Main Page «
Front Page «
Metro «
International «
Sports «
National «
Editorial «
Op-Ed «
Home «
Timeout «
Letters «

Archive «
Launch Supplement «
Special Supplements «

A government initiative to bring the freight business under a regulatory system through registration has remained stalled for the last four years, creating the opportunity for dishonest freight forwarders to launder money abroad and charge higher freight rates.
   Freight forwarders said though the government decided to bring the freight trade under licensing system in 2001 and ordered the National Board of Revenue to take necessary measurers in this regard, the revenue board has done nothing so far.
   The government also published a gazette on October 24, 2001, said sources.
   ‘Despite the formation of a nine-member committee and completion of necessary formalities, the NBR is delaying the procedure, which is giving money launderers the chance to continue their illegal activities,’ said a top executive of the International Freight Forwarders Association of Bangladesh.
   He also said they had met the NBR chairman last month but he had failed to specify when the regulatory body would be formed.
   ‘Absence of any regulatory body is not only depriving the government of a huge amount of revenue but has also increased the incidence of money laundering sharply,’ said the IFFAB executive.
   A vested quarter is involved in money laundering by ‘managing’ NBR officials through underhand dealings.
   He informed this correspondent that taking this opportunity, a huge number of dishonest traders including foreign ones was also indulging in illegal acts in the name of freight forwarding, which is tarnishing the image of the freight forwarders.
   ‘Recently the incidence of money laundering has increased among the foreign nationals, especially Sri Lankans,’ he added.
   IFFAB president Amirul Islam Chowdhury told New Age said that the NBR’s go-slow policy to implement the government’s order has frustrated the genuine freight forwarders, which will have a bad impact on the country’s freight business.
   ‘In absence of a licensing system more than 1,000 freight forwarders are doing business in the country, of whom only 225 have registered their names with the association,’ said Choudhury on Saturday, adding that the rest of the freight forwarding companies were involved in various illegal acts like money laundering and charging higher freight rates from exporters and importers.
   He put emphasised the need for bringing all the freight traders under the authorised association to check irregularities.
   The NBR’s chairman, Khairuzzaman Chowdhury, told New Age that though they have failed to bring the freight forwarders under a regulatory system so far, the process is underway.
   ‘We failed the deadline due to our concentration on the national budget for the fiscal year 2005-06, but the implementation process will be geared up after the budget is approved,’ said the NBR chairman on Saturday.
   When asked when the procedure would be completed, Khairuzzaman failed to specify the time.
   Earlier, the Ministry of Commerce had decided to register all the freight forwarders and as per the decision all freight forwarders should get approval from the NBR and Bangladesh Bank to run their business.

The government has finally appointed four private operators to develop and run the country’s five land ports on a build-operate-transfer (BOT) basis, official sources said.
   The land ports are Banglabandha in Panchagar, Hili and Birol in Dinajpur, Sonamasjid in Chapainawabganj and Bibir Bazar in Comilla.
   ‘Private operators have already been appointed and formal agreements will be signed shortly,’ Tajul Islam, superintendent engineer of the Land Port Authority, told the news agency.
   Panama Traders was awarded the contract for developing Sonamasjid and Hili land ports, while Banglabandha, Birol and Bibir Bazar land ports were contracted out to Erba, Dynamics Trade Syndicate and Shephered Textile BD Limited.
   Under the terms set by the government, the private companies will run the ports for a period of 25 years and pay the government fixed and variable royalties, which will be determined on the basis of the volume of trade through the land customs stations.
   The government will charge Tk 30 lakh and Tk 14.25 lakh as fixed royalty respectively from Sonamasjid and Hili.
   The private operators have to build required infrastructures at the ports, such as office building, port yard, warehouses and weigh machine, besides making security arrangements and installing other equipment needed to run the ports effectively, Tajul Islam said.
   Earlier in 2003, the government floated tenders inviting applications from private companies intending to develop and operate the land ports on BOT basis.
   For each land port, the winning bidder will be required to finance, procure, construct, and operate the port facilities for 25 years.

Export of woven garments has decreased by $ 82.7 million in first four months of the quota-free regime.
   Export volume of woven garments has fallen by seven per cent compared to that of the corresponding period in the last fiscal year.
   Export growth is lesser this year compared to that of last year. Till April, export growth was 2.3 per cent, which was 8.59 per cent in the same period of last year.
   The Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association president, Annisul Huq, told the agency that export growth of woven garments was higher in previous years but it is declining every month during quota-free regime.
   In such a state, the government should take measures for implementing SAARC and Asian cumulation for availing GSP facility in EU market, he said.
   As margin is reducing in case of woven garments export, it will have a negative impact on this sector, Huq said. But safeguard measures taken by the USA against China would play a positive role in such critical situation, he added.
   Woven garments command 70 per cent of total apparel exports in international arena, said the BGMEA president adding, ‘any sort of constriction on this sector will mark a long-term effect on overall economy of the country.’
   The Centre for Policy Dialogue research director, Mostafizur Rahman, said Bangladesh is facing competition with China in some categories. Due to China, average price of readymade garment is falling and Bangladesh is lagging behind in the race, he observed.
   Future of woven garments sector is depending on GSP value addition of EU, Rahman said. ‘If EU’s GSP of knit and woven garments is fixed, we will be in a better position,’ the economist told the news agency.
   Among the woven garments, only trousers are having an export growth in the first four months after global textile quotas expired on January 1. Export growth of trousers was 107 per cent in the last fiscal year.
   Entrepreneurs expect that trousers export will have 50 per cent contribution in the total export of this sector in current year. Share of trousers in total export volume in this sector was 13 per cent in 2003.
   Despite 21 per cent downfall in the last year, jacket export is also picking up in this year.
   The share of woven garments in the country’s total export revenues dropped to below 44 per cent this year from about 50 per cent two years back.
   Though the export trend of woven garments is declining between January and April after MFA phase out, it had witnessed 11 per cent growth in first six months of the current fiscal year.
   Woven garments export during post MFA

