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The country’s exports in eight months of the current fiscal grew by 21 per cent to $8 billion, propelled by good performance in the readymade garment and frozen food sectors.
   According to the July-February data of 2006-07 released by the Export Promotion Bureau on Sunday, total export earnings stood at $8,024 million crossing the target of $7,970 million. The earning of the same period in the previous fiscal was $6,624 million.
   The export promotion officials said the steady success came on the back of impressive performances of woven garments, frozen foods, home textiles and leather products while handicrafts and ceramic products also performed well.
   ‘Major products – woven garments, frozen foods, jute goods, home textiles and leather products continued their good performances leading the steady uptrend in exports,’ a senior official of the bureau said.
   The readymade garment sector accounted for 76 per cent of the total export earnings and saw 23 per cent growth, on average, to $6,094 million in the period.
   Earnings of the woven garment segment grew by 19 per cent to $3,114 million crossing the target of the period by more than five per cent. Knitwear exports surged by 26 per cent to $2,980 million but the product missed its target by nearly four per cent.
   The growth for home textiles was 68 per cent to $171 million in the period.
   The EPB’s report shows that earnings from frozen foods, the second biggest export earner, grew by about 18 per cent to $316 million.
   Footwear exports grew by 31 per cent to $89 million, as exporters said Bangladeshi shoes were reaping little benefits after European Union months back, embargoed antidumping duty on some categories of leather shoes from China and Vietnam.
   Finished leather earned $173 million, vegetables $21 million, marking some growth year-on-year but trailing behind their respective targets.
   Jute manufactures earned $265, raw jute $72 million, bicycles $55 million, textile fabrics $27 million, pharmaceuticals $18 million and tea only $3 million – all posted negative growths compared to the same period last year.
   Export of manufactured products, responsible for more than 90 per cent of export earnings, registered an increase of 22 per cent in terms of volume and about 0.05 per cent in terms of value.
   In February alone, exports grew by about 19 per cent to $979 million while in January exports amounted to $816 million.
   Exporters earned $10.5 billion, in fiscal year 2005-06, registering about 22 per cent growth over the previous year. For the current fiscal, target has been set at $12.5 billion projecting 19 per cent growth.

The Securities and Exchange Commission on Sunday penalised MN Islam and Company, a chartered accountant firm, for issuing false and fabricated financial statements of a listed company.
   An official of the SEC said it was the first time in the commission’s history that an audit firm was penalised.
   The SEC ordered the partner of MN Islam and Company, Mohammad Nurul Islam, FCA, to submit Tk 1 lakh to the commission within 15 days of issuance of the order. The regulatory body also fined the managing director of Rose Heaven Ball Pen Ltd, Shafiqur Rahman Chowdhury, Tk 1 lakh in the same case. The SEC order said he had to submit the penalty money to the commission within the 15 days of the issuance of the order.
   The SEC sources said Rose Heaven Ball Pen, a listed company, appointed MN Islam and Company to audit the company’s accounts for the year ended on June 30, 2004.
   On December 20, 2004, the audit firm issued the company’s financial statements that stated, among others, the audited reports of the company was prepared in line with BAS and the true condition of the company was reflected in the reports.
   The commission sources said the firm in the audit reports and statements did not mention any data or statement that the company had classified loan to Exim Bank.
   The SEC came to know from a circular published in a news paper that Rose Heaven Ball Pen owed classified loans with interest of Tk 1,91,20,622.31 to Exim Bank up to May 22, 2005 and a tender was floated to sell off the property mortgaged to the bank, the sources added.
   ‘It seemed from the circular that the issuer failed to submit a true and fair financial statements of the company for the year ended on June 30, 2004 for not disclosing classified loans and MN Islam and Company, chartered accountants, failed to publish a true report,’ said the SEC order.
   The commission sources said as per rules, the SEC issued show-cause cum hearing notices to the audit firm and the listed company but both the audit firm and the listed company failed to attend the hearings and to give explanations in this connection.
   The order said the commission thought that the issuer company and the audit firm should be penalised for maintaining discipline and transparency of the capital market and for the interest of public.

