08-11-2021

MOnDAY, nOVEMBER 8, 2021
8
US economy adding jobs with
gusto as Delta wave subsides
A reunion fair was recently organized in the tourist city of Cox's Bazar with electronics dealers of the
Minister Group from across the country. The Chairman of Minister Group and FBCCI Vice
President, MA Razzak Khan Raj met with the dealers at the event. Minister Group Deputy Executive
Director Md. Shah Alam, CFO Md. Fakhrul Islam FCA, Director Md. Billal Hossain, Engineer
Monirul Hasan Swapan, General Manager Md. Riaz Mahmud and Md. Ashrafuzzaman and other
senior officials of the company were present at the event. Minister Group Chairman and FBCCI Vice
President M.A. Razzak Khan Raj said, "We will move forward with you. You are also partners in the
path of the Minister Group Success." He also added , "Soon we will be able to implement our slogan
'Lokkho Ebar Bissho joy'."The dealers present at the fair also expressed their determination to move
forward together.
Photo: Courtesy
Walton launches smart fitness scale
Bangladeshi tech-giant
Walton has launched its new
product, smart fitness scale
to meet the needs of healthconscious
customers. This
device will allow them to
know 14 in formations
related to fitness, including
weight, body fat, BMI and
heart rate. This information
can be stored on the cloud
server via the smartphone's
mobile app, allowing users
to monitor various health
related information, a press
release said.
A total of 4 models of
smart fitness scales have
been released in the market
with packaging name of
'Aidmision', keeping the
prices between BDT 2,950
Algerian farmer's
olive oil wins
global recognition
AIN OUSSERA: Hakim
Alileche left a successful
career in graphic design and
moved to the Algerian
countryside to produce
"magic potion"-organic olive
oil that has won him
international recognition,
reports BSS.
The 48-year-old says he
chose the Ain Oussera plateau
for its cheap land and water
supply.
His oil won first prize at the
Dubai Olive Oil Competition
in the Extra Virgin Early
Harvest category in February
2021 and in May he won silver
at the Japan Olive Oil Prize.
"These honours really
reassured us because it means
we were right," he said.
The farm of some 40
hectares (100 acres) has over
15,000 olive trees, and so far
9,000 have started producing.
"I started planting them bit
by bit from 2005. I like
farming and I've been fond of
olive trees since I was little,"
he said.
"In Algeria, it's a sacred
tree."
Producing organic olive oil
"puts me right into this mood
of respect and protection for
the planet," he said.
He has visited several other
producing countries-Bosnia-
Herzegovina, Greece, France
and Italy to learn about
production methods.
"These trees have never had
any chemical treatment and I
will do everything to make it
stay that way," he said,
clasping a goblet of oil freshly
extracted from his modern
Italian press.
and BDT 3,950. The device
is available at all Walton
plazas, distributor
showrooms, IT dealers and
mobile dealer showrooms
across the country with its
own online shop e-plaza
(https://eplaza.waltonbd.com).
6-month service warranty
is available for Aidmision
Fitness Pro Smart Scale
which can be availed at all
Walton service centers
across the country.
With black and white
colors, the Walton Smart
Fitness Scale includes other
features such as fat-free
body weight, subcutaneous
fat, visceral fat, skeletal
muscle, muscle mass, body
water, bone mass, protein,
FRANKFURT: As inflation
soars to its highest level in
three decades in Germany,
Simon and Lena Wendland,
parents of newborn twins, say
that their lives have become
more uncertain, reports BSS.
Their power supplier has
just announced it is doubling
its electricity prices, while
property prices are looking
"rather scary".
"We don't know where this
is going to lead us," Simon
Wendland told AFP.
From energy and food, to
paper and rent, prices have
been marching mercilessly
higher both in Germany and
across Europe.
Latest data put inflation in
Europe's biggest economy at
five percent year-on-year, a
level not seen in the last 30
years.
Bild, the country's biggestselling
newspaper, blames the
European Central Bank for
failing to rein in prices and
even adding to the problem
with its cheap money policy.
The Frankfurt-based ECB
has argued that its record-low
interest rates and 1.85-
trillion-euro ($2.15-trillion)
pandemic emergency bondbuying
programme are
necessary to prop up an
economy ravaged by the
coronavirus crisis.