A workers’ rights forum on Monday demanded that the government should form a high-powered committee to investigate the Spectrum Garment factory collapse in April claiming 64 lives and suggest measures to stop recurrence of such accidents.
   ‘The committee would find out the reasons of the accident, identify the persons responsible for the incident and follow up the actions taken by the factory owners,’ said Roy Ramesh Chandra, general secretary of the Bangladesh National Council of Textile, Garment and Leather Workers, at a press conference.
   The national council, which plans financial aids for the workers who lost their jobs after the collapse, suggested creation of a welfare fund for the garment workers, which would be raised through contribution from government, owners and workers. ‘The proposed committee would supervise and manage the fund,’ the council leader said.
   The committee, represented by the government, trade unions and civil society, would examine structures of all multi-storeyed garment factories and supervise implementation of labour law in RMG units, it said.
   The council chairman Abul Bashar and leaders Badruddoza Nizam and ZM Kamrul Anam were also present at the press conference.

India raised retail petrol and diesel prices today by about 7 percent in some areas, its first rise since November, to bring them more in line with soaring crude prices and stem losses at state-run oil firms.
   China and other Asian nations have raised fuel prices in recent months but India, Asia’s fourth-largest economy, has dithered for weeks over whether to pass on higher energy costs to consumers, largely due to opposition from the ruling coalition’s communist allies.
   “We have increased petrol prices by 2.50 rupees and diesel by 2.00 rupees. The prices will be applicable from tomorrow,” Kamal Nath, commerce minister, told reporters after a cabinet meeting.

The Bangladesh Bank governor, Salehuddin Ahmed, has said the development of infrastructures is very important to ensure the country’s rapid socio-economic progress.
   He was speaking at the certificate giving ceremony of the eighth project finance course held in Dhaka on Sunday. The course was organised by the Infrastructure Development Company Limited.
   The central bank governor underscored the need for skilled manpower to implement the infrastructure development projects properly.
   With executive chairman of IDCOL M Fazlul Kabir Khan in the chair, the ceremony was also addressed by World Bank country director Christine I Wallich and vice-president of Khulna Power Company Limited Javed Iqbal.
   The IDCOL, a $110-million state-run company, has been financing infrastructure development projects, including installation of renewable energy systems in the country through mutual cooperation among public and private sectors and non- government organisations. It has been also working for developing skilled manpower for infrastructure development by organizing various training programmes.
   Salehuddin said there is no alternative to training to develop skilled manpower for implementation of projects as well as conducting feasibility study and preparing project concept papers.
   He regretted that the country is largely dependent on foreign consultants and experts for implementing infrastructure development projects even after three decades of its independence.
   Christine I Wallich said the WB is keen to patronise infrastructure development projects across the world including Bangladesh.
   Referring to the successful implementation of the Jumuna Multipurpose Bridge Project, she observed that the project has been contributing to rapid development of the country’s northern region and at the same time earning a huge revenue for the government.
   Later, the governor distributed certificates among the 28 successful participants. IDCOL official said so far a total of 248 officials from different government bodies, private sector institutions and NGOs have successfully completed the course.

Dubai Islamic Bank said on Sunday it plans to allow foreigners to own up to 15 per cent of its shares.
   A bank statement said its board also recommended a share split, but gave no further details. The bank said both issues will be discussed at a shareholders meeting but it gave no date.
   The ownership of DIB, the oldest Islamic bank in the world, has been restricted to nationals of the United Arab Emirates, like most other listed companies in the Gulf state.
   The bank reported a first-quarter net profit of 305 million dirhams ($83 million), up from 180 million dirhams a year earlier.
   DIB shares closed at 224.40 dirhams before Sunday's announcement, down from 227.60 on Saturday, compared to a year high of 246.00 dirhams on June 16 and a year low of 85.25 dirhams in February.
   Islamic banks do not charge or pay interest, considered usury by many Muslims. Instead they make regular payments on profits from approved investments.

The Hongkong and Shanghai Banking Corporation Ltd, Bangladesh signed a memorandum of understanding with Sanmar Properties Ltd in Chittagong recently, says a press release.
    Under the MoU, customers willing to purchase homes or apartments from Sanmar Properties will get the benefit of availing home loans from the HSBC with a reduced processing fee of 1 per cent of the loan amounts.
   Home loan customers of the HSBC will also get price discount on purchase of apartments from Sanmar Properties.
   Mamoon M Shah, manager (personal financial services) of the HSBC and Mufakkharul I Khasru, chief operating officer of Sanmar Properties, signed the MoU on behalf of their respective organisations.
   The signing ceremong held at the HSBC branch office in Chittagong was also attended, among others, by Abdullah Al Harun Chowdhury and Saleem Bin Saleh of Sanmar Properties and other executives of the HSBC.