Chittagong Stock Exchange has urged the government for offloading its shares in various companies and institutions to help augment the depth of the capital market so that it can develop as an alternative source of funds for the private sector.
   Mobilising funds from local sources would help industrialisation and development, reducing the dependency on foreign funds, a delegation of CSE argued Sunday during a meeting with finance adviser AB Mirza Azizul Islam.
   The delegation, led by president of the port city bourse, MKM Mohiuddin, raised a 12-point charter of demands, including development of bond market and channelling
   pension and other funds and investment by non-resident Bangladeshis, for further development of the country’s capital market.
   In response, Mirza Aziz, a former chairman of the Securities and Exchange Commission, suggested the stock exchange leaders to persuade different companies to float shares with the stock exchanges for making the capital market more vibrant in the coming days.
   The delegation which also included economics professor Abu Ahmed, a director of CSE, called upon the adviser to help implement book building process for initial public offering as soon as possible.
    ‘We must introduce derivative products in Bangladesh capital market slowly and gradually to bring dynamism and create opportunities for the investors which in turn will help entrepreneurs and spur industrialisation,’ the delegation said in their written submission.
   The CSE team suggested that some steps such as minimising the size of each lot from Tk 100,000 to Tk 10,000 should be considered to encourage the investors. It also recommended waiver of 10 per cent income tax on coupon rate to attract individual investors to the bond market.
   The delegation urged the government to allow portions of pension, gratuity and provident funds to be invested in the capital market. Currently, such funds of the government remain only in paper and their disbursements are adjusted with the national budgets every year.
   The stock exchange leaders suggested that tax rate on dividend income should not be more than 10 per cent and also income tax on interest earnings on bank deposits including on fixed deposits should not be more than 10 per cent. Tax rate between listed and non-listed companies should be at least 15 per cent so that more companies feel encouraged to get listed, they added.
   The delegation pointed out that multi-metering system introduced by the Bangladesh Telegraph and Telephone Board is a handicap for the stock exchange brokers as the system enhanced their costs for staying connected day long with wide area network system.
   They also demanded market-friendly rules and regulations, constitution of a securities training institute, allotment of a piece of land for CSE tower and introduction of the weekly holiday on Sunday.

The furor surrounding World Bank president Paul Wolfowitz exposes the need for overdue reform of the six-decade-old development lender itself, according to experts.
   ‘It’s as much a crisis of governance as a crisis of leadership,’ said Dennis de Tray, vice president of the Center for Global Development in Washington, who has worked at both the bank and the International Monetary Fund.
   ‘One can only hope that the very real governance and leadership crisis that recent events have generated at the World Bank will bring to the surface how fragile the current governance structure is, and hence set forth an international dialogue on these issues,’ he said.
   Questions about the World Bank’s relevance are being raised, including whether the post-war settlement under which the bank is led by an American and the IMF by a European is past its sell-by date.
   ‘If the international community is interested in seeing the bank modernize and move into the 21st century, it’s going to have a presidential selection process that is also 21st century,’ de Tray said.
   European governments have been pressing hardest for Wolfowitz to bow out over the controversy surrounding his Libyan-born girlfriend, Shaha Riza, who on his direction was given a generous pay deal and guaranteed promotions when she was reassigned from the bank to the US State Department in 2005.
   On Friday, bank directors broadened their inquiry into the Riza affair and promised ‘to deal with the situation urgently, effectively and in an orderly manner.’
   But for one expert close to the bank, the Europeans have only themselves to blame, after they swallowed their doubts over the US government’s nomination of the former Pentagon deputy chief to take over the bank two years ago.
   ‘They stood aside when he was nominated as if somehow he had completely changed,’ the expert said on condition of anonymity.