In Germany, however,
savers believe the ECB's zerointerest-rate
policy is eating
away at the value of their
assets.
Bild recently branded ECB
chief Christine Lagarde as
"Madame Inflation", saying
BMR, metabolic age etc.
There are a few models of
smart fitness scales of some
multinational companies in
the market. Walton is the
first domestic company to
come up with such health
device. The device has
rechargeable lithium ion
and AAA size batteries based
on models. As it is equipped
with all the latest features,
authorities expect that the
device will quickly take its
place in the list of
preferences of customers.
Product Manager Saad
Shihab said that users will
need to install an app called
'Fitness Pro' from the Google
Play Store to connect the
device with smartphones.
she "wears Chanel clothes"
but "mocks the fate of
pensioners, employees and
savers", even if the central
bank president has herself
expressed concern about the
rising price of basic foodstuffs
in supermarkets.
With its ultra-loose
monetary policy of recent
years, the ECB has long been a
bugbear for Germany's savers.
Bild had nicknamed
Lagarde's predecessor Mario
Draghi "Draghila", comparing
him to a vampire "sucking our
accounts to the last drop".
After the devastation
wrought by the inflationary
crises of the 1920s and 1970s,
Germans have an ingrained
fear of inflation, said ING
economist Carsten Brzeski.
Lagarde's repeated
assertion that recent price
surges are transitional is met
with disbelief in Europe's
most populous country.
"According to Madame
Lagarde, we will have
overcome all that by the
middle of next year, but that's
just what she says," said
Marlott Kroeber, a 72-yearold
former teacher.
German bankers, too, have
voiced scepticism about
Lagarde's assessment.
"There are more and more
indications that this price
surge is not temporary and we
will have to live with it beyond
this year," said Commerzbank
chief Manfred Knof.
Christian Sewing, his
counterpart at Deutsche
Bank, has similarly urged
central banks to "find a way to
The app is developed by
Walton's own research
team, adding all the features
that are available in the
conventional fitness scales
in the market with
additional features.
Walton Digi-Tech
Industries Limited's Deputy
Managing Director engineer
Liakat Ali said: People are
now more health conscious
than before. They like to
monitor their weight, body
fat and heart rate etc
regularly. But they feel the
necessity of a device which
provides all information.
Walton has released this
health device for the
customers' convenience. We
believe this device will play
helpful role in protecting the
health of the fitness
conscious customers.
Walton also has a number
of smart devices and
accessories in market,
including desktop, laptop,
all-in-one PC, monitor, tab,
keyboard, mouse, pen drive,
earphone, Wi-Fi router,
UPS, USB hub, card reader,
speaker, SSD, external SSD,
RAM, PCBA, memory card,
power bank, projector,
digital writing pad, USB
Type C Cable etc. Access
control devices, printers,
networking switches,
webcams are also on the
Walton's production lines.
Soaring prices fuel anti-ECB
sentiment in Germany
exit their very accomodative
monetary policy," and the
"sooner the better".
Germany's central bank
chief Jens Weidmann recently
dropped a bombshell by
announcing his resignation
from the powerful
Bundesbank at the end of this
year.
Weidmann, who has
headed the Bundesbank for a
decade, was often seen as a
lone voice against the ECB's
ultra-loose policy.
So with him leaving, "the
last defender of the German
saver has given up," said Die
Welt newspaper in a tribute to
the central banker.
Nevertheless, analysts
argue that the ECB has
safeguarded the eurozone's
prosperity with its policies.
Critics forget "that the
institution has also ensured
that the economy continues to
be given support, that the
eurozone is maintained and
the German job market sees a
boom" not seen in 20 years,
said Brzeski.
Employees have also been
able to benefit from a strong
economy while the state has
been able to take out loans at
negative rates.
Some consumers are
therefore still in the camp of
the ECB.
Pensioner Hermann Vogt
for one believes that the
central bank is "doing mostly
what is necessary" in the
interests of the 19-nation
zone.
WASHINGTON: More Americans went
back to work in October as Covid-19
cases receded, indicating the world's
largest economy had overcome the
obstacle posed by the Delta wave of the
virus and giving President Joe Biden a
much-needed boost, reports BSS.