The former DCCI vice-president, Ashraf Ibn Noor, stressed the need for proper knowledge on shipping procedures for export and import to facilitate international trade by any organisation, says a press release.
   He was speaking at the inaugural function of a training course on ‘shipping procedures for export and import’ organised by DCCI Business Institute in Dhaka on Sunday.
   No business organisation involved in export-import trade can achieve its desired target if it lacks proper planning and managerial ability, he pointed out.
   Md Hossain Ali, economic consultant of the Dhaka Chamber of Commerce and Industry and acting executive director of DBI, welcomed the participants and briefed on the activity of DBI.
   He also urged the participants to utilise the most up-to-date ICT facilities provided by the Knowledge Centre, an extended wing of the DBI.
   The joint secretary (project and training) and course coordinator, Hasanur Rahman Chowdhury, moderated the inaugural ceremony.
   Shamshad Begum, executive vice-president and principal of Dhaka Bank Training Institute, Dhaka Bank Ltd, SM Mahfuzul Huq, executive director of FIRC Shipping Ltd and Syed Musfiqur Rahman, second secretary (customs) of National Board of Revenue are the resource persons of the course..
   Sixteen people from different business organisations attended the training course.

China and Singapore's central banks discussed financial cooperation yesterday, but did not talk about the possibility of China adopting Singapore's currency model, a top official said.
   China has said it plans to move towards a more flexible currency system from its current regime that fixes the yuan near 8.28 per dollar, prompting market speculation it might adopt Singapore's trade-weighted model.
   'I was meeting the new managing director to review our cooperation in financial and economic areas,' Zhou Xiaochuan, governor of the People's Bank of China, said, referring to the head of the Singapore central bank.
   When asked if China was studying Singapore's currency model, Zhou told reporters: 'We didn't talk about that.'
   He held hour-long talks with Heng Swee Keat, the managing director of the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS), after an annual meeting of Asia-Pacific central bank governors on the Indonesian island of Bali.
   Analysts have said Singapore's model, which targets the Singapore dollar against a basket of trade-weighted currencies, could draw interest from China as a compromise between a fixed exchange rate and a floating currency.
   The composition of the Singapore basket is a secret, but economists say the dollar and dollar-bloc currencies make up the biggest proportion.
   'I think the size of the China- economy and the stage of development is different from Singapore,' Zhou said.
   'I think China is studying our reform, our way,' he said, adding the central bank would consider all international experiences.
   China's central bank has said it would speed up research on how to establish a flexible currency regime to avert outflows of capital as the country's rapidly accumulating foreign exchange reserves are invested overseas.
   Beijing has come under fire from trading partners, led by the United States, for keeping the yuan in a razor-thin trading band between 8.276 and 8.28 per dollar.
   Critics say the level is too low and gives Chinese exporters an unfair advantage in world markets.
   When asked about a time frame for a currency adjustment, Zhou said: 'We are conducting a very general study.'

Russia must rely more on good laws and less on state intervention if it is to develop its post- Soviet economy and avoid reform slipping into reverse, the OECD said in a scathing report published Monday.
   'The weakness, inefficiency and corruption of all branches of government are the most important obstacles to further progress in reforming Russia,' said the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) report, entitled 'Russia: building rules for the market'.
   The intergovernmental think-tank said there was evidence that Russia, 'a weak state with strong officials', was drifting away from rule-based government and back to meddling in the economy.
   'The Russian government ... must create a public administration that is able-and willing-to perform the role required of it in a functioning market economy,' it said.
   The report comes in the week when the Kremlin is hoping to renationalise a majority stake of Gazprom, the world's biggest gas firm and-in the OECD's view-one of the chief foot- draggers on the road to reforming Russia's economy.
   'There has been almost no progress in reforming the gas industry, possibly Russia's least reformed sector and undoubtedly one of its least efficient,' the OECD said, adding that the massive gas firm already acted as an arm of the state. 'Gazprom stands out, even in Russia's highly secretive corporate culture, for its exceptional opacity,' it said.
   The Kremlin says once it has control of Gazprom it will liberalise the firm's shares, allowing foreigners to hold them for the first time. Some analysts have said the liberalisation could be a prelude to wider reform of the Russian energy sector.

Japan's crude steel output hit a 30-year high of 10.04 million tonnes in May as demand from domestic auto makers and shipbuilders remained strong despite lower prices of basic steel products in the international market.
   The Japan Iron and Steel Federation said output in May rose 4.3 per cent over a year earlier, for a third consecutive monthly increase, reflecting continuing strong demand for high-grade steel sheet used by Japanese car makers and shipbuilders.
   'Demand for high-grade steel sheet remains strong. So far, we can't see any impact from a production boost by Chinese makers, which has eased the demand and supply balance in some product areas,' a spokesman at the trade body said.
   Output in May was the highest since August 1974, when Japan was logging economic growth of more than 10 per cent, compared with a 1.2 per cent expansion in January-March.
   Steel imports from China-mainly basic steel products used in construction sites-jumped 150 per cent in April over a year earlier, prompting Tokyo Steel Manufacturing Co.