India’s rupee is showing new muscle as it scales nine-year highs against the dollar, alarming exporters who sell most of their goods to the United States.
   India’s Federation of Indian Export Organisations says the appreciation of the rupee has ‘severely eroded the profitability of exporters.’
   The partially convertible rupee has risen by around 11 per cent against the dollar since last July, helped by inflows from investors eager to invest in India’s booming economy.
   ‘Its appreciation reflects the underlying strength of the Indian economy and, of course, (broad-based) dollar weakness,’ said Deepak Lalwani, director at London-based Astaire Securities.
   But until lately, dealers say, the central bank had been intervening by selling rupees to make sure the Indian currency does not rise too quickly, and to keep a lid on export prices.
   Now though, market players say, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has eased off from intervention as it seeks to wrestle down inflation in Asia’s fourth-largest economy, which is growing by around nine per cent.
   ‘The bank has its eye firmly on (capping) inflation,’ said D.K. Joshi, principal economist at Indian credit rating agency Crisil.
   Letting the rupee rise has made imports less expensive, cushioning the impact of strong fuel prices for India, which relies heavily on imported oil which is priced in dollars.
   By not selling rupees to buy dollars, the bank also has not added to rampant money supply growth which has been helping fuelling inflation.
   After dipping briefly this month, Indian inflation crossed six per cent again last Friday to hit 6.09 per cent, despite a slew of monetary tightening measures.
   Inflation now is more than half a point above the central Reserve Bank’s ceiling of 5.5 per cent.
   Economists expect the rupee’s firmness to continue at least as long as inflation remains above target.
   ‘We expect the rupee to benefit from both rising interest rates and the shift in policy focus of the RBI solely toward inflation control,’ said Goldman Sachs in a research note.
   The rupee’s strength is a novel experience for Indians more accustomed to a currency that a few years ago only seemed to lose ground.
   ‘Until about three or four years ago, on average you would factor in about a five per cent annual deprecation,’ noted Lalwani.
   The rupee finished the day on Friday at 41.99 to the dollar. It has notched up most of its gains since the beginning of March, when figures indicate the Reserve Bank was intervening less in the market.
   In 2002, a dollar bought over 49 rupees. Now some economists are eyeing a 12-month target of around 41 rupees to the dollar.
   The rupee has been gathering strength as the world started talking about India as an emerging economic powerhouse.
   Now India is sitting on more than 200 billion dollars in foreign reserves.
   The sum is a far cry from 16 years ago, when reserves were down to just 975 million dollars, and India had to pledge part of its gold reserves as collateral and promise to free up its economy to access funds from world lending bodies to avoid default.
   Foreign direct investment nearly tripled in the past financial year to 16 billion dollars from 5.5 billion a year earlier, and that isn’t counting the billions of dollars which flowed into the share market.
   But the rupee’s rise is hurting exporters.
   ‘We will have a discussion with the exporters to find a way out of it,’ said Commerce Minister Kamal Nath last week, warning that the stronger currency could have ‘a serious impact’ on the country’s balance of payments.
   Despite the stronger currency, the government forecast a 28 per cent rise in merchandise exports to 160 billion dollars in the financial year that ends next March, and said the target would have been higher if the rupee had been weaker.
   The red-hot outsourcing business, which earns most of its profits in US dollars, has especially been feeling the pinch after getting used to fat earnings margins. The sector now is having to look at new ways to be competitive to offset the rupee’s gains.
   While the four top IT service providers, whose annual turnover crossed the 10-billion mark in the 2007 financial year, have been upbeat about prospects, analysts say rupee gains could reduce margins by about 150 basis points.
   The currency’s outlook is ‘a major factor in the forward growth of these companies,’ said Harit Shah, analyst at Mumbai’s Angel Broking.

Stocks lost Sunday and turnover on the Dhaka Stock Exchange dropped to Tk 32.76 crore, lowest in three months, amid dull trading.
   The general index of the DSE lost 16.20 points or 0.96 per to close at 1674.12, while the blue chips index, DSE20, shed 12.25 points or 0.92 per cent to close at 1325.46.
   Chittagong Stock Exchange’s selective categories index lost 25.79 points or 0.97 per cent to close at 2634.50, while the blue chips index, CSE30, shed 37.06 points or 1.06 per cent to close at 3443.51.
   A stock broker said low confidence pushed the investors to offload their holdings.
   Most of the securities finished down on Sunday. Of the total 183 issues traded on the DSE, 119 declined, 42 advanced and 22 remained unchanged.
   Of the total 95 issues traded on the CSE, 69 declined, 23 advanced and three remained unchanged.
   The CSE turnover decreased to Tk 6.98 crore from the Thursday’s Tk 8.69 crore.

Regular interaction and proper coordination between exporters and trade negotiators can help the country in global trade bargains especially that take place at the World Trade Organisation, ambassador Toufiq Ali Sunday said.
   ‘Regular interaction between negotiators and and the exporters is essential for protecting interests of the country in global trade forums especially at the WTO,’ he said at a discussion with knitwear exporters held at the office of the Bangladesh Knitwear Manufacturers and Exporters Association.
   Ambassador Ali, who is country’s permanent representative to the UN and international organisations in Geneva, detailed the functions of WTO forums.
   He opined that as Bangladesh’s exports expanding rapidly, domestic and international trade related research and analysis should be strengthened.
   Market access, tariffs, antidumping duties and many other related issues are important for local exporters, he said, urging local businesses to inform their views to the Bangladesh Mission in Geneva.

