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https://www.tbsnews.net/economy/brazilian-foreign-minister-welcomes-bangladeshs-interest-preferential-trade-agreement-825156 UNB 07 April, 2024, 08:20 pm Last modified: 07 April, 2024, 08:46 pm Brazilian foreign minister welcomes Bangladesh's interest in Preferential Trade Agreement The two foreign ministers expressed their resolve to work toward the commencement of the process for negotiating a MERCOSUR-Bangladesh PTA at the earliest opportunity   Brazilian Foreign Minister Mauro Vieira on Sunday (7 April) welcomed Bangladesh's interest in reaching a MERCOSUR-Bangladesh Preferential Trade Agreement (PTA). At the bilateral meeting with Foreign Minister Hasan Mahmud, the two sides concurred that this endeavour would enhance business opportunities and foster private sector engagements between Bangladesh, Brazil and other MERCOSUR state parties, significantly contributing to the promotion of South-South cooperation. The two foreign ministers expressed their resolve to work toward the commencement of the process for negotiating a MERCOSUR-Bangladesh PTA at the earliest opportunity. MERCOSUR, or the Southern Common Market, is an economic and political bloc originally comprising Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay, and Uruguay. Bolivia, previously an associate member, gained full membership in 2023. The meeting between Mauro Vieira and Hasan Mahmud was held at state guesthouse Jamuna and the two ministers welcomed the signing of the basic Agreement on Technical Cooperation between Bangladesh and Brazil. This is the first-ever foreign minister-level visit from Brazil. The ministers held "productive discussions" on Bangladesh-Brazil bilateral relations, international and regional initiatives, and multilateral cooperation. They agreed on the importance of increasing cooperation and exchanges in the fields of agriculture, livestock, science, technology and innovation, education, climate change and energy transition, and technical cooperation, among others, according to a joint statement. The ministers warmly welcomed the conclusion of negotiations of the MoU on Sports Cooperation to be signed at an appropriate moment by the sports ministries of the two countries. The proposed MoU represents a significant milestone that mirrors the enduring bond between the peoples which has been cherished for generations. Foreign Minister Hasan recalled the growing interest of countries from the Global South to join BRICS, including Bangladesh. The Brazilian foreign minister affirmed that Bangladesh, as an emerging voice of Global South, could offer substantial contributions to BRICS on a number of issues. The Brazilian foreign minister arrived in Dhaka on Sunday morning to discuss bilateral issues and strengthen trade and investment ties with Bangladesh. Foreign Secretary Masud Bin Momen received Mauro Vieira at Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport in Dhaka upon his arrival. The foreign minister of South America's most influential country will meet Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on Monday.  He visited Bangabandhu Memorial Museum at Dhanmondi 32 on Sunday afternoon and paid tribute to Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman before his meeting with Hasan Mahmud. State Minister for Commerce Ahsanul Islam Titu also met the Brazilian foreign minister at his place of residence. Hasan Mahmud hosted an iftar and dinner in honour of his Brazilian counterpart on Sunday evening. After his meeting with PM Hasina Monday, Mauro Vieira will visit Square Pharmaceuticals facilities and Beximco Industrial Park in Gazipur. On Monday afternoon, the Brazilian foreign minister is scheduled to deliver a lecture on Brazil's priority areas at G20 as the current chair. The event will be held at Foreign Service Academy at 3 pm. The Brazilian foreign minister together with a business delegation will meet business leaders in Dhaka. Country's apex trade body, FBCCI, will host an iftar and dinner in honour of the Brazilian foreign minister and business delegation members on Monday evening. Foreign Minister Hasan described the visit of the foreign minister of Brazil as very significant. The government of Brazil earlier congratulated Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on her recent election victory. Brazil expressed its willingness to continue deepening relations with Bangladesh, in favour of the development of both countries, the promotion of South-South cooperation, and the fight against poverty, hunger, and climate crisis. Brazil-Bangladesh diplomatic relations, established in 1972, have strengthened in recent years. In 2023, President Lula and Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina met on the sidelines of the BRICS Summit in South Africa. Last year, bilateral trade between Bangladesh and Brazil reached the US$2.3 billion mark. The Brazilian foreign minister is scheduled to leave Dhaka at 11:55 pm on Monday. Additional Foreign Secretary (Bilateral) Dr Nazrul Islam will be there at the Dhaka airport to see him off.  

