4 Dhaka, Sunday, 6 November 2022 Opinion BUSINESS & ECONOMY Dhaka, Sunday, 6 November 2022

5
Editorial
Both city corporations
should work harder to keep
Dhaka neat and clean
The government's decision to introduce health insurance for people
with disabilities is, no doubt, a praiseworthy one. The insurance poli-
cy, named "Bangabandhu Suraksha Bima for Persons of Disabilities,"
will cater to people with autism, Down's syndrome, intellectual dis-
ability, and cerebral palsy. Reportedly, the initiative has been piloted
in Dhaka city, Dhaka district and Sylhet district as the number of peo-
ple with autism and other neurological disabilities is higher in Dhaka
and Sylhet than in other districts. Bangladesh's insurance industry
isn't too far behind the rest of the world. While the industry's situation
is not bad, there is a lot of room for growth. There is an opportunity,
in terms of market penetration and digitalization, to take the industry
to an even better place. The regulator can play an important role here
by pushing for the advancement of digitalisation and Insurtech. The
government needs to remove the barriers. We have been working
closely with the Insurance Development and Regulatory Authority,
Bangladesh Insurance Academy and Bangladesh Bank to launch
Bancassurance Service which will enable companies to adapt to the
changing market even faster and render better quality services to cus-
tomers by utilizing the banking channel for insurance service distribu-
tion. A detailed report in this daily tells us that PWDs will not have to
pay any fee for the insurance scheme; rather, their parents will have
to pay a nominal premium, which will vary depending on their
income. Parents whose monthly income is Tk 25,000 or less will have
to bear 25 percent of the annual premium or Tk 125, while those
whose monthly income is more than Tk 25,000 will have to bear the
entire annual premium, which amounts to Tk 600. People with dis-
abilities aged 3 to 25 years can now sign up for the policy. Decisions
for expansion will be taken by the authorities on the basis of the ini-
tial response. In this respect, we believe piloting a new project is
always a good idea before jumping headlong into unknown territory.
It is also a sensible move to initially bring 100,000 people under this
program in the first year, and expand it to include the visually
impaired, speech-impaired and other categories of disabilities at later
stages. Health insurance for citizens with disabilities is a completely
new and innovative idea in Bangladesh that will need careful handling
right from the beginning.
Bangladesh to import diesel
from India: A win-win situation
amidst economic turmoil?
Kamal Uddin Mazumder
Bangladesh and India had been sharing
friendly and warm relations since 1971. Both
of the countries have been kith and kin
through crisis moments. Bangladesh has wit-
nessed India's support from the liberation
war to the Covid-19 pandemic. As now the
world is facing the repercussions of the pan-
demic and the Russia-Ukraine war through
the economic crisis and the energy crisis,
India is still with Bangladesh through a coop-
erative framework. The government of
Bangladesh had decided to cut down its fuel
consumption to keep up with the global ener-
gy crisis. It was necessary to import fuel at
the cheapest possible rate to mitigate the cri-
sis. Some talks had been initiated with coun-
tries like Saudi Arabia, Malaysia, and Brunei
but India came forward first. The geographi-
cal proximity and the longest shared border
had ushered multidimensional ways of coop-
eration and collaboration in many areas. The
import of diesel from India through the
pipeline is one of the prime examples of
maximizing the geographical proximity with
Bangladesh's perpetual neighbor country.
Amidst the crisis, the beacon of hope is,
diesel will arrive in Bangladesh by pipeline
from India at the end of February or the
beginning of March next year. Once the
diesel arrives it will bring a win-win situation
for both Bangladesh and India. Whereas both
of the countries will get a mutual benefit eco-
nomically and Bangladesh will get to miti-
gate its energy crisis. India will generate rev-
enue by exporting diesel to Bangladesh.