The next great success will come from Asia, Microsoft chairman Bill Gates has said, expressing confidence in the rise of the continent in software sector.
   Sixty per cent of the people in the United States said the next success would come from Asia, Gates said, citing a survey done in America on ‘where will the next big success and where the next Bill Gates come from’.
   That’s true as it’s well recognised that the investment and changes here are leading to very innovative work, Gates said at the annual session of the Boao Forum for Asia (BFA) in the southern China town of Boao.
   According to him, Microsoft established its first research centre in Asia about 10 years ago and is currently spending 60 per cent of its research and development budget in Asia. The quality of job by Microsoft’s development centres in Asia is among the best in the world.
   He said the opportunity that a person has used to be largely determined by the country they were living in, but now the opportunity is much more determined by the level of education they receive.
   ‘And so not only is Asia benefiting from the uses of new technology, Asia will increasingly be the source of advances in technology,’ said Gates.
   Microsoft will build research and development parks in Beijing and Shanghai to further expand its business in China, he said.

National Credit and Commerce Bank Ltd inaugurated the NCC Bank Foundation on Thursday aiming to contribute to the socio-economic development of the country.
   Mahbubul Alam Tara, chairman of NCC Bank Ltd and foundation, formally inaugurated the foundation. He announced that every year the bank will provide one per cent of its pre-tax operating profit for the foundation.
   The objectives of the foundation include providing educational loan and scholarship, setting up schools and other institutions, helping distressed people and promoting positive activities.
   As part of the initiative, NCC Bank Foundation on the same day formally gave the consent letter for contributing of Tk one lakh to Economic Reporters Forum. The ERF will introduce an annual award for NCC Bank Best Economic Report.
   Founder chairman of the bank M Haider Chowdhury, vice chairman Nurun Newaz and managing director Md Nurul Amin also spoke on the occasion.

The five-day training workshop on marketing management of light engineering products in local and international markets began at the Bangladesh University of Enginee-ring and Technology on Sunday.
   This workshop is being organised by the Institute of Appropriate Technology, BUET and participated by owners, managers, entrepreneurs, technologists and engineers of various engineering industries and enterprises from all over the country.
   Teachers of BUET and some teachers from Dhaka University are rendering training as the resources persons in the workshop.

A new round of mergers in the European banking industry may be taking hold as a battle for Dutch bank ABN Amro heats up and France’s Societe Generale and Italy’s UniCredit reportedly enter talks.
   German daily Handelsblatt reported Friday that Societe Generale chief Daniel Bouton and UniCredit head Alessandro Profumo had begun discussions, adding to several days of speculation over the two firms.
   But Societe Generale later said in a statement that no negotiations of that kind were occurring, while UniCredit refused to comment.
   As for ABN Amro, officials from the Dutch bank were set to meet on Monday with a consortium comprising Britain’s Royal Bank of Scotland, Santander of Spain and Belgian-Dutch group Fortis.
   ABN Amro is currently in exclusive talks with British bank Barclays over a potential takeover.
   Mergers between European banks have occurred to some degree in recent years, including Santander’s purchase of Britain’s Abbey National in 2004 and France’s BNP Paribas’ deal for Italy’s BNL last year.
   But the recent talks seem to mark a new stage in activity.
   Shares in French banking group Societe Generale hit record high points this week on rumours that UniCredit was planning a takeover bid.
   A merger between them would create the second-largest bank in Europe behind Britain’s HSBC, and the seventh-largest in the world with a market capitalisation of about 150 billion euros (204 billion dollars). It would include 45 billion euros (61 billion dollars) in annual revenue.
   It would also mean the end of an era for Societe Generale, which has taken a prudent approach with modest acquisitions since failing to merge with Paribas in 1999.
   The bank has remained a relatively affordable target because of its average capitalisation.
   Millan Gudka, an analyst with Dresdner Kleinswort, said the deal would make sense ‘because the two companies have complementary activities,’ with ‘most synergies occurring in finance and investment banking.’
   Credit Suisse values the synergies at 2.1 billion euros and also identifies potential savings in technology and administrative areas.
   Analysts also note the apparent good relations between the two banks, shown by Societe Generale co-CEO Philippe Citerne’s presence on UniCredit’s board until December 2005.
   But analysts do not expect fast movement on a merger or takeover. Jean-Pierre Lambert, analyst at Keefe, Bruyette and Woods, named obstacles such as the French presidential election and the integration of German bank HypoVereinsbank (HVB) following its purchase by UniCredit in 2005.