More than half a million underage female domestic workers in Indonesia are at risk of potentially fatal sexual and physical abuse and have no legal protection, a leading rights group said on Monday.
   Human Rights Watch said about 640,000 girls as young as 12 were being made to work up to 18 hours a day, seven days a week, for employers, many of whom subjected them to constant physical and sexual threats.
   In a report released Monday, it said some female workers suffered wounds caused by beatings, cigarettes, hot iron burns and imprisonment. Other cases had even resulted in paralysis and death.
   The New York-based group urged the Indonesian government to amend its labor laws to afford female workers in the world's largest Muslim-populated country their basic right to decent working hours, regular breaks and a minimum wage.
   Indonesia has an estimated 2.6 million domestic workers, of which 688,132 or 34 per cent are children, Human Rights Watch said, quoting a 2003 International Labor Organization survey.
   Many of the girls came from poor and rural areas and were lured by neighbors, relatives and labor recruiters with false promises of high wages, easy work and education, the report said.
   'The Indonesian government has left child domestic workers at the complete mercy of their employers,' said Sahr Muhammed Ally, a researcher into children's issues for Human Rights Watch. 'The absence of legal protections or governmental oversight leaves child domestic workers vulnerable to extreme exploitation and abuse,' she said.
   The 74-page report offered testimonies from a score of underage female workers who experienced physical, sexual and psychological abuse committed by employers behind closed doors.
   Girls recounted tales of sexual harassment and of being raped by male employers or male visitors of their employers, the report said.
   'The Indonesian government must no longer turn a blind eye to such abuse, but should take affirmative steps to protect children from such worst forms of child labor,' said Ally.
   It said the departure of adults to work in foreign countries also contributed to the rise of underaged workers, with children left behind encouraged to take employment in Indonesian cities to help family incomes.
   Indonesia, which has the world's fourth-largest population, is a major supplier of migrant domestic workers to Middle Eastern, Southeast Asian and East Asian countries.
   Human Rights Watch said the government must 'strictly enforce the minimum age of 15 for all employment sectors', both for formal businesses and informal domestic employers.
   It also urged Jakarta to work with the International Labor Organisation to implement a program to eliminate 'the worst forms' of child domestic labor by a set deadline.
   The rights group's report was compiled based on a two-month research conducted in seven urban areas on the Indonesian islands of Java and Sumatra from November to December 2004.

China expects to double its burgeoning bilateral trade with Israel by 2008 from its current volume, estimated at $2.4 billion to $2.5 billion per annum, Chinese Foreign Minister Li Zhaoxing said on Sunday.
   'From today until 2008 ... our trade volume is expected to double (from) the size of today,' Li told reporters after meeting his Israeli counterpart Silvan Shalom in Jerusalem.
   Li's visit was overshadowed by a row between Israel and its US ally over Israeli arms exports to China, some of which the Pentagon fears could tilt the balance of power and make it hard to defend Taiwan, deemed a renegade province by Beijing.
   An Israeli Foreign Ministry spokesman put the 2004 trade volume with China at $2.4 billion, saying this did not include defence deals.
   Defence Ministry figures were not immediately available, but Israel's Channel Two television said Israel sells China some $2.5 bln of satellite technology and arms per annum.
   Earlier on Sunday, Shalom apologised to the United States over the export dispute,
   which prompted a reshuffle of top Israeli defence officials. Israeli media have speculated that Israel could drastically curb its arms sales to China.
   'If things were done that were not acceptable to the Americans then we are sorry but these things were done with the utmost innocence,' Shalom told Israel Radio in remarks that coincided with a visit by US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice. Li did not comment on the exports dispute.
   The Israeli Foreign Ministry spokesman said trade with China doubled between 2000 and 2004, making it one of the Jewish state's more lucrative trade partners.

The Fareast Islami Life Insurance Company Ltd declared 30 per cent dividend for the 2004 at its 5th annual general meeting held in Dhaka recently, says a press release.
   The chairman of the company, Jahurul Islam Chowdhury, presided over the meeting arranged at Dhaka Sheraton Hotel.
   Md Ali Hossain, managing director of the company, among others, was present on the occasion.
   The meeting approved directors’ report, balance sheet and auditors’ report of the company for 2004.

