The finance ministry is likely to project that the country’s gross domestic product (GDP) will surpass the $500-billion mark for the first time in the upcoming fiscal year (FY), anticipating an economic rebound in FY 2025-26.

Trade protectionism is not the path to global competitiveness

The Bangladesh economy is bracing for substantial hurdles in the second half of the 2025 fiscal year, with growth projected to decelerate amid inflationary pressures, financial strain and external headwinds.

Bangladesh’s economy grew by 4.22 percent in fiscal 2023-24 fiscal year, the lowest in four years, marking the second consecutive year of deceleration due to weak consumption and exports.

Over the last several years, Ahsan, a rickshaw puller in his 50s, has been eagerly waiting for relief from the high prices of food and other essentials. Days and months have passed, but his pursuit of a better living by escaping the curse of elevated inflation has remained a distant dream. 

“Steps taken by the government so far failed to bring down prices of essential commodities,” said CPD Executive Director Fahmida Khatun

Singapore has a responsibility to help Bangladesh retrieve the ill-gotten money that has found its way into the Singaporean shore.

For Bangladesh, it is no longer the question of whether the economy is destined for a hard landing or a glide to a flat state; rather the question now is how deep the descent will be.

The time for action is now.

Economic activities may slow down in the near term as the government has opted to initiate massive economic reform measures, the Bangladesh Bank (BB) said yesterday.

The interim government has not taken any of the measures recommended by the white paper on the state of the Bangladesh economy even after a month and a half of the report’s submission, said economists yesterday.

Consumer confidence in Bangladesh is at a low level, while investor confidence is negative both domestically and internationally, said a former president of the Metropolitan Chamber of Commerce and Industry (MCCI) yesterday.

The long-term problems in the economic sector were exacerbated and entrenched during the tenure of the Awami League regime, pushing many issues to the point of no return, said Prof Rehman Sobhan yesterday.

Bangladesh’s economy may grow 4.1 percent in FY25, the WB said in its latest Global Economic Prospects released Thursday

Rising rates are creating headwinds for at least 40 listed conglomerates

Listed companies across all sectors saw their profits fall by around 24 percent on an average year-on-year during the last January-September period, due mainly to an economic slowdown and widespread political turmoil, according to an unofficial estimate.

Will smaller rotis at roadside eateries return to their previous regular size next year? Will a Tk 500 note again fill up the shopping bag holding kitchen items? Or, will several lakh graduates, who have been poring over newspaper recruitment advertisements, finally get their jobs in 2025?

Bangladesh’s ongoing democratic transformation calls for reforms, a new constitution, and youth leadership.

Speakers say at annual ICMAB conference

Two years after Bangladesh turned to the International Monetary Fund (IMF) for a $4.7 billion bailout to address its worsening macroeconomic pressures, the nation stands at a crossroads.