With the world’s eyes focused on its nuclear programme, economists and lawmakers have sounded alarm bells over inflation in Iran after a conspicuous surge in prices in recent months.
   A combination of expansionary economic policies, US pressure on the banking system and high money supply growth is fuelling price rises in staple goods in the Islamic republic and hitting the lowest classes hardest.
   The research centre run by the conservative-dominated parliament announced last week that inflation reached 22.4 per cent in the last Iranian year that ended on March 20, well above the official estimate of 13.5 per cent.
   A group of 20 lawmakers then published an open statement protesting against the ‘uncontrolled and unwarranted rise in prices of foodstuffs, hygiene products and consumer goods.’
   ‘Officials have to do something against unemployment and the unbridled rise in prices as a matter of urgency,’ said one deputy, Asghar Gheranmayeh.
   According to parliament’s research centre, the price rises look set to continue in the current Iranian year, with inflation set to hit 24 per cent. Money supply growth—a key indication of future price trends—is seen at a colossal 42 per cent.
   ‘There is no control on prices. Beauty products are up by 35 per cent wholesale. The price of cooking oils has also gone up by 35 per cent,’ said one storeholder who declined to be named.
   Shopkeepers used the recent New Year holiday period to raise their prices when people returned from the break, with the price of fruit going up by 21.6 per cent in the space of a week.
   ‘A big bottle of Coke has climbed to 7,500 rials from 6,000 and the orange juice that I buy has doubled in price. My hairdresser has also raised his prices by 40 per cent,’ complained one Iranian consumer.
   The central bank has also issued a new high-denomination 50,000 rial note (about five dollars) in a move that appears linked to the rising prices, although the authorities deny any connection with inflation.
   Economists have long pointed the finger towards the government of President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, who was elected in 2005 on a platform of helping the poor reap the benefits of Iran’s oil wealth.
   Since his election, Ahmadinejad has toured the country making promises to local people of new infrastructure and social projects, fuelling a spike in government spending and warnings of inflation.
   ‘Since Ahmadinejad took office in 2005, the focus of economic policies has shifted towards reducing social and regional disparities,’ the International Monetary Fund (IMF) said in a country report published last month.
   ‘This new approach has used much of the additional revenue from high oil prices to finance higher government spending.’
   The government denies that its policies harbour inflationary pitfalls, saying that extra revenue from high oil prices has allowed it to splash out on projects.
   But further upside pressures on prices could come from a bill agreed by parliament to enforce a rise in Iran’s heavily subsidised and extremely cheap petrol prices from early summer.
   ‘There will certainly be an effect from this rise on other products,’ said Mohammad Reza Behzadian, a former president of Iran’s chamber of commerce.
   Compounding these domestic factors is Western pressure over Iran’s controversial nuclear programme.
   The United Nations has already imposed two sets of sanctions, and more significantly for the economy the United States is leaning on European banks to reduce their business with Iran.

A radical Australian government plan to cut water to drought-hit farmers risks turning the nation’s food basket into a dust bowl and will hobble national economic growth, according to experts.
   The prime minister, John Howard, announced last week that the ‘unprecedentedly dangerous’ drought crisis meant water to farms in the fertile Murray-Darling basin would be shut off unless heavy rains fell by mid-May.
   Howard said the water was needed for urban communities but acknowledged the move was likely to force Australia to import more food, impede overall economic growth and cripple agriculture in the Murray-Darling.
   Covering more than one million square kilometres in the southeast of Australia, the Murray-Darling basin is the country’s largest river system, almost three times bigger than Japan and four times larger than Britain.
   It is Australia’s rural powerhouse, producing more than 40 per cent of the nation’s agricultural produce, worth 10 billion dollars (8.3 billion US) a year, according to the government’s environment department.
   The Murray-Darling supports half the nation’s sheep flock, a quarter of the cattle herd and three-quarters of all irrigated land.
   Howard said the situation was ‘grim’, predicting the drought would drag on the economy, which grew by a lower-than-expected 2.8 per cent in 2006.
   ‘We know already that the drought has taken three-quarters to one per cent off our growth—the longer it goes on the harder the impact,’ he said.
   The government-commissioned report that Howard based his decision to restrict water flows on also predicted severe impacts unless the drought that has lasted up to a decade in parts of the Murray-Darling broke soon.
   ‘Economic and social impacts would be substantial,’ it said, adding that rainfall in the past year had been only 60 per cent of the previous minimum and had taken authorities by surprise.