Oil prices soared above $59 a barrel to a record high on Monday, extending last week’s surge as a threat against Western consulates in OPEC-member Nigeria jolted traders already worried about tight supplies.
   Oil climbed more than 9 per cent last week, or nearly $5, drawing buying interest from trend-following hedge funds as prices topped the previous early April high.
   US light crude for July delivery hit a front-month record $59.23 per barrel, before paring gains to stand up 58 cents at $59.05 at 1112 GMT.
   Contracts for delivery in the last four months of the year, when oil demand seasonally picks up in the northern hemisphere, all traded above $60.
   London Brent crude for August climbed 59 cents to $58.35 a barrel, having hit a fresh front-month peak of $58.58.
   Market anxiety over oil exports from producer nations resurfaced on Friday after the United States, Britain and Germany closed their consulates in Nigeria’s largest city Lagos due to a threat from foreign Islamic militants.
   The US reopened its consulate on Monday. A diplomatic source said that while the closure had averted the threat, further closures could not be ruled out.
   ‘The market continues to suspect there might be supply disruptions resulting from these issues in Nigeria,’ said Daniel Hynes, resource analyst at ANZ Institutional Banking.
   ‘When you get that occurring during an extremely tight period of strong demand, then prices naturally are going to react very strongly.’
   Nigeria is the world’s eighth largest oil exporter and supplier of about 10 per cent of US crude imports.
   An industry survey in Boston last week showed more than half the respondents considered ‘political upheaval in a strategic country’ as the most likely cause for disruption to oil supply.
   In Iran, the world’s fourth biggest producer, hard-liner Mahmoud Ahmadinejad made a surprisingly strong showing in presidential elections, pitting him against pragmatic cleric and former president Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani in Friday’s run-off.
   Economists are concerned foreign investors may flee if Ahmadinejad were to win the presidency.
   Below-average US inventories of distillates—which includes diesel, heating oil and jet fuel—coupled with robust consumption has heightened worries that refiners will not be able to keep up with demand in the second half of the year.
   Prices are up more than 35 per cent since January as speculative funds bet strong global economic growth will strain supplies.
   US distillate demand over the past four weeks was 6.5 per cent higher than a year earlier, more than twice the growth in gasoline, while Chinese demand should pick up soon as business owners fire up diesel-fueled generators to overcome a power crunch on regional grids.
   The Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) last week raised its production ceiling by 500,000 bpd and pledged to put another 500,000 bpd on the market soon if prices remained high, but officials admitted it was unlikely to help.
   ‘The fundamental problems with the conditions of the market are related to refinery capacity,’ Iran’s OPEC governor Hossein Kazempour Ardebili said on Saturday.
   ‘Because the demand for jet fuel and gasoline has been spurred by the travel season, increasing the OPEC ceiling will not solve any problems.’

Six African heads of state meeting in the Nigerian capital Sunday called on next month’s G8 summit in Scotland to cancel the debt of all African countries.
   In a statement the leaders commended the recent decision of finance ministers of the world’s most industrialised nations to cancel the debt of 18, mostly African nations, as ‘progress’ and called ‘for steps to be taken to include all African countries’.
   Nigerian President Olusegun Obasanjo, whose country holds the current rotating presidency of the African Union, chaired the meeting, which was also attended by presidents Abdelaziz Bouteflika of Algeria, John Kufuor of Ghana, Paul Kagame of Rwanda, Ahmad Tejan Kabbah of Sierra Leone and Thabo Mbeki of South Africa.
   Mozambique Prime Minister Luisa Diogo was also present at the meeting to consider a progress report on the UN Millennium Development Goals ahead of next month’s G8 summit in Scotland, while Benin, Egypt and Senegal were also represented.
   The Group of Eight industrialised countries earlier in June struck a landmark deal to write off immediately all multilateral debt owed by 18 countries, 14 of them in Africa, amounting to 40 billion dollars (33 billion euros).
   The debt relief decision by Britain, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Russia and the United States concerns money owed to the World Bank, International Monetary Fund and African Development Bank.
   Debt relief has assumed a higher profile as the world struggles to meet the UN’s Millennium Development Goals calling for the proportion of the world’s population living on less than a dollar a day to be halved by 2015.
   It is also a vital part of a broad strategy to wipe away chronic poverty in Africa which British Prime Minister Tony Blair is making a centrepiece of the G8 summit at Gleneagles, Scotland on July 6-8. Britain is chairing the informal group of the world’s richest nations this year.
   In their statement the African leaders also asked for more funding for the African Union’s peace and security programme and for development assistance to double over three years and to continue to rise so Africa can meet its millennium goals.
   They also called for the creation of a 20 billion dollar development fund, managed by the African Development Bank (ADB), to finance projects in the areas of infrastructure, health, education, water, sanitation and agriculture, within the framework of the ambitious programme for African development known as NEPAD.
   The Abuja meeting is the third such session of the African Peer Review Mechanism (APRM), a voluntary programme under which African countries are reviewed by other countries on issues such as good governance and public financial accountability.
   Nigeria’s Obasanjo said the meeting had considered Ghana and Rwanda.
   ‘In the case of the two countries that we considered today, we are generally satisfied with the reports,’ he told reporters.
   ‘The next two countries after Ghana and Rwanda are Mauritius and Kenya to be followed by Algeria and Nigeria.’
   In an opening address, Obasanjo had told the gathering: ‘No matter what Afro- pessimists and professional cynics might proclaim, this is progress, and it constitutes living proof of our determination and commitment to change the status quo for the better.
   The APRM groups 23 of Africa’s 53 countries that have subscribed to the peer review principle.

