12-01-2022

WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 12, 2022
8
Ma'aden leads Saudi mining sector
growth with wide range of projects
A closing ceremony for successfully completion of subscription of SJIBL Mudaraba Perpetual Bond
of BDT. 500 (five hundred) crore was held at Shahjalal Islami Bank Corporate Head Office on 11
January 2022. The Chairman of the Board of Directors of Shahjalal Islami Bank Ltd. Mohammed
Younus was present as the Chief Guest while the Managing Director & CEO of the Bank M. Shahidul
Islam presided over the ceremony. The Head of Public Relations Division (PRD) of the Bank Md.
Shamsuddoha moderated the program. The Trading of SJIBL Mudaraba Perpetual Bond under 'N'
Category started on 26 December 2021 at both Dhaka Stock Exchange Limited and Chattagram
Stock Exchange Limited. The subscription of the Bond successfully completed on 28th December
2021.The UCB Investment Limited played the role of issue manager and Lead arranger, whose is
CEO Tanzim Alamgir.
Photo : Courtesy
European stocks
bounce back on
eve of US
inflation data
LONDON : Europe's major
equity markets rebounded
Tuesday from recent falls,
despite earlier Asian losses,
as investors fished for
bargain shares on the eve
of key US inflation data,
dealers said.
In late morning deals,
Frankfurt won 1.3 percent,
London stocks added 0.6
percent and Paris gained
1.5 percent, after all three
began the week in negative
territory.
World oil prices also
recovered from Monday's
drop but the dollar traded
mixed.
Bitcoin advanced close to
$42,000, one day after the
world's most popular
cryptocurrency sank below
$40,000 on fears of
reduced liquidity as a result
of US monetary policy
tightening.
Richard Hunter, head of
markets at Interactive
Investor, pointed to "some
tentative buying activity ...
as investors sought to
benefit from the recent
dips."
However, he cautioned
that markets remain
overshadowed by surging
inflation-and central bank
efforts to contain it.
"The backdrop remains
unchanged, with the pace
and amount of (US)
interest rate rises likely to
become clearer over the
next few sessions in the
face of persistent inflation,"
Hunter added.
Digital Campaign Season-13 kicks off
Marcel offers free fridge, TV, AC in every hour
To mark the 'Happy New
Year' celebration, the
popular local electronics
brand 'Marcel' has resumed
its digital campaign across
the country.
This time, the campaign's
Season-13 was commenced
with the offer of special
customer's benefits on the
purchase of any sorts of
Marcel products, including
fridge, air conditioner,
television, washing machine,
microwave oven, rice
cooker, blender, gas stove
and different kinds of fan
like ceiling, rechargeable
table fan, wall fan, pedestal
A Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) signed between Youth
Development Department and NRBC Bank at a city hotel on Tuesday to
build the entrepreneurs.
Photo : Courtesy
In Cuba, queueing for hours
‘just to be able to eat’
HAVANA : Cubans are no strangers to queuing
for everything from bread to toothpaste, often
standing for hours under a blazing sun with no
access to a toilet or drinking water, and always
with the fear of leaving empty-handed, reports
BSS.
It is a daily ordeal Cubans have endured for
about 60 years of communist rule, now worsened
by the coronavirus pandemic, a steep economic
downturn and tightened US sanctions.
"I spent almost all night here just to buy
something. It is not easy, it is a big sacrifice just to
be able to eat," shopper Edelvis Miranda, 47, told
AFP at a market in Havana last week.
The homemaker had taken her place in the
queue at about 1:00 am, and finally left around 11
hours later, just before noon.
"It was worth it, because I found everything.
Now some rest, and then back to the queue
again," she said on her way home with two liters
of oil, two packets of chicken, some minced meat
and detergent.
Cuba recorded an official inflation rate of 70
percent in 2021, when the economy recovered a
modest two percent after an 11-percent drop in
2020, signaling the nation's worst economic
crisis in almost three decades.
With government reserves dwindling, food
fan and exhaust fan, says a
press release.
Marcel authorities made
the announcement at a
declaration programme of
'Digital Campaign Season-
13' at the company's
corporate office in the
capital on Monday morning
(January 10, 2022).
The programme was
attended by, among others,
Deputy Managing directors
Nazrul Islam Sarker, Eva
Rizwana Nilu and Md.