Exporters in the 13 nations sharing the euro could take a hit from the currency’s soaring strength, but the bloc’s currently strong economic growth will stay firmly on track, officials and economists said.
   Far from being a burden on the 13-nation eurozone economy, Belgian Finance Minister Didier Reynders said the euro’s strength was also a sign of confidence in its growth prospects.
   ‘If you have a strong currency it reflects a strong economy,’ he said Saturday at a meeting of EU finance chiefs and central bankers in Berlin. ‘A strong euro and a strong economy, that’s the best scenario.’
   The euro rose on Friday to its highest point against the dollar since December 2004 and neared its all-time record against the US currency of 1.3666 dollars.
   Meanwhile, the euro has hovered near an all-time high against the Japanese currency of 162.43 yen, which was hit last Monday.
   The last time the euro reached such levels against other major currencies in late 2004 and early 2005, its strength helped derail a nascent economic recovery in Europe by sapping foreign demand for eurozone exports.
   However, this time eurozone growth is on a more solid footing thanks in large part to growing domestic demand, which many economists expect should be able to make up for any lost foreign demand.
   ‘While there is no doubt the deterioration in the price competitiveness will hurt sentiment in the exporting sector, there is, nevertheless, still no reason for excessive pessimism,’ said economist Marco Kramer at Italian bank Unicredit.
   ‘A continuing euro appreciation would certainly be an issue for the eurozone economy, but quite fortunately it seems that the eurozone economy has become less dependent on exports lately,’ said Bank of America economist Gilles Moec.
   Dutch Finance Minister Wouter Bos said at the Berlin meeting that the euro had risen so gradually to its current highs that ‘it hasn’t really shocked anybody’ and businesses have been able to adapt.

Concerns may have been raised about newly listed companies trading below their issue price, but domestic firms have outperformed their US counterparts in terms of investor returns in the stock markets.
   Initial public offers on the domestic bourses have given an average return of about 13 per cent over their issue price so far this year. This is against a lower eight per cent return in the much-mature market of the US, according to an analysis of IPOs in the two countries by PTI Research team.
   The study is based on data collected from the US and Indian stock exchanges and covers IPOs from January till April 20 this year.
   The analysis allays fears over investors losing their wealth in IPOs due to a large number of stocks plunging sharply after a dream listing with huge premium. This is because the average return at the current levels is actually higher than the return at the time of listing in India.
   In comparison, the current average return from the IPOs in the US is lower than the average return on the first day of listing.

It wasn’t exactly the streets of the West End, and the car came out an unexpected colour—but London’s famous black cab broke new ground Sunday with its debut appearance in China.
   The famous cabs, which have plied the streets of the British capital since 1948, took a bow at the auto show in Shanghai, where a new joint venture is aiming to produce 20,000 of the vehicles every year.
   A gold-painted version of the London icon was put on display to promote the new venture between Chinese carmaker Geely and Britain’s Manganese Bronze Holdings, original maker of the iconic car.
   ‘We believe the joint venture can create significant value for shareholders of both sides and we look forward to a promising export prospect,’ Li Shufu, the chairman of Chinese automaker Geely, told Xinhua news agency.
   Geely plans to formally produce models of the cab from 2008 in a new facility adjacent to its automobile production base in Shanghai.
   The agreement signed last year gives Manganese its first manufacturing base overseas and access to the rapidly expanding Chinese car market, while providing cheaper components from China for production in Britain.
   The high cost of the taxis, that retain much of their original 1948 design, has hindered serious the company’s overseas growth.
   The Chinese-made models will only cost between 150,000 and 200,000 yuan (19,400 to 25,900 dollars) or about half of the price in Britain, according to Geely. They are mainly for export but Geely hopes to sell some in China.