It was tradition in Russell Rich’s family that every Friday night his dad would take the kids to McDonald’s.
   Rich recalls gazing through the window of the local old-style McDonald’s — the kind with the big golden arches and no indoor seating — and dreaming of flipping burgers like the workers inside.
   He started working the cash register at age 13 and put in 21 years with the hamburger giant, eventually becoming a corporate manager. Then, he contends, he was pressured to resign in 1997 because he has AIDS.
   Left without health insurance, Rich said he nearly died from the illness. In 1999, he became so sick and despondent that he sat in his garage with the car running. He began to feel the sting of the carbon monoxide, then got out of the car. ‘I decided I wasn’t going to let McDonald’s do this to me,’ he said.
   Rich, 41, of Akron, won a $5 million verdict in his discrimination case against the burger chain in 2001. But the verdict was overturned after an appeals court ruled that McDonald’s Corp. did not receive a fair trial. A new trial was to start Monday in Cleveland.
   McDonald’s spokesman William Whitman said in a statement Friday that the corporation has a zero-tolerance policy prohibiting any form of discrimination.
   ‘Mr. Rich’s allegations against McDonald’s are simply not supported by the facts,’ Whitman said. ‘We firmly believe, once we have an opportunity to present the facts in court, we will show that Mr. Rich’s case against McDonald’s is completely without merit.’
   Because he could not afford medication, Rich suffered four life-threatening illnesses before his case went to trial the first time. He was so weak in late 1999 that friends visited him to say goodbye.
   Then his doctor advised him to get involved with a clinical trial for the drug Fuzeon, which Rich credits with saving his life. He has since become a spokesman for Roche Group, the drug’s maker.

The euro fell toward last week’s nine-month low versus the dollar on Monday after European Union leaders failed at the weekend to agree on a long-term budget, plunging the bloc into deeper crisis.
   The euro fell as low as $1.2182 in Asian trade before recovering to $1.2227 by 0950 GMT, still down around more than half a per cent on the day.
   The EU leaders extended the deadline for ratifying a proposed constitution two weeks after French and Dutch voters rejected it—which at the time triggered a wave of euro selling.
   The summit breakdown, which could threaten the future of political and monetary integration in the 25-nation bloc, pushed the euro down by as much as one cent in Asia, halving gains made on Friday following a record US current account deficit.
   ‘They didn’t get an agreement over the weekend so the euro opened a lot lower,’ said Lee Ferridge, senior proprietary trader at Rabobank.
   ‘With the ‘no’ votes, the budget problems and the growth issues—it will drift lower this week,’ he added.
   The euro is facing a key technical and option-related support at $1.20, a break of which could unleash a flood of further euro selling.
   The dollar was up 0.2 per cent on the day at 108.79 yen.
   Euro zone policymakers welcome the euro’s fall of nearly 10 per cent this year as it helps exports, and are pressuring the European Central Bank to cut interest rates to kickstart the sluggish economy.
   Calls for lower rates in the euro zone contrast with the rising rates in the United States, a factor underpinning dollar gains as investors pursue better returns.
   Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis President Gary Stern sees no reason for the Federal Reserve to stop raising interest rates now as the economy expands at a desirable pace, Japan’s Nihon Keizai Shimbun newspaper reported on Monday.
   French Prime Minister Dominique de Villepin said on Saturday the euro-dollar exchange rate was now more realistic and should not be allowed to create handicaps to competitiveness.
   Villepin also said euro zone finance ministers should discuss foreign exchange policy with the ECB and European monetary policy should integrate policy on exchange rates better.
   His remarks echoed comments last week from Luxembourg Prime Minister Jean-Claude Juncker, the chairman of the 12-nation eurogroup, who called for euro zone finance ministers to be more forceful in expressing their views to the ECB.
   ‘In terms of general stance they prefer the euro to be lower than higher. But the euro is in line with most estimates of fair value in terms of long-term competitiveness — $1.15-20 or thereabouts,’ Adam Cole, senior currency strategist at RBC Capital Markets.
   Elsewhere, the semi-official China Business News said China’s foreign exchange reserves, the world’s second largest, rose $81.1 billion in the first five months of 2005 to $691 billion.
   China buys almost all foreign currency that comes into the country to keep the yuan pegged near 8.28 to the dollar.

India’s cabinet gave the go-ahead Monday for a landmark trade deal with Singapore that is expected to accelerate the flow of foreign direct investment into the South Asian nation.
   ‘This is India’s first comprehensive economic cooperation agreement with any country and will provide numerous direct and fringe benefits,’ Indian Trade Minister Kamal Nath told a press conference.
   The Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement encompasses accords on trade of goods and services, investment protection and avoidance of double taxation.
   The cabinet clearance paves the way for Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong to sign the accord on June 29 when he visits India.
   ‘Singapore will offer all imports from India at zero duty which is expected to help us develop a supply chain to the huge markets of Asia as Singapore is a known trading hub.’ Nath said.
   For its part, India will cut tariffs on imports from Singapore by 80 per cent after the pact is signed, gradually reducing them to zero over a five-year period.
   ‘By August 1, we will scrap customs duties on 506 items from Singapore, and then work towards a phased elimination and reduction of duties on over 4,000 items up to 2009,’ said Nath.
   The agreement aims to ease barriers for Singaporean firms to invest in India’s fast-growing economy and provide greater access for Indian professionals to Singapore’s services industries.
   ‘India and Singapore will ease visa regulations to make it easier for professionals from 127 fields to travel on work to each other’s countries,’ said Nath. ‘The visas will be based on reciprocity,’ he added.

