ข่ าวเด่ นประจาสั ปดาห์ จากบังกลาเทศ
15-21 January 2015
รวบรวมโดย สำนักงำนส่งเสริมกำรค้ำระหว่ำงประเทศ ณ กรุงธำกำ
Business News
Headlines:
1.Tour operators seek mercy from political violence
2.Garment makers meet retailers abroad as blockade lingers
3.Poultry bleeds as blockade lingers
4.Prolonged political unrest to slow growth: economist
5.Political chaos dents investor confidence
6.Save economy from political violence: Chittagong chamber
7.Plastic fair kicks off Jan 27
8.Stocks slip for third day amid political turmoil
1.Tour operators seek mercy from political violence
The Daily Star
Published: 12:00 am Friday, January 16, 2015
Link: http://www.thedailystar.net/tour-operators-seek-mercy-from-political-violence-60153
The tourism sector may count a loss of Tk 100 crore in the next three months due to
cancellations of planned tours by foreign travellers amid political violence.
Foreigners have completely cancelled their bookings for the rest of January, said Taufiq
Rahman, chief executive officer of Journey Plus, a leading tour operator.
About 5,000 tourists were expected to arrive in Bangladesh until March, but they have either
cancelled their bookings or are planning to do so, he said.
His comments come as the tourism industry has started to feel the pinch of the strikes and
blockades going on for the past ten days.
The dire situation prompted the tourism sector to organise an urgent press briefing at the
auditorium of the Bangladesh Tourism Board in the capital yesterday. At the briefing, Akhtaruz
Zaman Khan Kabir, chief executive of Bangladesh Tourism Board, said the nonstop blockade and
the accompanying violence are seriously damaging the sector.
Subsequently, the political parties were requested to exempt the tourism sector from the
purview of their activities.
Rahman of Journey Plus said the blockade left 1,000 foreign tourists stranded in Bangladesh.
“They have not committed any crime. They have come to explore the country and its beauty
and heritage. So, they should be provided with security and other support such that they return
with some pleasant memories,” he said, while urging the government to provide financial
assistance to firms who have been affected by the blockade.
Rahman's company has already received 120 foreigners.
Faridul Haque, a former president of the Tour Operators Association of Bangladesh (TOAB),
said the sector counted huge losses in 2013 due to political violence. “We didn't even recoup
the losses from that spell that another one has arrived. It is ruining the country's image.”
Consequently, the tourism sector is being hurt for the long-term, he said.
BNP and its allies should not attack cars and buses carrying foreign tourists, said a number of
speakers at the briefing.
Rahman, also a director of TOAB, said the tourist season, which kicked off in December, had a
very good start, due to which the industry people were hoping to register a 20-25 percent
growth in arrivals.
Bangladesh receives foreign tourists mainly from the UK, Japan and the US.
In 2013, a total of 3.92 lakh foreigners visited Bangladesh, generating direct jobs for 1.32 lakh
people, according to the World Travel and Tourism Council.
2.Garment makers meet retailers abroad as blockade lingers
The Daily Star
Published: 12:00 am Friday, January 16, 2015
Link: http://www.thedailystar.net/garment-makers-meet-retailers-abroad-as-blockade-lingers60154
Some apparel retailers have cancelled their scheduled flights to Dhaka due to a political
upheaval and asked their suppliers in Bangladesh to meet them abroad to wrap up work orders.
Industry insiders fear a reduction, cancellation and shift of work orders to other countries due
to political tensions. The country has already witnessed 15 days of a nonstop blockade.
Garment makers or their representatives are travelling to Hong Kong, China, India, Thailand and
European nations, spending thousands of dollars, to attend the meetings that were initially
planned to take place in Dhaka. They will have to count losses from discounts to buyers and
expensive air shipments to maintain the strict lead-time set by the retailers, according to
industry people.
“Investor confidence is waning. The image of the country's apparel sector will be tarnished
again. That will be the biggest loss,” Shahidullah Azim, vice-president of Bangladesh Garment
Manufacturers and Exporters Association, said by phone.
“A Canadian buyer was supposed to come to my office in Dhaka, but unfortunately the retailer
cancelled the trip and set the meeting in Thailand instead,” said Azim.
