
governments in both Guinea
and Mali," the statement
said.
Managing Director of Karmasangsthan Bank Shirin Akhter paid a rich tribute to Mausoleum of
the Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman by placing wreaths at his grave
at Tungipara in Gopalganj and offered prayer for the departed soul of Bangabandhu and other
martyred members of his family who were killed on 15 August 1975 recently. The Deputy
Managing Director Sk. Md. Zaminur Rahman and other employees of the bank were present at
the time.
Photo: Courtesy
TECNO brings offers at Smartphone and Tab Expo
Global smartphone brand
TECNO Mobile has
announced
their
participation at the
Smartphone and Tab Expo-
2022, the popular tech event
is being organised in
Bangladesh after two years.
The Expo will start on 06th
January and continue until
08th January, 2022, at the
Bangabandhu International
Conference Centre (BICC).
Visitors will get free access to
the expo from 10 am to 8 pm
every day after getting their
body temperature checked
upon arrival. Wearing face
mask is also mandatory.
At the Smartphone and
Tab Expo, TECNO Mobile
will showcase their latest
products for consumers at
their booth. They will be
providing exciting offers on
select products, such as
Camon 16 Premier, Spark 7,
Spark 8 Pro, and SPARK GO
2022. There will also be a flat
10% discount on all the
products. In addition to this,
HONG KONG : Asian markets were
mixed Tuesday as investors struggled to
take their lead from yet another record on
Wall Street that was fuelled by easing
concerns about Omicron and remaining
optimism about the economic recovery,
reports BSS.
While the new Covid variant is
spreading like wildfire around the world,
it appears to be far less severe than
initially feared, raising hopes that the
pandemic could be overcome and life
return to a little more normality.
However, inflation, supply chain snags,
central bank policy tightening and
geopolitical woes continue to weigh on
sentiment and analysts have warned that
the blockbuster gains seen in recent years
customers will receive gifts
and a coupon card with every
purchase. There will be a
raffle draw, where customers
can use the coupon to win
TECNO phones and even
more exciting gifts.
Speaking at the
Smartphone and Tab Expo-
2022, Rezwanul Hoque,
CEO of Transsion
Bangladesh said, "It's very
exciting to be showcasing
TECNO's products alongside
some of the biggest local and
global brands. We are always
focused on bringing
the latest smartphone
technologies to our
consumers at affordable
prices which makes TECNO
one of the most beloved
smartphone brands in
Bangladesh. We hope these
could be tougher to attain.
"We expect 2022 to be far more
challenging from an investment
perspective," Heather Wald, of Bel Air
Investment Advisors, noted. "Rarely has
a market delivered three consecutive
years of double-digit returns, as we have
seen from 2019-2021."
Still, she still expected "equities to
remain attractive versus other liquid
asset classes".
And market strategist Louis Navellier
added: "Equities are still the only game in
town, with cash and bonds offering
negative real returns, and equities
forecasted with double-digit earnings
growth and record stock buybacks
anticipated."
offers will attract new
customers and grow the
TECNO family!"
Smartphone and Tab Expo
is considered to be the largest
event for tech lovers to explore
their desired brands and talk
directly to the brand
representatives. To find
TECNO Mobile at the
Smartphone and Tab Expo -
2022, visit pavilion no 01.
Asian markets mixed as traders
eye virus, inflation, rates
The Dow and S&P 500 started the new
year in the same fashion as they spent
most of 2021, by notching up new alltime
highs, while the Nasdaq also rallied
thanks to a surge in big-name stars
including Apple, which briefly became
the first firm valued at $3 trillion, and
Tesla.
But Asian markets were not quite as
convincing.
Tokyo and Sydney jumped more than
one percent each on their first trading day
of the year, while there were also gains in
Singapore, Taipei and Jakarta.
But Hong Kong and Shanghai dipped,
weighed by tech firms and ongoing fears
about China's property sector, while
Seoul was also in the red.