French President Jacques Chirac on Monday urged the world’s richest nations to consider a tax on international air tickets to fund the fights against AIDS and poverty in Africa.
   Speaking at a Paris conference on micro-finance, Chirac said France and Germany would be pushing for the measure at a G8 summit to take place July 6-8 in Gleneagles, Scotland.
   ‘It’s at Gleneagles that the success or failure of the United Nations summit on realising the Millennium goals will be decided,’ he said, referring to a UN initiative to reduce global poverty.
   While he hailed the June agreement by creditor nations to cancel the multilateral debt of the world’s poorest 18 countries, he said ‘that is not enough’.
   ‘That is why Germany and France are proposing the G8 support the launch of the first international solidarity levy on plane tickets to finance the fight against AIDS and big pandemics,’ he said.
   The European Union last week approved the idea of a small tax on domestic flights within Europe to raise at least 560 million euros ($680 million) a year for development.

Zambia expects to receive $2.5 billion in debt forgiveness after the G8 nations announced a 100 percent debt write-off for it and 17 other poor countries last week, Finance Minister Ng’andu Magande said yesterday.
   He said the cancellation of $2.5 billion debts owed to the International Monetary Fund, the World Bank and the Africa Development Bank would be in addition to $4 billion debt forgiveness the country received in April.
   ‘According to our calculations, the 100 percent debt to be paid for us to the IMF, the World Bank and Africa Development Bank by tax payers of the G8 countries will translate to $2.5 billion,’ the minister told a public meeting in Lusaka.

ACE Aviation Holdings Inc unit Air Canada said late on Saturday that it canceled a $6 billion order for 32 jets from Boeing Co, after the airline’s pilots rejected an agreement on costs related to the jet purchase.
   ‘The company accepts the pilots’ decision and has notified Boeing of the order cancellation,’ Air Canada said in a statement.
   The April 25 agreement with Boeing for 18 of its 777 jets and 14 of its 787 Dreamliners was subject to the Air Canada pilots’ union ratifying an agreement on costs and other matters related to use of the jets.
   The airline had reached a tentative agreement with the pilots earlier this month.
   Air Canada said it was disappointed by the cancellation, for which it is not subject to a penalty from Boeing.

The Nitol Insurance Company Limited gets clearance from the Securities and Exchange Commission to float initial public offering in the market.
   As part of the SEC requirement, the company signed an agreement with the Central Depository Bangladesh Limited on Monday, where Humayun K Khandaker, vice-chairman, Shamsuddin Ahmed, managing director, Shah Alam, general manager and company secretary, Nitol Insurance Company Ltd. were present, says a press release.
   The CDBL managing director M H Samad and executive Shahidul Islam were also present.

Indian shares closed at a record high Monday, with the benchmark index crossing 7,000 points in intraday trade, buoyed by the end of a family battle for ownership of Reliance group companies, dealers said.
   The Mumbai stock exchange's 30-share Sensex gained 1.13 per cent or 78.03 points to close at a new high of 6,984.55, after hitting an intra-day high of 7,001.55.
   Shares worth 32.1 billion rupees (735 million dollars) were traded on the exchange as 653 stocks closed positive and 1,840 ended down.
   Official data showed that more than 50 per cent of total volume traded on the Mumbai stock exchange was in Reliance group companies.
   "It was a historic day Monday as euphoric investors aggressively bought Reliance Industries and other group shares, taking the broad market to a new trading zone," said Prakash Lala, managing director at Centaur Capital Market.
   The index's rise came on the back of a weekend settlement by the Ambani brothers, Mukesh and Anil, of their seven-month row over control of the 23-billion-dollar Reliance group, dealers said.
   The deal divided control of the companies between the two siblings, with Mukesh keeping control of oil, gas and petrochemicals businesses of Reliance Industries, the group's historic core, and Indian Petrochemicals Corp.
   Anil, 46, gets control of the so-called "new Reliance"-Reliance Energy, one of India's biggest power utility firms, Reliance Infocomm, the telecom market leader, and Reliance Capital, the group's financial services arm.
   Group flagship Reliance Industries, which has the second largest weighting on the Sensex, closed at a new high of 630.40, up 4.92 per cent or 29.55 rupees from Friday's close.

EGM
   The Central Insurance company has informed that it will hold an extra general meting on July 23 at the Sonargaon Hotel to amend the company's Memorandum and Articles of Association.
   
   Transaction of sponsors’ shares
   Syed Manzur Elahi, one of the directors of the Mutual Trust Bank, has reported his intention to sell 28,800 bonus shares of the bank while MA Majed, another sponsor director of the bank, has reported his intention to buy 28,800 shares of the bank at prevailing market price through stock exchange within next 30 working days. Md Fazlur Rahman, father of sponsor Reshadur Rahman of the Dhaka Bank, has reported his intention to sell 23,000 shares out of his holdings of 69,608 shares at prevailing market price through stock exchange within next 30 working days. Mizanur Rahman Bhuiyan, one of the sponsors of the Prime Bank, has reported his intention to sell 50,000 shares of the bank while Razia Rahman, one of the directors of the bank, has reported her intention to buy 50,000 shares of the bank at prevailing market price through Stock Exchange within next 30 working days. Mohd Selim, one of the sponsor directors of the Global Insurance company, has reported his intention to buy 10,000 shares of the company at prevailing market price through stock exchange within next 30 working days.
   