India has already expressed its positive atti-
tude towards increasing cooperation with
Bangladesh. Not only that, Bangladesh-India
has signed several agreements and memoran-
da of understanding to increase bilateral
trade and investment. Bangladesh-India
Diesel Trade India-Bangladesh diesel trade
had been ongoing since 2017 carried by
train. The cost of transportation was a huge
sum of amount for Bangladesh Petroleum
Company. About 2,200 tonnes of diesel is
sent from Lumaligarh Refinery Limited
(NRL) through West Bengal Railway every
month. As the demand for diesel is highest in
16 districts of the northern region during
Aman and Boro season, the government
decided to import this fuel through the
pipeline. If the project is implemented, diesel
can reach the consumer level in 16 districts
of the Rangpur and Rajshahi divisions in a
short time. As a result, it will be able to pro-
vide it to the farmers at a low cost in a short
period besides saving a huge amount of
money. This gesture from India will not only
strengthen Bangladesh's economic ties with
India but also uphold the ties of friendship
during the energy crisis as well as the dollar
crisis. Apart from uninterrupted, cheaper,
and quicker energy supply security, the
cross-border pipeline is expected to help
BPC reduce the system loss that it incurs in
the form of pilferage.Due to the introduction
of pipelines, the supply of fuel in the country
will increase and the cost of transportation of
fuel will come down. India-Bangladesh
Friendship Pipeline Agreement An agree-
ment was signed between the two countries
in November 2018 to implement the project.
The work started in March 2020. The dura-
tion of the project was till June 2022. But due
to the Covid-19 pandemic, the project has
been extended till December this year as the
pace of work has slowed down a bit. The
construction of the Bangladesh-India
Friendship pipeline is almost at the final
stage. The 131.57 km long pipeline project
connects Siliguri, West Bengal, and
Parbatipur, Dinajpur. Of the total length of
the pipeline, 126.50 km is inside Bangladesh
while the remaining 5.07 km is in India. Of
the construction cost amounting to Tk520
crore, the Indian government is providing Tk
303 crore and the BPC is providing the
remaining Tk 217 crore. About 1 million
metric tons of diesel can be imported from
India annually through the pipeline.
However, in the initial phase, two and a half
lakh tons will be imported. According to the
15-year agreement, the import volume will
increase to 4 to 5 metric tons per year. A
Beacon of Hope? Through this pipeline, an
alternative source of diesel import is being
created for Bangladesh. According to
Bangladesh Petroleum Corporation,
Bangladesh imports 6.5 million tons of fuel
oil annually. Of that, 4 million tons of diesel
is imported annually. Through this pipeline,
almost fifty percent of imported fuel will
come to this country by reducing the signifi-
cant amount of transportation costs.
Moreover, according to BPC, it has to pay an
average premium of $10 per barrel (159
liters) for bringing fuel oil (including
freight). It can be eight dollars if imported
from India. A reduction of two dollars per
barrel can save about 1.5 million dollars per
100,000 tons. People of 16 districts of the
northern region will be able to enjoy this
benefit in addition to taking less time in fuel
supply. Therefore, foreign exchange will also
be saved if imported from India. Now if it is
possible to import in rupees instead of dollars
then our dollar crisis will reduce to some
extent. If India gives Bangladesh some dis-
count in the future, it can be more profitable.
Currently, India has been importing Russian
oil defying the United States sanctions while
Bangladesh has a long-term contract with
India to import refined oil from its refinery at
Numaligarh in Assam state. If there is a bilat-
eral arrangement between the two nations,
importing Russian oil at a much cheaper rate
is very much possible. As Russia has been
facing huge economic sanctions from the US
and its European allies following its war with
Ukraine, if Bangladesh import Russian oil
from India at the same rate, then it can avoid
sanction from the USA and other western
allies. On the other hand, exporter India can
earn foreign exchange inflow from export
revenue, which can be used for investment or
other economic purposes. Even if India
exports refined oil to Bangladesh at a cheap-
er rate, that will bring net economic gains for
the country as a whole. Future Prospects
Enhanced energy cooperation through bilat-
eral and multilateral arrangements can
address the challenges posed by high fuel
prices in the wake of Russia Ukraine war.
