17 November 2021, Mumbai:

Indian High Commissioner to Bangladesh Vikram K Doraiswami on Tuesday said that India would be very happy to have more trade with Bangladesh through easier and more simplified procedures.

‘We can expand trade by utilising land ports, railways and riverine routes improving infrastructures and facilities,’ he said while addressing a meeting in Rangpur as the chief guest. Rangpur Chamber of Commerce and Industry organised the meeting on ‘Bangladesh-India Bilateral Trade and Commerce Issues’ at RCCI auditorium in the metropolis.

Senior vice-president of Federation of Bangladesh Chambers of Commerce and Industries and former President of Bangladesh Chamber of Commerce Mostafa Azad Chowdhury Babu was present as the guest of honour.

Assistant High Commissioner of India in Rajshahi Sanjeev Kumar Bhati attended the meeting as the special guest while RCCI President Mostafa Sohrab Chowdhury Titu was in the chair. Mostafa Azad Chowdhury Babu presented a keynote paper on various issues, problems and obstacles to bilateral trade between Bangladesh and India at the event.

Dinajpur Chamber President Reza Humayun Faruk Chowdhury Shamim, President of Burimari Land Port Importers’-Exporters’ Association and Clearing and Forwarding Agents’ Association Md Sayeduzzman and General Secretary of Sonahat Land Port Importers’-Exporters’ Association and Clearing and Forwarding Agents’ Association Abdur Razzaque talked about various obstacles to bilateral trade between Bangladesh and India.

They said due to tariff and non-tariff barriers imposed by the Indian state governments concerned on major export products of Bangladesh, it was not possible to conduct the desired export activities in India.

They requested the Indian High Commissioner to keep the Indian Customs Offices open from 7 am to 7 pm to facilitate the unloading of goods from trucks and create a conducive business environment at land ports in Rangpur division.

The Indian High Commissioner termed the issues raised by business leaders as complex and said that there are problems in terms of the totality of the trade regime that governs India-Bangladesh trade.

‘Due to inadequate infrastructures and facilities at land ports and regulatory provisions governing our trade, bilateral trade is still very restricted,’ he said.

The major trade between Bangladesh and India is currently happening through the Benapole-Petrapole land port having modern infrastructures, facilities and warehouses. India wants to expand Hili and Changrabandha land ports with improving infrastructures, roads, warehouses and other facilities to enhance bilateral trade.

‘Although the management of international trade is a function of the central government of India, land ports are being managed by the respective state governments,’ he said.

‘We want to expand these two land ports. Trade is encouraged through these two land ports. That is currently not happening,’ he said, and sought cooperation from Bangladesh in encouraging the opening of more land ports.

‘The Bangladesh-Bhutan-India-Nepal Motor Vehicles Agreement was signed in 2015. We could not be able to conclude its operation protocol,’ he added.

‘There is no problem from the Indian side. If we can conclude the BBIN MVA protocol, Bangladesh will benefit much more than India,’ he said.

Doraiswami said that India was very keen to welcome more Bangladesh garments in India. India has already offered a reciprocal arrangement in which India will supply cotton, fibre and fabric and in return, Bangladesh will supply the finished products to India.

‘It will ensure greater access of Bangladesh to the Indian market. It makes great sense for us to import more from Bangladesh, especially garments and food products,’ he added.

NewAge Business

(The news article has not been edited by DFU Publications staff)

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09 November 2021, Mumbai:

Gucci Changemakers North America, powered by Gucci Equilibrium, said on Friday that applications for the third cycle of its award and scholarship programme are currently being accepted.

The Changemakers Impact Fund for non-profit organizations, as well as the Gucci Scholars programme for graduating high school seniors, undergraduate and community college students, were both introduced in 2019 as part of the worldwide Changemakers financing initiative.

The Gucci Changemakers Impact Fund will provide 12 NGOs $50,000 one-year grants in 2022, while the Gucci Changemakers Scholarship Program will award up to ten students a $20,000 one-year scholarship depending on financial need.