During any long political crisis, Azim said retailers do not place the full work orders all at once as
they fear delays in shipment as production cycles are hampered by slow transportation of raw
materials and finished goods and a thin presence of workers in factories.
Work orders may shift to India, Vietnam or Pakistan due to prolonged political conflict, Azim
added.
In 2013, the sector had to bear air shipment bills worth Tk 5,000 crore and offer discounts
worth Tk 9,000 crore because of political unrest, BGMEA said in a press statement on Tuesday
in Dhaka.
Real production in the garment sector is valued at Tk 430 crore a day. So, if half a day of
production is hampered, output worth Tk 215 crore is damaged, according to BGMEA. The
sector lost Tk 450 crore in 12 days.
“As in 2013, BGMEA sent forms to factory owners to know their real losses due to the ongoing
political crisis. We will disclose the amount of losses soon after receiving the responses.”
The Daily Star spoke to a number of garment exporters to know the situation, and everyone
shared a similar experience.
“I am going to Germany on January 26 to attend a meeting with a retailer, although the
meeting was supposed to be held in Dhaka,” said Bakhtiar Uddin Ahmed, general manager at
Fakir Apparels Ltd, a Narayanganj-based garment maker.
In a desperate effort to maintain the lead-time, garment makers are sending goods trucks to
Chittagong Port braving the blockade.
The buyers are still satisfied with the supply of goods, but the apprehension remains as the
political impasse is deepening and lingering, he added.
“One of my Australian buyers has asked me to go to China to attend a meeting that was
supposed to be held in Dhaka. I will have to go to there if I want to maintain business with
them,” said Syed Shafqat Ahmed, managing director of Saiham Knit Composite Ltd, a leading
garment exporter.
“Buyers have booked work orders up to March, so in short term, they might not shift work
orders in bulk quantities to other countries. But in long term, they will think about alternatives
to Bangladesh.”
Despite several internal and external shocks over the last two years, the key export earning
sector was still going strong, as the sector earned $2.3 billion in December last year, the highest
in the last 30 months.
Shipments overseas rose 2.4 percent in December from the same month a year earlier on the
strength of foreign demand for woven items up 11.2 percent, while exports of knit apparel
shrank 8 percent.
3.Poultry bleeds as blockade lingers
The Daily Star
Published: 12:00 am Sunday, January 18, 2015
Link: http://www.thedailystar.net/poultry-bleeds-as-blockade-lingers-60415
The poultry industry has incurred losses of around Tk 256 crore over the last two weeks due to
the nonstop blockade, which has knocked the sector's tight supply chain.
“Our sector is facing a very difficult time. Everyday we are counting losses,” said Moshiur
Rahman, convenor of the Bangladesh Poultry Industries Coordination Committee (BPICC), a
group of six associations in the poultry sector.
The production of day-old chicks, eggs and broiler chicken takes place on a daily basis and they
have to be shipped on the same day as the farms lack storage and preservation facilities.
“So, we have no other option but to kill the day-old chicks and destroy the eggs if we cannot
send them out on the day,” he said, adding that the blockades and shutdowns are forcing
poultry farmers to destroy around 22 lakh day-old chicks every week.
Since January 5, the poultry farmers were unable to sell around 8 crore eggs, 7,000 tonnes of
meat and 99 lakh day-old chicks, according to Rahman.
As a result, they counted losses of Tk 47 crore in egg production, Tk 79 crore in broiler meat and
about Tk 35 crore in day-old chicks in the last two weeks, he added. That's part of the total
losses.
The transportation of poultry feed and day-old chicks has significantly been disrupted, said
Fazle Rahim Khan Shahriar, managing director of Aftab Bahumukhi Farms, one of the major
poultry companies.
In the past two weeks, five of its trucks have been burnt or damaged by anti-government
protesters.
“We are in constant fear that a driver would call anytime to say our vehicle has been attacked.
There is no guarantee of safety for our supply vehicles.”
The company's target for the past two weeks was to sell 10,500 tonnes of feed. But it could
supply only 8,700 tonnes. Not only that, it got orders to supply 500 tonnes of feed, but it failed
to fulfil the orders for the blockade and shutdowns.
Overall, the sector's sales fell by around 35 percent during the period, said Rahman.