Humayun Kabir, Senior
Executive Directors SM
Zahid Hasan, Engineer
Ariful Ambia, Dr. Md.
Shakhawat Hossen, Chief
Marketing Officer Md. Firoj
Alam, Digital Campaign's
Coordinator Nazmul
Hossain Evan and other
senior officials of the
company.
As per the offer declared
under the campaign's
'Season-13', customers could
get various sorts of brand
new products as free on the
registration of Marcel
products he/she had
purchased. The free
products are included:
refrigerator, TV, AC,
washing machine,
microwave oven, rice
Marcel's higher officials attend the declaration programme of 'Digital
Campaign Season-13'.
Photo : Courtesy
imports-some $2 billion worth per year before
the pandemic struck-had to be drastically cut
back in the country of 11.2 million.
Last May, the government said imports, which
normally cover 80 percent of the island's needs,
were at their lowest level since 2009.
The shortages affect everyone; even the wellheeled
have to contend with long lines, though
they often pay other people to hold their place.
Those who can come armed with snacks,
water, coffee or a wooden bench to sit on.
Often, police are at hand to keep order in
queues that stretch down several street blocks.
At a market in the capital, an announcement
comes an hour before opening time that there are
five products available for the day-an unusual
bounty that sends a ripple of excitement through
a line of about 400 hopeful shoppers.
But then, the let-down. Only 250 of them can
get in.
"This is undignified," grumbled Rolando
Lopez, a 66-year-old pensioner who was not
among the lucky ones.
A few dozen among the luckless quickly form a
queue for the next day's shopping, designating
night "guards" to ensure no one loses their place.
"It is the daily struggle of the Cuban. What else
can you do?" asked housewife Maria Rosabal, 55.
cooker, blender, gas stove as
well as other kinds of
electrical appliances, home
and kitchen appliances.
This offer was come into
effective from January 10,
2022.
At the function, Marcel
authorities informed that
they have been making
customers' database to bring
its after sales under the
online automation. The
prime objective of this
initiative is to provide swift
and best after sales service.
To accelerate the process of
creating customer database,
Marcel has been conducting
the digital campaign. As of
now, the local brand
conducted twelve seasons of
the campaign. Now, 13th
season was started. During
this season, the details of the
customers and their
purchased products
including the name of the
customer, contact number
and the model number of
the purchased product are
being stored on a server
Marcel so that customers
can avail the service from
any Marcel service center
any time, even if the
warranty card is lost.
RIYADH: The Gulf's largest miner,
the Arabian Mining Co., known as
Ma'aden, has formed the backbone
of Saudi Arabia's mining sector
since it was established in 1997.
Its role in the Kingdom became
more prominent when the Saudi
Vision 2030 was launched in 2016,
which introduced plans to diversify
the economy from its reliance on oil.
Mining was identified as a key
industry that would aid economic
transformation.
With a market cap topping SR100
billion ($26.9 billion), the mining
firm is among the Kingdom's 10
biggest players by market value and
is one of the fastest-growing mining
companies in the world.
Despite COVID-19 industrial
slowdowns that have hindered
many firms, Ma'aden remained
influential in shaping the Saudi
mining sector through a wide range
£150,000
starting salaries
as firms fight
for staff
A professional recruitment
firm says it is placing
graduate lawyers on starting
salaries as high as £150,000
amid a shortage of workers,
reports BBC
Alan Bannatyne, chief
financial officer at Robert
Walters, told the BBC people
in many UK industries were
quitting for better paid jobs
amid soaring demand.
"15% is the minimum pay
rise we're seeing, but some
are increasing their salaries
by up to 50%," he said.
"Unless something
significant happens, 2022
should be even better for
staff."
Robert Walters, which
focuses on placing
professionals in roles, said
firms were in a "fierce
competition for talent" and it
was "incredibly hard to find
the right people".
As a result, Mr Bannatyne
said salary inflation was the
highest he had seen in 20
years, although there had
been "winners and losers"
from Covid and not everyone
was in a position to pay well.
"Bricks-and-mortar
retailers and airlines have
really struggled so will
probably not be paying
bonuses or giving pay rises,"
he told the BBC.
"So they become a hunting
ground for other high growth
businesses, such as online
retailers, anything to do with
technology and digital, and
manufacturers of household
goods."