Over $2.5 million has been committed thus far as part of a multi-year commitment. Sista Afya Community Center in Chicago, ProjectArt New Orleans, and Weird Enough Productions in Atlanta were among the 2021 beneficiaries.

Scholarship recipients such as Matthew Williams, who attends Kent State University, hopes to establish a learning arts center for youth, while Yetunde Sapp, who attends Parsons School of Design, founded SLAChouz, a BIPOC artist residence, and content house, thanks to support from the Gucci Changemakers Scholars programme.

Gucci Changemakers has collaborated with writer, producer, and director Sage Dolan-Sandrino, co-director Kam, and cinematographer Chance Chamblin to create a film articulating the importance and power of art and creativity as revolutionary tools for radical change, which will be voiced by Gucci Changemakers scholars and youth community members.

Last week, the Changemakers Summit, which followed the brand's Love Parade runway show on Hollywood Boulevard, highlighted the second phase of its programmes and the opening of applications.

Dear Reader, we at DFU Publications are committed to providing the latest news updates on trade development and insights, to keep our readers informed. Stay tuned. Subscribe to our newsletter.  

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01 November 2021, Mumbai:

Uniqlo India Private Limited narrowed its losses by 43% to Rs 36 crore ($4.8 million) in the fiscal year 2020-21, thanks to an 83 percent increase in revenue to Rs 239 crore. Business Line

During the financial year 2019-20, the firm had a revenue of Rs 128 crore. According to a Businessline story citing statistics from business intelligence platform Tofler, Uniqlo's overall costs for the fiscal year were Rs 275 crore, up from Rs 192 crore the previous fiscal year.

"It was intended to start off and have online e-commerce on board during the financial year under review in order to scale up the business and cater to a larger customer base, which would be prospectively advantageous to the overall interest of the company," the company said in its regulatory disclosure.

Uniqlo, a Fast Retailing brand, initially entered the Indian market in October of this year. It presently has six locations in the Delhi NCR area and wants to expand its retail footprint by building outlets in Mumbai.

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01 November 2021, Mumbai:

The Danish Embassy in Bangladesh, the Kingdom of the Netherlands Embassy in Bangladesh, and PUMA have renewed their commitment to the IFC's Partnership for Cleaner Textile (PaCT II) programme to help Bangladesh's readymade garments (RMG) sector decarbonize.

Bangladesh's RMG industry, which is currently the world's second-largest, needs to recover faster from COVID-19's effects and increase sustainability and global competitiveness.

The Danish government has allocated an additional $3.19 million to RMG sector-wide efforts through the Danish International Development Agency (DANIDA). "The recent UN IPCC report on climate change has urged us once again to take climate action immediately to keep the world average temperature well below 2oC," stated H.E. Danish Ambassador to Bangladesh Winnie Estrup Petersen. The apparel business accounts for around 10% of world emissions."

Through PaCT's advising services, German company PUMA is ramping up its efforts in Bangladesh to decarbonize its supply chain. "At PUMA, we are dedicated to climate action in accordance with the United Nations' Sustainable Development Goals and Science-Based Target Initiative. "We're decreasing our carbon footprint not just in our own operations, but also in our supply chain," said Veronique Rochet, PUMA's Senior Head of Sustainability.

In order to assist Bangladesh to become more sustainable, PaCT also encourages cleaner manufacturing and green growth in the RMG sector, she stated.

At the signing ceremony, Paula Schindeler, Deputy Ambassador of the Kingdom of the Netherlands in Bangladesh, said, "The Netherlands Embassy, a long-standing partner of Bangladesh, is delighted to continue to assist Bangladesh's RMG sector in its sustainability efforts and address efficient resource use through the IFC-PaCT Program."

Because Bangladesh is a key sourcing market for us, the PaCT Program assists our supplier factories in reducing resource consumption and environmental effect, she noted.