India’s top CEOs and CMDs, especially from the real estate, automobile, housing finance and banking are ‘jittery and a worried lot’ about further tightening of money supply in the Reserve Bank’s Annual Monetary Policy to be announced on Tuesday.
   According to an Assocham survey, CEOs feel that RBI would take further measures to tighten the monetary flow as the credit growth continues to remain much above 20 per cent desired by the central bank.
   The company heads in real estates, housing finance and automobiles remain anxious about the possibility of another hike in the cash reserve ratio and repo rates (the rates at RBI lends to the commercial banks).
   A vast majority of 85 per cent respondents feels that RBI would tighten the flow of credit in real estates as this sector has witnessed maximum increase in prices. Other sectors such as construction, automobiles and banks would also be affected by the hike in interest rates, the survey said.
   Sixty per cent of the 150 corporate heads and economists across the different sector were not sure whether the interest rates have peaked and RBI would not be tempted to further tighten the money supply.
   However, 40 per cent respondents felt that interest has already touched a peak.
   The survey pointed out that 74 per cent of the respondents were of opinion that tight monetary policy would affect the small and medium enterprises more than the large business houses.

The US treasury secretary, Henry Paulson, has reiterated his call for a strong dollar while urging China to let its currency appreciate faster against the greenback.
   ‘As I think you know, I believe very strongly that a strong dollar is in our nation’s interest,’ Paulson said in an interview late Friday with PBS television.
   Paulson’s comments came after European Central Bank president Jean-Claude Trichet reiterated Friday that excessive exchange rate volatility was ‘undesirable,’ as the euro flirted with all-time highs against the dollar.
   The euro rose as high as high 1.3637 dollars in trading early Friday, flirting with its record of 1.3666 dollars set on December 30, 2004.
   Paulson called for China to let the yuan appreciate more against the dollar to ease protectionist tendencies in Congress amid a persistent US trade deficit with China.
   Congress could pass ‘unattractive bills,’ he warned, adding: ‘I think the Chinese are very well aware of it.’
   China has a huge trade surplus largely thanks to a weak yuan that makes its products highly competitive abroad.

Major Asian currencies ended the week mostly higher against the dollar with the Chinese yuan rising to new highs after news of faster-than-expected Chinese economic growth.
   Japanese Yen: The Japanese currency was supported by a weak dollar during the past week, while market players in Asian trade were watching the direction of the Chinese economy and its yuan, dealers said.
   The yen was quoted at 118.64 to the dollar late Friday from 118.58 to the dollar a week earlier.
   The yen started the week lower at 119 to the dollar in Asian trade but gained ground to mid-118 over a weak dollar which was under pressure from a strong European single currency.
   Australian Dollar: The Australian dollar was trading strongly against a weaker greenback Friday and little was likely to unsettle that in the week ahead, dealers said.
   The Aussie was trading at 83.51 US cents at 5:00 pm Friday compared to 83.23 US cents the previous week.
   New Zealand Dollar: The New Zealand dollar ended the week at 74.38 US cents.
   Chinese Yuan: The yuan closed at 7.7170 to the dollar Friday.
   Hong Kong Dollar: The US-pegged Hong Kong dollar ended the week.
   Indonesian Rupiah: The rupiah ended the week higher at 9,087/9,092 to the dollar.
   Philippine Peso: The Philippine peso closed higher Friday at 47.65dollar.
    Singapore Dollar: The dollar was at 1.5104 Singapore dollars, from 1.5168 a week earlier.
   South Korean Won: The won closed higher at 927.50 to the dollar.
   Taiwan Dollar: The Taiwan dollar closed lower Friday at 33.137 against the US dollar, compared with 33.106 a week earlier.
   Thai Baht: The Thai baht rose against the dollar during the holiday-shortened week as exporters dumped the greenback, which suffered fresh losses against the yen in Asian trade.

Profit/Loss
   EBL
   As per audited accounts as on December 31, 2006, the bank has reported net profit of Tk. 513.23 m with EPS of Tk. 61.98 as against Tk. 546.30 m and Tk 65.98 respectively as on December 31, 2005.
   Perfume Chemicals
   As per un-audited half yearly accounts as on December 31, 2006, the company has reported net loss of Tk 3.66m with EPS of Tk 3.97 as against last year’s half yearly profit of Tk. 0.09 m and EPS of Tk 0.10. Moreover, accumulated loss of the company was Tk 17.25m as on December 31, 2006.
   