https://www.thedailystar.net/business/news/leather-shipment-recovers-fetches-100-million-9-months-3584231 Jagaran Chakma Sun Apr 7, 2024 08:20 PM Last update on: Sun Apr 7, 2024 10:36 PM Leather shipment recovers, fetches $100 million in 9 months Leather exports rose 9.8% year-on-year in Jul-Mar of FY24   The shipment of leather has started to revive as Bangladesh fetched $100.40 million from the sales of the semi-finished raw materials in July-March of 2023-24, data from the Export Promotion Bureau (EPB) showed. The exports were up 9.8 percent from the identical period a year prior. A spike in the import of semi-finished leather by China is helping local suppliers export a higher volume of the product. According to industry insiders and exporters, China has started to import a significant quantity of semi-finished leather from Bangladesh to remain competitive in the US market by the way of keeping the production cost lower. "Export orders for semi-finished leather from China have increased substantially in the last three to four months," Diponkar Tripura, owner of Life & Race Bangladesh, a manufacturer and exporter of leather and leather goods. The dragging trade row between Washington and Beijing has brought about a positive impact on leather exports from Bangladesh. Besides, the production cost in China has gone up in the last few years driven by a surge in labour wages, prompting manufacturers in the world's second-biggest economy to source raw materials from the South Asian nation. Chinese companies import semi-finished leather from Bangladesh and process them in China before manufacturing finished products in Vietnam and Cambodia for the US markets, said Tripura. If Chinese firms export products from China, the US importers will have to pay an elevated level of tariffs, which are comparatively higher than Vietnam and Cambodia, he said. "Therefore, they are importing raw materials from Bangladesh." Besides, Chinese companies use imported raw materials to meet the demand for their domestic leather goods market, which was valued at $22 billion in 2022. Bangladesh has 161 tanneries that process rawhides into finished leather. However, 98 percent of them are not compliant as per global standards, forcing local suppliers to sell semi-finished leather, said Tripura. Arifur Rahman Chowdhury, general manager of ABC Footwear Industries Limited, said China is phasing out industries hazardous to the environment such as the initial processing of rawhides. "So, they import semi-finished leather from Bangladesh." However, he said, the price of semi-finished leather is low in Bangladesh, making the country a lucrative sourcing destination for Chinese importers. Although the exports of semi-finished leather are gaining pace and generating foreign currencies for the country, Bangladesh is, in reality, losing out since it could have earned more had it been able to export finished leather and finished goods produced from the local leather directly. For that to happen, local processors will have to secure certification from the Leather Working Group (LWG), a global multi-stakeholder community committed to building a sustainable future with responsible leather. A top official of a leather product exporter says the Bangladeshi firms that process world-class finished leather don't sell them in the local market since they don't receive cash incentives from the government. The government provides a 12 percent cash incentive on the shipment receipts of semi-finished leather. Of the semi-finished leather produced in Bangladesh, 70 percent is exported, mainly to China. The official says there is a scope to add value to the products sold abroad and then export them directly. Direct exports can earn as high as $5 billion for Bangladesh, he said. A senior official of the Leather Goods and Footwear Manufacturers and Exporters Association of Bangladesh (LFMEAB) said the global economy has begun recovering, which will raise the demand for luxury products like leather items. "As a result, the orders for leather from Bangladesh will grow in the coming months and we will receive better prices as well." Finished leather exports fetch less than one-third of footwear: one square foot of leather fetches only $0.60, according to the LFMEAB . Bangladesh would have received at least $1.5 per square foot if the central effluent treatment plant in the tannery estate in Savar could treat all of the toxic chemicals released, said MA Awal, vice-chairman of the Bangladesh Finished Leather, Leathergoods and Footwear Exporters' Association. Bangladesh produces 400 million square feet of leather annually, according to industry people. There are 165 footwear and leather factories in the country.

https://www.tbsnews.net/bangladesh/energy/3-more-solar-power-plants-await-government-nod-825486 UNB 08 April, 2024, 12:30 pm Last modified: 08 April, 2024, 09:29 pm 3 more solar power plants await government nod According to official sources, the solar power plants are 100 MW power plant at Banshkhali in Chattogram, 300 MW at Islampur in Jamalpur and 100 MW at Sadar Upazila in Rajbari district. Three more private-sector solar power plants — a 100 MW power plant at Banshkhali in Chattogram, 300 MW at Islampur in Jamalpur and 100 MW at Sadar upazila in Rajbari — are in the process of getting approval from the government, according to official sources. A consortium of Huiheng Wind Power Limited of Hong Kong and Jupiter Energy Ltd of Bangladesh will develop the 100 MW Banshkhali plant, the SAL-GTECH consortium will set up the 300 MW Islampur plant while a consortium of Sungrow Renewable Energy Investment Pte Ltd and Theia Power (Singapore) Ltd will set up the 100 MW Rajbari power plant. Official sources said the Power Division has already moved three separate proposals to the Cabinet Division to place the offer of the three consortiums to the meeting of the Cabinet Committee on Government Purchase (CCGP) for final approval. "If the CCGP approves the proposals, the Power Division will ask the Bangladesh Power Development Board to sign the power purchase agreements with them," a top official of the Power Division told UNB. He, however, did not disclose the details about tariff rates of the solar power from these plants but said the Power Development Board will purchase electricity from the plants under long-term contracts with a tariff rate of about $0.10. In recent months, the government has been emphasising increasing the share of renewable energy, especially solar power, as part of its plan to raise its share to 40% by 2041 from the existing below 3%. State Minister for Power, Energy and Mineral Resources Nasrul Hamid has recently said that despite various challenges Bangladesh would be able to generate 40% of its electricity from renewable sources by 2041. He reiterated the country's target at the ministerial-level multi-stakeholder roundtable "Implementation of COP28 Decisions in the Energy Sector Opportunities, Constraints, and Next Steps: The Way Head" in the Berlin Energy Transition Dialogue 2024 on 20 March. Currently, as per statistics of the Sustainable and Renewable Energy Development Authority, so far about 989.61 MW of solar power plants have been set up across the country of which 371.48 MW is off-grid and the remaining 618.13 is on-grid.  The country's on-grid total power generation capacity is more than 25,000 MW and off-grid power generation capacity is another 5000 MW. The Power Division's official documents show that in the last three years, the government approved proposals for setting up about 13 solar and wind power plants, having a total capacity of 609 MW by 2025. "Letter of intent (LOI) and notification of award (LOI) were issued to the private sponsors of these renewable energy projects," said a top official referring to the documents. He said of these projects, two are wind power projects having (30+70) 100 MW and the remaining 11 are solar power projects.