Robert Walters, which has
offices in Asia, Europe and
the US, said it had seen its
best December for sales ever,
with net fee income up 39%
globally.
Job vacancies surge past
one million in new record
Demand in the final three
months of the year was
strongest in Asia Pacific, it
said, but the trend of staff
shortages was apparent
worldwide including in the
UK.
of projects, investments and
acquisitions in the Kingdom and
abroad.
Amid efforts to fully exploit the
Kingdom's reserves, Ma'aden will begin
operations in the largest gold mine in
the country in the Makkah region, on
the western coast of the Arabian
Peninsula. Work will commence in the
first quarter of the year.
"This project is our largest gold
mine," Ma'aden CEO Abdulaziz Al-
Harbi told Arab News in an
interview last October.
The firm is on course to become
one of the top three global
phosphate fertilizer producers in
the world. It closed the preoperational
stage of the $900
million ammonia plant in Ras Al-
Khair industrial city in mid-2021,
marking the first project expansion.
The mine will play a crucial role in
achieving the company's target of
producing 1 million ounces of gold
per year by 2025.
The firm is on course to become
one of the top three global
phosphate fertilizer producers in
the world. It closed the preoperational
stage of the $900
million ammonia plant in Ras Al-
Khair industrial city in mid-2021,
marking the first project of its
"Phosphate 3" portfolio expansion.
"The ammonia plant expansion
will add over 1 million tons
ammonia production to reach 3.3
million tons, making Ma'aden one
of the largest ammonia producers
east of the Suez Canal," Al-Harbi
noted.
Ma'aden has also consistently
managed to attract foreign
investors, including US firm Alcoa,
which has a 25 percent stake in two
of Ma'aden's subsidiaries as part of
a $10.8 billion joint venture.
The Premier Bank Limited has achieved 2nd position for collecting Dhaka WASA
bill in the financial year 2020-2021. A programme titled Dhaka WASA Bill
Collection Award was held at Pan Pacific Sonargaon in Dhaka where Md Tazul
Islam, Minister for Local Government, Rural Development and Cooperatives handed
over the certificate and crest to Managing Director & CEO of the Premier Bank
Limited M. Reazul Karim (FCMA). Among others, Prof. Shibly Rubayat-Ul-Islam,
Chairman, Bangladesh Securities and Exchange Commission was present as special
guest.
Photo : Courtesy
RFL organizes beach cleaning
program in Cox’s Bazar
TEL Plastics, a household products brand of
country's leading business conglomerate RFL
Group, organizeda 'Beach Cleaning' program
aimingto maintain environmental balance and
creating awareness among the people. RFL
Group's Managing Director RN Paul
inaugurated the event on Tuesday morning at
Cox's Bazar beach, the world's longest beach.
More than five hundred officials of RFL Group
participated in the event and they cleaned
rubbish lying on the beach from Sugandha to
Kolatoli point on Cox's Bazar beach. TEL Plastics
organized the event in association with Dhaka
Round Table and Cox's Bazar Tourist Police.
Addressing the occasion, RN Paul said, "As
country's leading business conglomerate, RFL
has social responsibility. We carry out various
programs throughout the year as part of our
social responsibilities. As part of this, we have
organized 'Beach Cleaning' program at Cox's
Bazar sea beach."
He added, "The objective of this program is to
create awareness so that no one throws garbage
on the beach. We want to carry out such
programs in different river ports of the country
and Patengasea beach in Chittagong and
Kuakatasea beach in Patuakhali".
KamrulHasan, Executive Director of Tel Plastics
and Fahim Hossain, Head of Marketing, among
others, were present on the occasion.
First Security Islami Bank Ltd. inaugurated 2 sub-branches on January 11, 2022 with a view to providing
shariah based banking services to its clients. The Sub branches are- Trishal Sub-branch at
Abdul Matin Sarkar Plaza, Trishal, Mymensingh and Dey-para Bazar Sub-branch at Arafat Complex,
Dey-para Bazar, Kachua, Bagerhat. Syed Waseque Md Ali, Managing Director of the Bank inaugurated
those sub-branches through video conference. Among others, Abdul Aziz and Md. Mustafa Khair,
Additional Managing Director(s), Md. Zahurul Haque and Md. Masudur Rahman Shah, Deputy
Managing Director(s) along with other high officials were present in the occasion. A Doa Mahfil was
organized in this regard.
Photo : Courtesy