   Transection
   Delta Life Insurance Co. Ltd.
   Delta Life Insurance Co Ltd, one of the corporate directors of the company, has further reported that it has completed its sale of 50,000 shares of the company at prevailing market price through stock exchange as announced earlier.
   Apex Foods
   Zafar Ahmed, one of the directors of the company, has further reported that he has completed his purchase of 6,000 shares of the company at prevailing market price through stock exchange as announced earlier.
   Premier Leasing International Ltd.
   Juned Ahmed, one of the sponsor/
   directors of the company, has reported
   his intention to buy 3,000 Shares of the company at prevailing market price through stock exchange within next 30 working days.
   
   Dividend
   Green Delta Insurance
   The board of directors has recommended cash dividend @ 30pc for the year 2006. Annual general meeting of the company will be held on June 28, 2007 at the Hotel Purbani Int Dilkusha, Dhaka. Record date May 30.
   Peoples Leasing and Fin. Services Ltd
   The board of directors has recommended stock dividend @ 36pc for the year 2006. Annual general meeting of the company will be held on June 23 at the Bangladesh China Friendship Conference Centre, Sher-E-Bangla Nagar, Dhaka. Record date: May 30.
   The Ibn Sina
   The board of directors has recommended cash dividend @ 21pc for the year 2006. Annual general meeting of the company will be held on June 22. Book closure: May 24 to 22. Venue to be notified later.
   
   Trade
   Uttara Bank Ltd
   As per decision of SEC, trading of the shares of the bank will be held through CDBL with effect from May 10, 2007. In this respect, trading of the shares of the bank will be allowed only in the spot market on May 6, 2007 and trading of the shares will remain suspended during May 07 to 09, 2007 for finalization of Demat process.
   Peoples Leasing and Fin. Services Ltd
   There will be no price limit on the trading of the shares of the company on Sunday following its corporate declaration.
   Lafarge Surma Cement Ltd.
   There will be no price limit on the trading of the shares of the company on Sunday following its corporate declaration.
   Bd. Welding Electrodes
   Trading of the shares of the company will remain halted for confirmation of some information under query.
   Industrial Prom. & Dev. Co. of BD Ltd.
   Normal trading of the shares of the company will resume on April 23 after record date.
   Green Delta Insurance
   There will be no price limit on the trading of the shares of the company on April 23 following its corporate declaration.
   
   EGM
   Bangladesh Lamps
   The company has further informed that an annual general meeting of the company will also be held on May 20 at the National Shooting Federation Auditorium, Gulshan-1, Dhaka to amend some clauses of the Articles of Association of the company. Record date of extra general meting will be held on May 2.
   Central Insurance
   The company has further informed that an annual general meeting annual general meeting of the company will also be held on May 24 at the Club, 26, Baily road, Dhaka to amend some clauses of the articles of association of the company.
   Source: DSE, CSE

Rolls-Royce set to launch new,
smaller model
BMW’s Rolls-Royce Motor Cars Ltd plans to launch a ‘smaller’ model before the end of the decade that would cost around a third less than its Phantom luxury sedan. ‘We are working on a smaller car,’ Ian Robertson, chairman and CEO, told Reuters on the eve of the Shanghai Auto Show. ‘A relatively smaller car,’ he added. The car would be priced between the Phantom and a BMW 7-Series car, and comes after the automaker recently introduced its convertible Phantom Drophead Coupe. ‘We should more than double our overall sales with a broader market,’ Robertson said. The company now makes and sells about 800 cars annually, lagging a long-sought goal of 1,000. ‘The design is finished and the first prototypes should be running very shortly,’ he said, adding the company will soon start reengineering its factory to put in a second manufacturing line.
— Reuters/bdnews24.com

EU, Russia fail to resolve Polish food embargo
After two days of talks, EU health commissioner Markos Kyprianou and Russian agriculture minister Alexei Gordeyev failed to broker a deal on Sunday that would see Moscow to lift its embargo on Polish meat and plant products. ‘We continued the talks today (Sunday) and we have identified issues we need to have an agreement on, we didn’t reach that agreement this time,’ Kyprianou told reporters after an inconclusive 90-minute session with the Russian delegation at a luxury hotel. ‘But we have agreed to continue the discussion, our experts will continue working on these issues, and we will both be personally involved following these discussion, and if there is a need we will meet at our level again,’ he added.
— AFP