And India Bangladesh Friendship Pipeline is
a striking example of bilateral energy coop-
eration. Once diesel starts to arrive in
Bangladesh, it will usher a new dimension to
the energy cooperation between India and
Bangladesh.
US Federal Reserve
raises interest rates to
14-year high
Business desk
The US Federal Reserve on Wednesday announced a
fourth consecutive three-quarter point interest rate
increase. It takes the benchmark lending rate to a
range of 3.75% to 4%, the highest since January 2008,
reports Deutsche Welle. In a statement after its two-
day policy meeting, the US central bank vowed to
keep raising interest rates "sufficiently restrictive to
return inflation to 2% over time." It however said it
will consider the impact on the economy when decid-
ing. "We will take into account the cumulative tight-
ening of monetary policy, the lags with which mone-
tary policy affects economic activity and inflation,
and economic and
financial develop-
ments." Federal Reserve
Chair Jerome Powell
said when it comes to
moving to smaller rate
rises from the 75 basis
point moves that have
defined recent rate
hikes, "that time is com-
ing and it may come as
soon as the December
meeting." Now the Fed
shows no signs of back-
ing down, even as
Powell acknowledged
that officials are making
decisions without full
certainty of how they
will unfold. Battle to
contain worst inflation
in decades The Fed has
now raised rates at its last six meetings, the most
aggressive pace of monetary policy tightening since
the 1980s. Inflation rose 8.2% in September from 12
months earlier, just below the highest rate in 40 years.
Wednesday's rate increase coincided with growing
concerns among some economists the Fed may tight-
en credit so much it will pull the economy into reces-
sion. "It is very premature to be thinking about paus-
ing," Powell said, adding there was "a way to go." The
Fed said the economy appeared to be growing mod-
estly, with still "robust" job gains and low unemploy-
ment. White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre
said the Fed's decision would help to bring down
inflation, and a rise in mortgage rates should cool
inflation in the housing market. Rate increases outside
that it is moving far too forcefully and not allowing
enough time for its policies to take hold in the econo-
my. A major reason the Fed has been piling on such
whopping hikes is because it arrived late to the infla-
tion fight. Central bankers initially said rising con-
sumer prices would be temporary, as the economy
regained its footing from the covid crisis. That read
of the situation was wrong, and it put the Fed in a
position of needing to work harder to cement its cred-
ibility and convince markets, elected officials and
American consumers that it will do its job, even in a
time of extreme uncertainty. "A lot of this is obvious-
ly about narrative and communication. Whether or not
they pause in the beginning of next year, or at the end
of the first quarter -
there aren't huge eco-
nomic effects," said
Wendy Edelberg,
director of the
Hamilton Project, a
center-left think tank,
and former chief econ-
omist at the
Congressional Budget
Office. "But they do
matter in terms of cred-
ibility. Them pausing
before they have a
change in inflation to
hang their hats on - it's
a problem. And I'm
betting that they won't
pause until they see
that." Prices in
September rose 8.2%
compared with the year
before, and 0.4% compared with August, more than
analysts' expectations. Core inflation, a measure
closely watched by the Fed that strips out more
volatile categories such as food and energy, also came
in hot. Powell said that since the last Fed policy meet-
ing in September, data showing a still-hot labour mar-
ket and a blistering inflation report suggests rates will
have to move higher than officials expected just six
weeks ago. But there will almost certainly be conse-
quences from the most aggressive monetary policy in
decades. The economy does not appear to be in a
recession now, based on gross domestic product
measurements, the labor market or consumer spend-
ing data. But the overarching fear is that the full force
of the Fed's moves will take months, if not a year, to
Rustic Eatery: Great food
without breaking the bank
Business desk
Whether you want a taste of the rustic ambience, a
feeling of calmness, or just some gorgeous photos
and that too without really putting a dent in your wal-
let, Rustic Eatery is the place to visit Tucked away in
an amazing location in Dhanmondi 9/a, Rustic Eatery
has been successfully in operation for over four years
now. This restaurant boasts a menu that can satisfy
anyone's cravings, regardless of how much money
they have on hand, ranging from light drinks to
hearty meals. The restaurant exudes elegance and
great energy. The food too was outstanding when I
visited there for lunch and on top of that, their serv-
ice was prompt and courteous, making it one of my
favourite places in Dhanmondi. Rustic Eatery cur-
rently has three branches, with the other two located
in Banani and Uttara. According to its owner Rajib
Shahabuddin, the restaurant launched its Uttara
branch only two months ago to cater to the growing
demand, and I can see why that is the case.
