Ahsan Habib

That high inflationary pressure has been taking a toll on people over the last couple of months is apparently evident in supermarkets, where the same amount of money is being spent albeit for the purchase of a lower number and volume of goods. 

The number of beneficiary owner’s (BO) accounts, which are needed to trade stocks, has fallen over the past seven months due to the thin profits earned from initial public offerings (IPO) and a continuous bear run in the market, analysts say.

As the Russia-Ukraine war broke out, Bangladesh witnessed a huge deficit in the balance of payments which was the main cause for a recent dollar crisis in the country where speculation fuelled the dearth, says AKM Ismail Haq, president of the Money Changers’ Association of Bangladesh. 

Transactions through agent banking accounts rose 43 per cent year-on-year to Tk 5,64,844 crore in fiscal year 2021-22 as a growing number of people are now using the new banking window, showed Bangladesh Bank data.

Most of the listed banks in Bangladesh had to keep higher provisions in the first half of 2022 owing to the bearish trend in the share market and the removal of the relaxed loan classification policy that sent bad loans higher. 

The dream of establishing road connectivity between the southwestern part of Bangladesh and the capital city came true after the opening of long-waited Padma Bridge in June.

The government’s decision to impose an astronomic hike in fuel prices is irrational as it comes at a time when the general public is losing its purchasing power amid record inflation following the hardships brought on by Covid-19.

The emerging multi-polar world is now trying to reduce the use of the greenback in their trade after the US and EU imposed multilateral sanctions on Russia.

The Bangladesh Securities and Exchange Commission (BSEC) is going to reorganise the boards of several non-bank financial institutions (NBFIs) this month in a bid to improve their financial health.

Most of the non-bank financial institutions in Bangladesh delivered lower profits in the first half of 2022 due to the shrinkage of income from the ailing stock market. 

The stock market is being administered with a short-term cure, the floor price, to halt its bear run sacrificing long-term stability through the erosion of confidence among institutional and foreign investors. 

Profits of most multinational companies listed in Bangladesh dropped in the first half of 2022 due to the depreciation of the local currency and higher consumer prices. 

Bangladesh’s use of foreign assistance reached a new record high of $10 billion in fiscal year 2021-22, primarily behind vaccinations, one-time budget support, economic recovery from the pandemic and implementation of mega projects.

Low-performing stocks have kept dominating over blue-chip and sound shares in an unpromising sign that the stock market in Bangladesh is driven more by speculation instead of the health and performance of companies. 

Stocks of Bangladesh Monospool Paper Manufacturing Company have skyrocketed in the last one year just after it had been relisted from the over the counter (OTC) market to the main board, all throughout riding on rumours and speculations. 

The jitters surrounding the state of the economy are reverberating on the stock market, with the key index dropping for the fifth day in a row.

Luxury hotel businesses in Bangladesh are on the path of recovery to pre-pandemic levels, with local customers playing a vital role in renting rooms, holding a large number of events and seeking food made by their restaurants. 

Shares of small capital-based companies surged abnormally on the Dhaka Stock Exchange (DSE) in the past month whereas the benchmark index of the premier bourse of Bangladesh, as well as blue-chip securities, has been in a bearish mood. 

Stocks of Grameenphone have been falling ever since the government banned the country’s top telecom company from selling new SIM cards at a time when shares of its main competitor, Robi Axiata, have entered a bull run.

Most of the companies in Bangladesh may not qualify for the 2.5 percentage points cut in the corporate tax rate as proposed in the budget for the upcoming fiscal year owing to stringent conditions.