Desperate, the farmers are now paying higher transport fares and slashing down prices, just to
keep their businesses afloat.
The price of a day-old chick fell by a half. At the retail level, the scenario, however, is
completely opposite.
Retailers are charging Tk 90-96 a dozen, which was Tk 84-90 about two weeks ago, according to
government data.
Shahriar urged the political parties to resolve their political issues immediately. “We want a
permanent solution for the sake of the economy.”
The poultry industry accounts for 4 percent of the gross domestic product. The country has
about six grandparent stock farms, 60-70 parent stock farms and hatcheries and 70,000 poultry
farms. The sector has so far invested around Tk 25,000 crore.
On average, the country produces around 2 crore eggs, 1,700 tonne of broiler meat and around
16 lakh day-old chicks a day. The sector also produces around 25 lakh tonnes of feed a year,
according to BPICC.
Monthly sales of poultry medicines run into Tk 330 crore, according to BPICC.
4.Prolonged political unrest to slow growth: economist
The Daily Star
Published: 12:00 am Sunday, January 18, 2015
Link: http://www.thedailystar.net/prolonged-political-unrest-to-slow-growth-economist-60451
Development will slow down if political instability continues for long, economist Akbar Ali Khan
said yesterday.
“Widespread political instability ruins economic growth. The political debate may continue
among the parties, but all should work together for the sake of the economy.”
The former caretaker government adviser spoke as a guest at a debate competition on the
importance of microcredit for the rural economy, organised by the Debate for Democracy, a
debate organiser, at Film Development Corporation in the capital.
Micro lenders proved that loans can be distributed among the poor without collateral, he said.
“This idea is becoming popular globally.”
The government has distributed thousands of crores of taka as loans, but did not get any
benefit from those, he said.
But microcredit proved its strength to reduce poverty and is one of the ways to develop the
country, he said. Some people often criticise microcredit without having adequate knowledge
of it, Khan said.
“The country is going through some problems; we should develop different types of strategies
to solve these problems.”
The economy needs a good environment to get the highest benefits of the microcredit system,
Khan said.
Debate for Democracy Chairman Hassan Ahmed Chowdhury Kiron conducted the debate
between teams from Dhaka International University (DIU) and Green University of Bangladesh.
DIU beat Green University and moved to semi final of the debate competition yesterday where
students from 18 universities took part.
5.Political chaos dents investor confidence
The Daily Star
Published: 12:00 am Monday, January 19, 2015
Link: http://www.thedailystar.net/political-chaos-dents-investor-confidence-60652
Stocks returned to the red yesterday as investors sold off shares to hedge risks amid the
political violence creating uncertainty over the country's economic outlook.
DSEX, the benchmark general index of Dhaka Stock Exchange, went down 38.71 points or 0.78
percent, to close at 4917.37. DSES, the shariah index of the Dhaka bourse, lost 11.89 points or
1.01 percent, to close at 1,162.46.
An uptight political condition suffocated the market sentiment and investors decided to stay on
the sidelines, causing turnover to plummet to Tk 250 crore, the lowest in the last 10 days, said
IDLC Investments.
Turnover, the most important indicator of the market, declined 24.1 percent to Tk 251 crore,
compared to the previous day.
Meanwhile, short-term economic outlook is gradually turning gloomy, as the cost of business
goes up from the continuous blockade, the investment bank said.
The market suffered a sharp loss as investors remained wary against a turbulent short-term
outlook, LankaBangla Securities said.
“Turnover dictated that investors are shying away from taking long position as political front
remains unstable which is hampering business activities.”
Businesses are suffering from the blockades as they push up costs and are expected to cut into
corporate profits, the stockbroker said. The export-oriented textile sector lost the highest
market capitalisation of 1.7 percent.
A total of 0.72 lakh trades were executed with 6.31 lakh shares and mutual fund units changing
hands on the Dhaka bourse. Losers took a strong lead over gainers with 208 to 68, while 30
remained unchanged out of the 306 issues that traded on the DSE.
CVO Petrochemical Refinery was the turnover leader with 17.91 lakh shares worth Tk 9.61 crore
traded, followed by IDLC Finance, Bangladesh Building System, Agni Systems, Lafarge Surma
Cement and Saif Powertec.
