Bangladesh Bank has begun raising selected commercial banks’ foreign-currency exposure limits for the first time since the 2022 dollar crisis, The Business Standard reported Oct. 26.

The changes increase banks’ permitted net open position (NOP), the difference between foreign-currency assets and liabilities under regulatory calculations. Higher limits give eligible lenders more flexibility to accumulate dollars before large import payments fall due.

Bangladesh Bangladesh marine fish catch falls 16.57% over five years

Bangladesh’s marine fish catch fell 16.57% over the five years through fiscal 2024-25, The Business Standard reported Oct. 26, citing Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics (BBS) figures. Small and artisanal boats caught 451,661 metric tons in 2024-25, down from 513,819 a year earlier. Industrial trawler catches increased slightly, from 114,804 to 116,651 metric tons, according to […]

Bangladesh Bangladesh ports raise warning signal as Cyclone Arnab strengthens

Bangladesh’s weather agency advised four maritime ports to raise distant warning signal No. 2 on Oct. 26 as a deep depression strengthened into Cyclonic Storm Arnab in the Bay of Bengal. The Bangladesh Meteorological Department (BMD) forecast further strengthening into a severe cyclonic storm by midnight, The Business Standard reported, citing United News of Bangladesh […]

Bangladesh Bangladesh extends Saint Martin’s tourism season and raises visitor limit

Bangladesh will allow tourists to visit Saint Martin’s Island from Nov. 1 through March 15, 2027, extending the season by 15 days and raising the average daily visitor limit to 3,500 from 2,000. An Oct. 25 environment ministry letter directs authorities to implement the changes, The Business Standard reported. Each visitor must pay a 100-taka […]

Opinion

Pakistan must confront poverty and lower the military rhetoric

Pakistan’s strength should be measured by the well-being of its people. The poverty figures reported by Dawn expose an urgent failure: 38.3 percent of Pakistanis face overlapping deprivation in health, education, and living standards. Another 12.9 percent are vulnerable.

Recent

Biman Bangladesh extends Riyadh and Dammam flight suspension to November 4

Biman Bangladesh Airlines has extended the suspension of flights from Dhaka to Riyadh and Dammam until Nov. 4, citing passenger safety amid continuing attacks on Saudi Arabian airports. The airline announced the extension in an Oct. 25 statement, The Business Standard reported. The deadline follows Bangladesh’s date and time; it does not confirm that flights […]

Bangladesh bank reform draft would reduce family board seats

Bangladesh Bank has submitted a draft legal amendment that would limit family representation on private bank boards to two members, down from three, The Daily Star reported Oct. 26. The proposal would also cut directors’ maximum consecutive tenure from 12 years to six and require a three-year break before reappointment. It was sent to the […]

Bangladesh secondary school enrollment falls 20% despite more schools

Bangladesh’s general secondary schools lost about 1.78 million students between 2018 and 2025 even as the number of schools increased, The Daily Star reported Oct. 26, citing official education statistics. Enrollment in grades six through 10 fell 20.1%, from 8.857 million to 7.074 million. The number of schools rose from 16,186 to 16,737 over the […]

Bangladesh housing-fraud cases involve nearly 40,000 buyers

Nearly 40,000 buyers in Bangladesh were involved in 9,823 pending cases alleging fraud in land-share housing projects as of Sept. 30, The Business Standard reported Oct. 25, citing Supreme Court and court sources. The projects promise buyers a share of land and an apartment. Complainants alleged that developers sold identical shares to multiple customers, marketed […]

Bangladesh health-worker shortage leaves thousands of hospital posts vacant

Bangladesh had 15.16 doctors, nurses, and midwives per 10,000 people in 2025, far below the World Health Organization (WHO) benchmark of 44.5, The Daily Star reported Oct. 25, citing health ministry data. Staffing improved from 8.3 per 10,000 in 2019, but shortages persist. August figures showed 9,990 doctor posts and 4,870 nurse posts vacant. The […]

Bangladesh journalist and former lawmaker Shafiqur Rahman dies

Muhammad Shafiqur Rahman, a journalist, former lawmaker, and veteran of Bangladesh’s 1971 Liberation War, died at a Dhaka hospital Oct. 24, The Daily Star reported. Rahman represented Chandpur-4 in parliament after winning elections in 2018 and 2024. He also served two consecutive terms as president of the Jatiya Press Club. His journalism career began while […]

Bangladesh nuclear plant completes physics test as startup awaits approval

Bangladesh’s Rooppur nuclear power plant has completed physics testing of its first 1,200-megawatt unit, but the next startup stage still requires regulatory approval, The Financial Express reported Oct. 24. Zahedul Hasan, managing director of Nuclear Power Plant Company Bangladesh Limited (NPCBL), said test reports had been submitted to the Bangladesh Atomic Energy Regulatory Authority (BAERA) […]