Ambience
The restaurant's name is evident in its wooden seat-
ing arrangement, wooden service utensils, and ceil-
ing-mounted mason jar lighting. The eatery is locat-
ed inside an old independent house, one of the very
few to survive the test of time, as high rises are mush-
rooming up everywhere. The ambience is at its best
after sunset when the beautifully placed lights are all
switched on, and the absence of modernism truly
rolls back the years. However, I do think the sitting
arrangement could be a little better if the tables were
a little further from each other. At first glance, the
space gives an illusion of being a little cramped,
though that is not the case. outdoor sitting arrange-
ment would be the cherry on top, but sadly there is
none. Even though Rustic Eatery mostly targets a
younger demographic, it is the sort of place where
you can take your whole family out for a meal,
because uniquely it offers something for everyone.
Food
Before visiting the restaurant in person, I heard a lot
about its famous Cream of Mushroom soup. Many
have even claimed it to be one of the best in Dhaka,
so I had to try that first. The overpowering aroma of
mushrooms cooked in butter as soon as the hot bowl
of soup was placed in front of me immediately set me
off, but in a pleasant manner. Even before I tasted it
because I had to wait a minute for the steam to settle,
the aroma of this thick, creamy soup with a generous
number of chopped-up mushrooms was able to leave
an effect on me. And with a price of Tk285, for the
time being, it sure is great value for money.
Unquestionably one of the tastiest soups I've ever had
in Dhaka. Everything I had assumed from the aroma
came through in the flavour: buttery, savoury, and
sweet from the cream. Every spoonful of the soup
that had chopped-up mushrooms raised the quality to
entirely new realms. Speaking to Rajib, the owner of
the restaurant, he informed us that the prices will
sadly have to go up a bit due to ingredients becoming
costlier in the kitchen markets. However, this was
observed in every restaurant we have visited so far,
not just in Rustic. But he assured us that the prices
would not go up to a level where it becomes unaf-
fordable. One of the best starters I would say is their
Katsu (Japanese cutlets fried in panko breadcrumbs)
and Fries, very affordable yet extremely filling. Their
serving is generous, and one could almost have it as
a meal. It has five pieces of crispy chicken katsu and
a generous amount of fries and their signature sauce.
This item costs Tk355 for the time being. Half a
Chicken (Type A) was the other thing that had been
placed on the table. The dish's presentation appeared
perfect at first glance. The large piece of chicken was
placed on one half of the plate, and the other compli-
mentary items were placed on the other, highlighting
the rustic appeal of the wooden serving dish's off-
white colours. Considering the chicken's size, I had-
n't expected it to be so easy to cut into. The charred
meat and trademark sauce blended nicely together,
and the chicken was juicy as I had envisioned. It was
sweet and savoury, with a hint of char from the
caramelization of the onions on the side. The
caramelized mushrooms also had onions on the side
and the item is currently priced at Tk495. This was
one of the most expensive items on the menu. So you
can assume the range of the rest of the items. Then
came the drinks, I tried their Blackberry Lime,
Lemon Mint and Lychee Lime. All three were top-
notch, but my personal favourite was the Lychee
Lime, with the Lemon Mint coming in at a close sec-
ond. It was rich in flavour and extremely refreshing,
especially after a heavy meal. Priced at only Tk185,
I would rate it a solid 9 out of 10.
Challenges
Many items on the menu were not available because
of the increasing prices of the ingredients, and that is
something I have seen in many restaurants lately.
The owner said, the prices of the items will increase
by Tk30-40, which I think is quite fair for the current
scenario in the kitchen markets across the country.