Renwick Jajneswar was the highest gainer of the day with 8.76 percent gain, while Samata
Leather Complex was the worst loser, plunging by 7.56 percent.
6.Save economy from political violence: Chittagong chamber
The Daily Star
Published: 12:00 am Monday, January 19, 2015
Link: http://www.thedailystar.net/save-economy-from-political-violence-chittagong-chamber60653
The business leaders in Chittagong yesterday urged the political parties to keep all economic
activities, especially goods transport, out of the purview of hartals and blockades.
The suggestion was part of a nine-point proposal presented by Mahbubul Alam, president of
Chittagong Chamber of Commerce and Industry, at a meeting at the chamber's office in the
port city.
Different business sectors have so far incurred losses of around Tk 17,000 crore in the first 15
days of 2015, Alam said, quoting different media reports.
“If the situation persists, it would take years to recover from the losses.”
The leaders of the chamber also suggested keeping government offices open on weekly
holidays and forming special taskforces to keep ports and customs running during hartals and
blockades.
They also called for deploying special forces and members of the intelligence agencies to keep
the highways, including the Dhaka-Chittagong highway, safe from arsonists. They said the
government should ensure tough punishment for such violence.
The businesses urged the political parties to find alternatives to hartals and bring an end to the
current deadlock that is choking the economy.
Chittagong Metropolitan Police Commissioner Abdul Jalil Mandal, Chittagong Deputy
Commissioner Mesbah Uddin and Chittagong Police Super AKM Hafiz Akther were also present.
7.Plastic fair kicks off Jan 27
The Daily Star
Published: 12:00 am Wednesday, January 21, 2015
Link: http://www.thedailystar.net/business/plastic-fair-kicks-off-jan-27-60881
A four-day international fair of plastic manufacturers will begin in the capital next week to
showcase the latest technology and products of the growing sector.
The 10th Dhaka International Plastic Fair will take place at Bangabandhu International
Conference Centre from January 27 to 30. The show will remain open from 12pm to 8pm,
according to a statement.
The country now has 5,000 plastic factories where 12 lakh people work, according to
Bangladesh Plastic Manufacturers and Exporters Association.
Bangladesh has the opportunity to become a global player in plastic market by raising its
turnover to $2 billion by 2015 and $4 billion by 2020, according to industry people.
The show will offer an opportunity to participants and visitors to browse the latest technology
and products and meet professionals, according to the statement.
8.Stocks slip for third day amid political turmoil
The Daily Star
Published: 12:00 am Wednesday, January 21, 2015
Link:http://www.thedailystar.net/business/stocks-slip-for-third-day-amid-political-turmoil60882
Investors spooked by political turmoil rushed into sell-offs yesterday, leaving the stockmarket in
the red for a third day.
DSEX, the benchmark general index of the premier bourse, fell 10.13 points or 0.2 percent,
finishing the day at 4,856.94 points.
DSES, the shariah index, declined 2.91 points or 0.25 percent to close at 1,150.35 points.
Negative market sentiments continued to batter market with turnover coming down to a twoweek low, said LankaBangla Securities.
Turnover, an important indicator of the market, dropped 13.3 percent to Tk 247.17 crore
compared to the previous day.
However, a few sector specific stocks made some gains as some traders considered the market
weakness an opportunity to buy, LankaBangla Securities said.
Losers took a strong lead over gainers as 187 declined, 79 advanced and 44 issues remained
unchanged on the DSE.
A total of 0.76 lakh trades were executed with 6.91 crore shares and mutual fund units
changing hands on the premier bourse.
Newly listed National Feed Mill continued to top the turnover chart for a second day with 22.97
lakh shares worth Tk 9.21 crore being traded.
NCCBL Mutual Fund 1 was the day's best performer, advancing by 10.52 percent, while National
Feed Mill was the worst loser, slumping by 9.41 percent.
Chittagong stocks also fell yesterday with the bourse's CSCX index declining by 32.87 points to
9,005.81.
Of the 240 issues that traded on the port city bourse, 58 advanced, 162 declined and 20
remained unchanged.
A total of 82.56 lakh shares and mutual fund units changed hands on the Chittagong Stock
Exchange, generating a turnover of Tk 25.23 crore.