The better-than-expected report from
the Labor Department released Friday
showed the US economy added
531,000 jobs last month and the
unemployment rate declined to 4.6
percent, both signs of a vigorous pace in
hiring by American businesses.
It was exactly the kind of news Biden
was hoping for after a week that saw his
Democrats suffer a sweeping defeat in
Virginia's gubernatorial election, while
the fate of one of the two spending bills
he has staked his presidency on remains
uncertain even as House lawmakers
prepare to vote on both later Friday.
Biden hailed what he called a
"historically strong recovery," spurred
by massive government stimulus
spending and the rapid deployment of
vaccines. "America is getting back to
work. Our economy is starting to work
for more Americans," he said at the
White House.
Industries that hired at a rapid pace
Chinese exports
solid in October
as Covid eases
overseas
SHANGHAI : China's
exports rose by a betterthan-expected
clip in
October, official data
showed on Sunday, with
demand strengthening in
some key markets such as
the United States and Covid
numbers easing overseas,
reports BSS.
The data from the world's
second-largest economy also
suggested that Chinese
factories had kept the goods
flowing out despite power
outages in recent months
caused by emission
reduction targets, the
surging price of coal, and
supply shortages.
The government said last
week that the power crisis
was winding down thanks to
a boost in domestic coal
output.
Exports rose a betterthan-expected
27.1 percent
on-year in October,
according to customs
authorities, to $300.2
billion. Imports came in
slightly below analyst
estimates, rising 20.6
percent in October.
In recent months, several
Chinese factories were
forced to halt operations due
to power outages, raising
concerns about global
supply chains.
The squeeze had worsened
as China's Covid-19 border
restrictions hindered
shipments of raw materials
from overseas while a trade
tiff with Australia
exacerbated the drop in coal
imports.
last month included manufacturing,
transportation and warehousing and
leisure and hospitality, the sector
encompassing bars and restaurants
that suffered the brunt of the downturn
when the pandemic began, the
government said.
"We got an unambiguously strong
October jobs report-big job gain,
unemployment fell, hours worked
increased and wage growth is strong,"
tweeted Mark Zandi of Moody's
Analytics.
He called it "strong evidence that as
the Delta-wave of the pandemic winds
down, the economy is revving back up."
The pace of hiring in August and
September had tapered as the fastspreading
Delta variant again snarled
business, but the latest report brought
welcome news with revisions showing
hiring was 235,000 higher than first
reported.
The Republican opposition
nonetheless criticized Biden's
stewardship of the economy, saying the
president deserves blame for rising
inflation and continued worker
shortages that are hampering business.
"After months of failed policies and
bad jobs reports, the one person who
Islami Bank holds webinar
on Fintech
Islami Bank Bangladesh Ltd organized
webinar on 'FinTech: Shari'ah Perspective'
recently. Professor Md. Nazmul Hassan,
Ph.D, Chairman of the Bank addressed the
program as Chief Guest. Mohammed
Monirul Moula, Managing Director and
CEO of the bank presided over the webinar
while Dr. Md. Manzur-e-Elahi, Member of
Shari'ah Supervisory Committee
presented paper on the topic, a press
release said.
Dr. Tanveer Ahmad, Director, Professor
Dr. Mohammad Gias Uddin Talukder,
Chairman, Shari'ah Supervisory
Committee, Prof. Dr. Mohammad Abdus
Samad, Member Secretary of Shari'ah
Supervisory Committee, Muhammad
Qaisar Ali and Md. Omar Faruk Khan,
Additional Managing Directors and Taher
Ahmad Chowdhury, Deputy Managing
Director of the bank addressed on the
topic as panel discussant. Professor Dr.
Md. Salim Uddin, FCA, FCMA, Chairman,
Executive Committee, Mohammad
does not deserve credit for creating jobs
is Joe Biden," Republican National
Committee head Ronna McDaniel said
in a statement.
"Voters soundly rejected Biden's
failed economic agenda at the ballot box
this week and will do so again in 2022."
Despite October's gains, the report
indicated there were still 4.2 million
jobs missing from the economy
compared to February 2020, before the
world's largest Covid-19 outbreak
began.
The numbers of permanent job losers
and people on temporary layoff
changed little over the month, and
remain higher than before the
pandemic, according to the report.