Verdict
Overall, I had a wonderful time at Rustic Eatery and
enjoyed some of the best foods and dining experi-
ences that Dhaka has to offer. Whether you want a
taste of the rustic ambience, a feeling of calmness, or
just some gorgeous photos and that too without real-
ly putting a dent in your wallet, Rustic Eatery is the
place to visit.

Racism: Still Rampant and Glaring

While talking about racism, often a view of the white-
dominated western societies crops up in our minds.
Since the outset of institutional racism, particularly in
colonial era, when racial discrimination were regard-
ed as right and legitimate things, to the current world
the effects of neo-Nazism have been still glaring and
lucid in many parts of the world. Arguments over the
origins of racism often suffer from a lack of clarity
about the term. Many people mix up recent forms of
racism with earlier instances of ethnic and national
disputes. In most cases ethno-national rifts arose from
wrangles over land and strategic
resources. In some cases ethnicity and
nationalism were harnessed to wars
between great religious empires (for
example, the Muslim Turks and the
Catholic Austro-Hungarians). As
Benedict Anderson has suggested in
Imagined Communities, ethnic identity
Ananda Rahman
popular in countries like Germany, Greece and Russia
till today. Vicious, murderous racists called 'skin-
heads' are common on the streets of Russia, Germany,
even in a relatively safer and more peaceful country
like Finland, who prey on non-white foreigners every
now and then. Racist attacks and sentiments have
further spread in the west due to the unresolved
Palestinian issue in the Middle East where Arabs and
Jews have been on extremely antagonistic terms for
over 60 years. South Africa is still suffering intermit-
tent racial riots between black and white citizens
despite the fact that this was supposed to have ended
up through the victory of Nelson Mandela as the
President who came with a strong optimism to elimi-
nate apartheid in his country. The severe riots that
broke out in London and other cities of UK in 2011
also originated from racism when Mark Duggan, a
29-year-old black young man was shot dead by the
British police officers a few days ago. Thousands of
vehicles, shops and restaurants were plundered, van-
dalized and burnt by unruly people, which is a glaring
indication of their outrage at the economic downtrend
UK has been going through for last few years. Even
the ongoing US presidential campaign is not free of
racial countenance as we have already seen Donald
Trump denouncing immigrants and some other ethnic
minorities living in America during some of his
speeches which have already made him a controver-
sial figure. It needs to be noted that the Americans
fought a civil war from 1861 to 1865 to eradicate
racial discrimination against Afro-American people.
Racism was deplored by the leading authors of the
United States in their books during the 19th Century
while the Americans were fighting
against their fellow countrymen to
eliminate slavery of the black commu-
nity. Mark Twain, Harriet Beecher
Stowe, Alex Haley and John Steinbeck
touched the hearts of millions of read-
ers worldwide with their tremendous
anti-slavery novels. Even Abraham
the US Outside the United States, many other major
central banks are also rapidly raising rates to try to
cool inflation levels. Last week, the European Central
Bank increased rates at the fastest pace in the Euro
currency's history to try to curb inflation that soared to
a record 10.7% last month. This as German inflation
unexpectedly accelerated this month, following a
trend already seen in France and Italy. Major U.S.
stock markets - which have already been volatile over
the prospect of rates that stay higher for longer -
swerved off the news, with the Dow Jones industrial
average briefly climbing more than 300 points before
reversing course and turning negative. The Dow ulti-
mately closed down 505 points, or 1.55%, reports The
Washington Post. The S&P 500 dropped 2.5%, and
the Nasdaq dropped 3.36%. The Fed effectively has
only one tool to get inflation under control: the feder-
al funds rate, or what banks charge each other to lend.
That interest rate is blunt but wide-ranging, and it tar-
gets demand by influencing all kinds of borrowing,
from mortgage rates and car loans to debt taken on by
businesses. The Fed has now raised rates six times
since March, pushing its policy rate between 3.75 and
4%, considered "restrictive" territory that should slow
economic growth. The Fed's resolve to keep rates
sink in - and by then, it will be too late to head off a
downturn.