   Withdrawal of authorised representatives
   MR company, DSE member No 9, has withdrawn two of its authorized representatives --Md Nuruzzaman and ABM Tofael Akhter Reza with immediate effect.

Three NBFIs to go public soon
Three non banking financial institutions are expected to go public soon by making initial public offering, official sources said on Monday. The NBFIs are the Asia Pacific Insurance Ltd., Prime Finance & Investment Ltd. and the Islamic Finance Ltd. They are expected to get the nod of the Securities and Exchange Commission at its 219th meeting, scheduled for Tuesday. The Asia Pacific Insurance with a paid up capital of Tk 60 million will float shares worth Tk 150 million for the public. With a paid up capital of Tk 180 million, the Prime Finance and Investment Ltd. will float shares worth Tk 50 million. The Islamic Finance Ltd., with a paid up capital of Tk 147 million, will float shares worth Tk 100 million, sources at the SEC said.
— BDNEWS

Italy to simplify visa procedures
The Italian ambassador, Pietro Ballero said on Monday that his government is contemplating to simplify visa procedures for Bangladeshi businessmen. He said this at the inaugural function of ‘catalogue show’ of Italian products held at the audiorium of the Chittagong Chamber of Commerce and Industry. The Indian deputy high commissioner in Chittagong, Ashok Das, the CCCI president Saifuzzaman Chowdhury and the Italian honourary consul in Chittagong, Mirza Salman Ispahani, among others, spoke at the function. In his speech, the Italian envoy said at present genuine businessmen of Bangladesh are not facing much hassles in getting visas. Italian government wants to make the process more easier, he added. Referring to the relations between Bangladesh and Italy, he said that Italian government is interested to extend more cooperation in Bangladesh’s socio-economic development. The ‘catalogue show’ will conclude on Tuesday. Italian machineries, tiles, medical equipments and textile products are being showcases in the ‘catalogue show’.
— BDNEWS

Beggars want low cost lending
Beggars in the Dhaka city want to be self employed with the help of very small loans with low interests and zero collateral, revealed a survey by four young economists.The beggars–both male and female) opined that they could give up this socially hated profession if they are provided loan ranging between Tk 2000 and Tk 5000 along with some vocational training. The survey findings titled ‘They Seem Healthy, Why Do They Beg?’ was presented by Asmar Osman on behalf of his group in the first working session in the annual economic conference of the young economist forum at the North-South University in Dhaka. The session was presided over by Professor M. Ali RashidOsman along with three of his class mates Al Meraz Ahmed, Kazi Tasbirul Zannat Kheya and Sultana Razia carried out the survey and prepared the paper. They are the students of Economics Department of University of Dhaka.
— New Age Desk

UK buyer urged to import more RMG products
The Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association Monday urged a British buyer, Matalan Holdings, to increase import of readymade garments from Bangladesh. The BGMEA president, Anisul Huq, made the appeal to visiting chairman of the company, John Hargreaves, during a meeting held here. Matalan Holdings imported readymade garments worth $ 60 million from Bangladesh last year. John Hargreaves expressed his satisfaction over the quality of Bangladeshi RMG products and said Bangladesh is one of the best garment manufacturing countries. He, however, felt that Bangladesh has to be more competitive in production efficiency and price fixing. He also stressed the need for development of gas, electricity and infrastructure development to eep Bangladesh’s position in international market. The BGMEA chief requested John Hargreaves to extend technical support for the BGMEA Fashion Institute.
— UNB

Reverse repo
auction held
The reverse repo auction for commercial banks and financial institutions was held at the Bangladesh Bank on Monday. Nine bids of 1-day tenor amounting to Tk 50.00 crore were received and accepted, said a the Bangladesh Bank release. The rate of interest against the accepted bids was 4.50 per cent per annum.
— UNB

CSE closes lower
Trading at Chittagong Stock Exchange (CSE) closed lower Monday with the losing issues outnumbering the gaining ones. The CSE All Share Price Index shed by 0.36 per cent to close at 3342.66 points from 3354.64 points on Sunday, the previous trading day. The CSE-30 Index also decreased by 0.35 per cent to close at 3138.45 points from Sunday’s 3149.49 points. A total of 66 issues were traded Monday. Of them, 11 gained, 46 declined and nine remained unchanged. Some 498,727 shares and debentures worth Tk 2.78 crore changed hands against 3430,162 shares valued at Tk 7.04 crore on the previous trading day.
— UNB

Kathmandu for direct bus service with Dhaka
Nepal has proposed direct bus service with Bangladesh and the two countries are now planning to raise the proposal with India as a tripartite matter to facilitate people-to-people contact in the region. Official sources in the Ministry of Communications Dhaka Monday confirmed the Nepalese proposal for direct bus link saying that it has been discussed at official levels and the government is considering it. Sources in the Nepalese capital told BSS recently that India had also proposed transit facility through Nepal to China for direct trade access to which it has a huge bilateral business. The proposal has given new hopes to the moribund Nepalese economy though it may take years for such a project to take physical shape, the sources
said.
— BSS