There was also no improvement in
the labor force participation rate
indicating the share of the people in the
workforce, which was at 61.6 percent.
The Federal Reserve will surely take
note of that as it gauges the economy's
progress towards full employment,
which is among its criteria for lifting
rates from zero.
The data also showed wages rose
again last month and are up 4.9 percent
over the past year, factors that could
potentially sustain the price increases.
Solaiman, FCA, Chairman, Audit
Committee, Major General (Retd.) Engr.
Abdul Matin, Chairman, Risk
Management Committee, Md. Joynal
Abedin, Professor Dr. Qazi Shahidul Alam,
Syed Abu Asad, Professor Dr. Mohammad
Saleh Jahur, Professor Dr. Md. Fashiul
Alam, Khurshid-Ul-Alam and
Mohammed Nasir Uddin, FCMA,
Directors of the bank, Mufti Sayeed
Ahmad, Vice Chairman & Dr. Md. Ruhul
Amin Rabbani, Member Additional
Secretary of Shari'ah Supervisory
Committee, Dr. Hasan Mohammad
Moinuddin, Prof. Md. Mozahidul Islam
Chowdhury, Dr. Muhammad Saifullah,
Mufti Mohammad Muhibbullahil Baqee
and Mohammad Harunar Rashid,
Members of Shari'ah Supervisory
Committee also addressed in the webinar.
All executives of Head Office and IBTRA,
Heads of all Zones, Heads of all Corporate
and AD Branches and Shari'ah Muraqibs
of the bank attended the webinar.
Brazil opens 5G tender, seeking
$9 bin investment
BRASILIA : Brazil opened an
international tender Thursday to build
one of the world's biggest 5G data
networks, seeking $9 billion in
investment for Latin America's largest
economy, reports BSS.
Calling it a "historic" moment,
President Jair Bolsonaro opened the
tender in Brasilia with a symbolic bang of
the auctioneer's hammer, kicking off
bidding by 15 companies that officials
said could last through Friday.
The sprawling South American country
is looking to leverage so-called fifthgeneration
mobile technology to
accelerate the development of its
industrial and agribusiness sectors-as
well as bring super-fast internet to the cell
phones of its 213 million people.
The tender is for the right to build and
operate different "blocks" of the
frequency spectrum for 20 years, as well
as a separate network that will be
reserved for government
communications. Bidding for the latter
will exclude all equipment from Chinese
telecoms giant Huawei, the target of US
espionage accusations that have put
Brazil in a bind, forcing it to navigate the
tumultuous tech standoff between China
and the United States. The world's two
biggest powers are also Brazil's two
largest trading partners, and the country
has been under pressure from both sides
over the ground rules for its 5G network,
leading it to postpone the tender from
early 2021 as initially scheduled.
By Thursday afternoon, Brazil had
raked in $1.1 billion in investments from
winning bidders, including Telecom
Italia's local subsidiary, Tim; Spanish
group Telefonica's Brazilian unit; and
Claro, owned by Mexican telecoms
magnate Carlos Slim's America Movil.
Four of the 18 frequencies up for grabs
failed to attract bids.
"It is one of the largest 5G tenders in the
world. The potential is enormous,"
industry specialist Christian Perrone of
the Technology and Society Institute in
Rio de Janeiro told AFP.
The government is seeking total
investments of 50 billion reais ($9
billion): 40 billion reais to build the 5G
network-one of Latin America's first-and
10 billion reais that it will pocket for
frequency rights and use to boost
connectivity for public schools.
5G technology requires four to 10 times
as many antennas as 4G. The bidding
terms require winning companies to roll
out service in Brasilia and the 26 state
capitals by August 2022. Other cities of
more than 30,000 people can expect
service between 2025 and 2028.
Brazil hopes 5G technology will open
new horizons for its economy, ranging
from connected tractors and cropmonitoring
drones for the booming
agricultural sector to self-driving cars and
telemedicine to bridge the giant country's
infrastructure gaps.
"Consumers won't see that much
difference, aside from faster download
times for movies and videos. But from the
standpoint of industry, this is going to
open up a whole new reality for factories,
agribusiness, the productive sector," said
Marcos Ferrari of Conexis Brasil Digital, a
group representing five of the bidding
firms.