The Fed's decisions are also being amplified as central
banks around the world hike rates to tame inflation in
their own countries, a precarious experiment that
could soon send the global economy into a recession.
Outside the Fed, inflation has become a major issue
for voters and candidates ahead of the midterm elec-
tions. Republicans have hammered Democrats for
their sprawling stimulus measures earlier in the pan-
demic that helped supercharge demand and sent infla-
tion on the upswing. Democrats, meanwhile, defend
their policies as keeping the economy alive during the
worst days of the health crisis. The Fed closely guards
its independence from politics and makes decisions
regardless of which party holds Congress or the White
House. But Democrats on Capitol Hill have recently
ramped up their criticism of the central bank, arguing
that such massive rate hikes will inevitably hurt the
labor market. On Monday, 11 lawmakers, including
Sens. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) and Bernie Sanders
(I-Vt.), issued a letter to Powell warning the Fed
against inflicting needless harm. "We are deeply con-
cerned that your interest rate hikes risk slowing the
economy to a crawl while failing to slow rising prices

Exporters want time to pay

and ethno-nationalism took the shape Lincoln, Thomas Jefferson, George higher for longer comes as it falls under growing crit- that continue to harm families," the letter read.
of a breeding ground for animosity Washington and Benjamin Franklin icism from economists and Democrats on Capitol Hill
within such empires with the rise of also sharply opposed racism while fac-
print-capitalism. In its modern form,
racism gradually mounted with
European discoveries and conquest of
much of the rest of the world, and espe-
ing the crucial periods of American his-
tory during the previous centuries. The
caste system in some oriental societies
is another form of racism too. People
China’s Tianjin port reaps as buyers defer payments
huge benefits of Huawei’s
cially after Christopher Columbus had belonging to upper castes or royal
explored the American continent. As dynasties in both past and present are
new different places and their inhabi- often found holding special socio-eco- Business desk takes such a decision, then exports may decrease fur-
tants were confronted, fought and ulti- nomic privileges. The vividly prevalent ther. It will become difficult to achieve the [$100 bil-

Smart Port innovations

mately subjugated, theories about discrimination of social standings
"race" began to develop. Another prob- between high-profile wealthy people
able source of racism is the deliberate and the poverty-stricken masses all
or unwilling misapprehension of over the world is also a modern reflec-
Charles Darwin's theories of evolution. tion of racism caused by the capitalistic
Some took Darwin's theories to denote world order. When rights and benefits
that since some "races" were more civ- are enjoyed by a particular class of cit-
ilized, there must be a biological basis izens depriving millions of people in a
for the difference. At the same time state-this phenomenon closely resem-
they appealed to biological theories of bles the features of racial disparity. So,
moral and intellectual traits to impart a racism may not be defined in terms of
'legal' platform to racism. Europe has skin complexion under all circum-
witnessed the rise of neo-Nazism since stances. Racism is still a major social
1990s which suggests that far from stigma in the United States where dis-
being a sporadic activity, racism, vio- crimination against the Afro-
lence and radical nationalism have Americans, non-white immigrants and
become normal in some communities. Hispanics are common phenomena.
The problems could have been tackled During the US election campaign of
much earlier, in schools and with social 2008, opponents didn't spare to throw
programs, but the concerned govern- harsh racist comments at Barack
ment authorities also seem to lack the Obama, who was the country's first
true desire to remove racism. In this ever black man to have won the presi-
way, racist discontentment often flares dential polls. When leaders from the
up in most terrible ways between the front-ranking political hierarchy cannot
white fellows and black or colored quit racism in their words and work,
immigrants all on a sudden. Ethnic combat against such a horrendous
minorities in one country can often be social ailment has very remote chances
abused as a scapegoat by the majority to succeed. Dreams cherished by
during times of economic crisis. That is Martin Luther King and Malcolm X
one reason why Nazism remains so seem to be far away from fulfillment.
