Economy

25 August 2024
Female workers in Bangladesh's garment factories face numerous pressures and hurdles.
Nobel laureate Muhammad Yunus at Charles de Gaulle Airport near Paris on Aug. 7. The microcredit pioneer was asked to lead a caretaker government in Bangladesh.
Bangladesh turmoil

Nobel winner Yunus picking up 'mess' left by ousted Bangladesh PM

Microcredit pioneer in charge after nemesis Sheikh Hasina flees

14 August 2024
Bangladeshi President Mohammed Shahabuddin, center, swears in Muhammad Yunus, right, in Dhaka on Aug. 8: The interim government is a diverse, nonpartisan team of activists, academics and retired officials. 
Asia Insight

Bangladesh's Muhammad Yunus carries hopes of economic change

Optimists look toward post-protest recovery from trade and business disruptions

13 August 2024
The government change in Bangladesh came just after its credit rating was downgraded by S&P.
Economy

Bangladesh crisis leaves global markets bracing for economic impact

Garment exporter faces new financial risks ahead of exiting 'least developed' status

8 August 2024
People enter former Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina's official residence in Dhaka after her resignation on Aug. 5.
Bangladesh turmoil

Bangladesh PM Hasina's dramatic fall from grace: 5 things to know

Leader's 15-year hold on power collapsed as mass protests raged over violence

6 August 2024
Men run past a Dhaka shopping center set on fire by protesters during a rally against Bangladeshi Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on Aug. 4.
Bangladesh turmoil

Bangladesh PM Hasina faces calls to quit as political crisis boils

Critical test for leader's 15-year hold on power as nation plunges into fresh unrest

5 August 2024
Protesters engage in a clash in Dhaka on July 16. Bangladesh has been plunged into unrest after demonstrations against government job quotas. 
Bangladesh turmoil

Bangladesh protest movement launches foreign remittance freeze

Campaign calls on nearly 10 million expats to pressure government over violence

2 August 2024
S&P said in a note on July 30, "Bangladesh's external liquidity is weakening, as indicated by sustained depletion of its official foreign exchange reserves."
Economy

S&P cuts Bangladesh's debt rating to 'B+' from 'BB'

Downgrade reflects continued decline in foreign exchange reserves

30 July 2024
Bangladesh's garment industry is a major export earner.
Economy

Bangladeshi mismatch in export data cements doubts on official stats

Now-smaller GDP threatens South Asian nation's negotiation capacity with lenders

30 July 2024
A man walks past damaged vehicles that were set afire by a mob after violence answered student protests against government job quotas, in Dhaka, Bangladesh, on July 21.
Bangladesh turmoil

Bangladesh protesters demand government take responsibility for deaths

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina called on to apologize and fire the home minister

22 July 2024
Anti-quota protesters carrying Bangladeshi flags engage in a clash with the student wing of the ruling Bangladesh Awami League at the University of Dhaka on July 16.
Bangladesh turmoil

Student protests in Bangladesh over job quotas escalate into violence

Prime Minister Hasina's use of derogatory term for activists further fuels anger

18 July 2024
Bangladeshi workers in Dhaka line up for air tickets to return to Saudi Arabia. Many South Asian migrants work in the Middle East.
Immigration

Philippines, Bangladesh push Asian migrant numbers to record high

6.93 million workers go abroad in 2023 as remittances hit $371.5 billion

27 June 2024
Around 3.5 million people in Bangaldesh were at risk of annual river flooding, according to a 2015 analysis by the World Bank Institute.
Natural disasters

Bangladesh floods strand over 2m people, including 772,000 children

Heavy rain in forecast could worsen situation in climate-vulnerable country

22 June 2024
Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina's cash-strapped government took a $4.7 billion loan from the International Monetary Fund. (Nikkei montage/Source photos by Reuters)
Economy

Bangladesh cuts GDP growth target to 6.7% as economic crisis bites

Lower forecast comes as government announces 'cautious' $67.5bn budget

7 June 2024
Bangladeshi Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina speaks to journalists on Jan. 8 after winning her fourth term in power. The elections were marred by violence and arrests of opposition leaders.
International relations

Renewed U.S. outreach to Bangladesh signals strategic shift in region

U.S. diplomat Lu prioritizes economic partnership to counter China's influence

28 May 2024
Bangladesh's central bank has been struggling to tame the country's high inflation.
Economy

Bangladesh acts to tame inflation as IMF pledges $1.1bn loan

South Asian nation to let currency and lending rates heed market forces

13 May 2024
"Not enough time, not enough support": Uzbekistan, a landlocked country slightly bigger than California, is facing the consequences of a history of poor irrigation, with rising salinity slashing the size of usable growing areas.
Asia Insight

Uzbek farmers battle to save cotton, wheat crops from mortal enemy: salt

Growing salinization crisis bites as cotton exports to Bangladesh skid 80% in 5 years

7 May 2024
A shopkeeper in Mirpur selling Indian saris waits for customers. (Photo by Faisal Mahmud)
Economy

Bangladeshi 'India out' campaign hits Ramadan sales

Retailers report demand drop; PM Hasina points to dependence on Indian staples

12 April 2024
The Bay of Bengal is seen as a promising source of natural gas, but Bangladesh struggles with lagging exploration.
Energy

Bangladesh offers 'win-win' deals for offshore gas exploration

Dhaka opens bidding for sites in Bay of Bengal after eight-year hiatus

15 March 2024
A garment factory in Gazipur, Bangladesh. The country has sustained companies with cash incentives on their exports, but it is dialing them back.
Economy

Bangladesh weans garment industry off subsidies for new-look economy

Dhaka faces outcry over early transition from a 'least developed country'

6 February 2024
A British Typhoon jet is pictured in Cyprus after striking targets in Yemen during an operation against Houthi militants targeting shipping in the Red Sea. (U.K. Ministry of Defence via Reuters)
International relations

Red Sea conflict plunges Bangladesh garment makers into the red

Surging costs and lead times dent orders, worsening already weak market

18 January 2024
Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina: As formal political competition has declined, the legitimacy of Awami League rule has come to be based on its ability to deliver growth and development.
Opinion

Real challenge for Bangladesh PM Hasina still lies ahead

Public is losing confidence that ruling Awami League can manage economic crisis

12 January 2024
Rohingya refugees work on rebuilding their makeshift shelters after a fire broke out in a camp in Cox's Bazar, Bangladesh, on Jan. 7.
7 January 2024
Police confront garment workers in Ashulia, on the outskirts of Dhaka, during a recent demonstration for higher wages. (Photo by Nazmul Islam)
Politics

Bangladesh garment industry wage fight shakes core economic pillar

Government alleges link between protests by opposition and inflation-weary workers

14 November 2023
Police officers pass a charred public bus burned during an opposition protest in Dhaka on Oct. 31, amid days of political violence.
Politics

Bangladeshi political violence poses 'high risk' to stuttering economy

Disruptions over election likely to worsen already weak fundamentals, experts say

6 November 2023