PaCT is also extending its activities as a result of a grant arrangement with the Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA) to promote the sector's backward connections and product diversification in order to improve exports.

"To become more robust and adapt to altering global demands, the Bangladesh RMG industry must discover new methods to conduct business." At this time, fibre diversity, an online marketplace, and a post-COVID sustainable path for Bangladesh's RMG business are all important study subjects.

Mr. Faruque Hassan, President of the BGMEA, stated, "We are grateful to IFC for their support in conducting this research, which will help the industry shape its strategy."

"IFC's PaCT programme has already achieved impressive results," said Tuyen Nguyen, Asia Regional Lead for Manufacturing Advisory, "618,779 metric tonnes of greenhouse gas avoided per year, which is equivalent to removing 134,572 passenger vehicles from the road annually, and water savings of 27,637,931 cubic meters per year, which is equivalent to meeting the water needs of 1.5 million Bangladeshis per year."

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30th October 2021, Mumbai:

J.C. Penney Corporation, Inc., an American retail company, was founded in 1902 by James Cash Penney and is today engaged in marketing apparel, home furnishings, jewelry, cosmetics, and cookware, etc. Bloomberg

JCPenney a celebrated global retailer hires Marc Rosen as chief executive officer (CEO), effective November 1, 2021. Marc boast of bringing on board more than two decades of vast retail and e-commerce expertise, to be informed he has most recently served as executive vice president cum president of Levi Strauss, US Mark has hands-on expertise & is well nuanced in e-commerce and retail side of the business.

JCPenney has charted a course of strengthening/ consolidating its omnichannel footprints, experience by seeking direct customers insights.

Marc Rosen very emotionally reacting to his appointment states“I was humbled by the opportunity to lead this prestigious brand".

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02 November 2021, Mumbai:

Robert Chatterton Dickson, the British high commissioner in Bangladesh, recently urged for more ease of doing business in order to attract more private sector investment, which he believes is necessary to maintain the country's growth pace.

TheFinancialExpress

Investors, he added, want to see improvements in the ease of doing business ranking, which he described as competitive. Dickson was speaking at a Diplomatic Correspondents' Association of Bangladesh meeting in Dhaka.

He praised Bangladesh's excellent economic progress, but warned that as the nation moves from LDC to middle-income status, it would confront new obstacles, according to Bangladesh media.

He stated that if all nations step up their efforts, the next climate change summit in Glasgow would be successful in mobilizing the $100 billion climate fund, which will play a vital role in alleviating the detrimental effects of climate change on vulnerable countries like Bangladesh.

Bangladesh's British High Commissioner, Robert Chatterton Dixon, recently chose to get into business in order to promote more private sector investment in nations where he believes prosperity can be sustained.

More mitigation has been requested. Investors would like to see an increase in the ease of doing business rankings, he added, calling such an investment competitive.

If all nations step up their efforts at the Climate Change Summit in Glasgow, the conference will be able to create a $100 billion climate fund to help vulnerable countries like Bangladesh cope with the impacts of climate change. He stated that it would play a significant part in the aforementioned.

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29th October 2021, Mumbai:

A first-ever pathbreaking research-based endeavor in Bangladesh for serving the interest of the export-oriented RMG industry. A digital 1st transparency mechanism aimed at attaining greater accountability for the sector turns the wheel of the economy for this nation.

By mechanism, the signature of this 'Evidence-based decision-making tool' is designed for sector multi-stakeholders. It is net net," A collaborative, participatory and concerted action approach with one of its kind noble initiative involving inclusively 'public and private governance entities' in complete alignment to government close to heart stated mission “Digital Bangladesh Vision 2021”.

Putting the partnership in quick perspective," The Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA) is one of the largest trade associations in the country representing the readymade; while BRACU is accredited by the University Grants Commission (UGC) and approved by the Ministry of Education, Government of Bangladesh.

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