The country's apparel manufacturers and exporters
are asking for flexibility when clearing raw material
import payments from the Bangladesh Bank, as there
are delays in payments from buyers, deferred ship-
ments, order declines, and overall production disrup-
Business desk increased efficiency. Now, each container at the tion. Earlier on October 26, the central bank warned
Tianjin Port now consumes 20% less energy, and commercial banks that if they fail to pay their import
The leading global ICT infrastructure and solutions cranes are 20% more efficient on average, with each bills in time, their authorized dealer (AD) licences for
provider, Huawei, has come up with 5G network, 4L
crane operating 39 container units per hour. Board forex trade will be revoked. Apparel makers' inabili-
autonomous driving and other Member of Huawei ty to clear letters of credit (LCs) within deadline is
technological innovations to
Bangladesh Jason Li said: making things difficult for the AD banks. In this sit-
make the ports smart, safer “Bangladesh is moving fast uation, a number of commercial banks are putting
and efficient. Recently, a riding on the power of digital
pressure on the exporters to clear their LCs as soon as
smart terminal ha bs been transformation. Smart ports
built by Tianjin Port Group possible, otherwise they will have to deal with forced
and terminals can be the focus loans, said industry insiders. According to the central
(TPG), together with Huawei point in next few years for
bank, there is a guideline for export financing
and other partners, as part of realizing Smart Bangladesh
its efforts to build a smart and through commercial banks. But a number of banks
vision. If Bangladesh can turn have not been complying with it, which is harming
green port, reads a press Chattogram and Mongla ports
the country's image abroad. The central bank has
release. This initiative has into smart ones, it will have
been taken to deal with port very positive impacts on the instructed the commercial banks to follow the rules.
However, apparel manufacturers said that the central
congestion that caused severe economy and also help to
disruptions in global supply address the problems in daily bank decision came at a time when the sector was
passing through turbulent times as buyers were
chains, goods handling prob- operations at ports.” Tianjin
lem and other port related issues resulting a decrease in port is one of China's most technologically advanced already deferring shipments and delaying export pay-
overall efficiency. At the Tianjin Port, under the guid- ments. Faruque Hassan, president of the Bangladesh
ports and a vital hub for the One Belt One Road initia-
ance of the BeiDou navigation satellite system, the tive. It has a 300,000-ton-class wharf with a channel Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association
whole process of moving the container trucks to the (BGMEA), said that they had several issues going for
depth of -22 meters. It has 192 berths of various types
automatic locking/unlocking stations can now be com- and 128 berths above the 10,000-ton-class. By the end them. “Our request is to keep it as before. We are
pleted in one go. The intelligent and digital transforma- getting lesser orders already and the export growth is
of 2021, the port's cargo throughput reached 435 mil-
tion of the port has led to tangible benefits and lion tons, ranking ninth in the world. also very narrow,” he added. Now if the central bank
lion export] target, he added. In this regard, a
BGMEA delegation met with central bank Governor
Abdur Rauf Talukder on Monday and sought policy
support for avoiding forced loans created through
non-payment of LCs. BGMEA President Faruque
Hassan led the delegation and said that in this crucial
situation, if the central bank withdrew its support,
how would they clear LCs where they do not receive
export payments on time? “Banks are already putting
pressure on us to clear import bills, but where is the
money? Our buyers have not paid export bills worth
millions of dollars. Export items worth nearly $1 bil-
lion are still in our warehouses,” he added. He also
said that they have requested the central bank to
extend export bill repatriation considering the ongo-
ing situation of the country's export sector. “We also
urged to postpone the issuance of forced loans on a
case-by-case basis,” he went on saying that they dis-
cussed several issues with the Bangladesh Bank gov-
ernor, and everything they requested is logical. The
central banks in other countries are providing good
policy support to their export industries amid the
ongoing economic crisis, but this is not the case for
our Bangladesh Bank, he added. The BGMEA presi-
dent noted that the central bank governor has agreed
to consider their recommendations. Nipa Group
Managing Director Md Khosru Chowdhury said that
before the circular, they negotiated with their suppli-
ers to delay LC payments. But the circular is now
standing in the way of that too.