Mahmudul Hasan

2 days ago | thedailystar.net | Rejaul Karim Byron |Mahmudul Hasan

The government is planning to significantly reduce its bank borrowing target in the upcoming fiscal year as it aims to narrow the budget deficit by scaling down the overall budget size. The target is set to be slashed by nearly 25 percent in the budget for FY26, dropping to Tk 104,000 crore. The budget deficit for the outgoing fiscal year is also likely to shrink by around Tk 30,000 crore to Tk 226,000 crore, according to a finance ministry official.

3 days ago | thedailystar.net | Mahmudul Hasan

The internet regulator in Bangladesh has granted Starlink permission to supply bandwidth from outside the country for 90 days. This decision comes after Starlink requested the Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulatory Commission (BTRC) to grant a temporary waiver, as the company's 90-day deadline to launch services in Bangladesh would expire before a local gateway could be established.

5 days ago | thedailystar.net | Rejaul Karim Byron |Mahmudul Hasan

Bangladesh's interim government is preparing to unveil a rare contractionary budget on June 2, driven by a sharp rise in interest payment that is crowding out fiscal space and forcing spending cuts. The national budget for fiscal year 2025-26 is set at Tk 7,90,000 crore -- Tk 7,000 crore lower than the original outlay for the current year -- marking the first time in recent memory that the overall budget will shrink.

6 days ago | thedailystar.net | Rejaul Karim Byron |Mahmudul Hasan

As part of policy reforms aimed at improving the credibility and accuracy of national statistics, the Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics (BBS) has been empowered to publish official data without prior government approval. At present, approval from the planning minister and head of state is required before the BBS can publish data. This process causes significant delays in data publishing, as files often remain stuck in limbo before ultimately being approved.

2 weeks ago | thedailystar.net | Mahmudul Hasan

Handset production in Bangladesh declined significantly in the first quarter of 2025 as the grey market continued to dominate the domestic market. According to the Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulatory Commission (BTRC), handset production declined by about 10 percent year-on-year in the first quarter to 54.76 lakh units. But during the January–March period, 4G smartphone production dropped by 9.30 percent to 19.11 lakh units.