KALADAN  NEWS

Dated-19/12/2002.

DHAKA-RANGOON DEAL TO SET UP JOINT TRADE COMMISSION FINALISED                                      

Dhaka, December 19: Resolving all pending issues of

bilateral trade, Bangladesh and Myanmar on yesterday

finalised agreements to establish a Joint Trade

Commission and introduce Accounts Trade and Coastal

Shipping Link, report in Financial Express.

The agreements are expected to be signed next March,

opening new vistas in trade between the two

neighbouring countries, officials said.

Bangladesh Commerce Minister Amir Khosru Mahmud

Chowdhury and visiting Myanmar Commerce Minister Brig.

General Pyi Sone in a 45 minutes exclusive meeting

at a local hotel finalised the deals, yielded by

Tuesday’s officials talks between the two countries,

according to the Business News.

“On implementation of the agreements, bilateral trade

will increase substantially while the current informal

trade will be turn into formal trade gradually,”

Khosru told reporters at his secretariat office after

the meeting.

He said an expected increase in trade between the two

countries would help Bangladesh earn more revenue

besides creating positive impact on country’s foreign

exchange reserve.

Terming “most successful” the Myanmar Commerce

Minister’s current visit as a member of his Prime

Ministre’s entourage, Khosru said all issues, pending

since March this year when a single- country fair of

Bangladesh was held in Myanmar, were resolved through

this trip.

Another single-country fair of Bangladesh will be

organised in Myanmar next March when the agreements

will be formally signed, according to the Business

News.

During the visit of the Bangladesh Commerce Minister

to Myanmar lat March, the two countries came to an

understanding that there would be a coastal shipping

agreement and an account-trade agreement signed for

boosting bilateral trade, it further added.

A draft Coastal Shipping Agreement has already been

sent to Myanmar authorities while Bangladesh received

from Myanar draft documents on Account Trade

arrangement that provides for two-way trade

transactions without needing hard cash in terms of

foreign currency for payments, added in Business News.

Besides, the two countries entered into a border-trade

agreement in 1994 and formal border trade began under

the deal in 1995, said in the New  Nation.

The volume of trade under normal trading system was

around $26 million in 2000-2001. Bangladesh’s imports

from Myanmar were worth $24.69 million while exports

to Myanmar fetched only $ 1.09 million. The trade gap

was $23.77 million. Normal trade volume between the

two countries declined to US 19 million dollars in

2001-02, according to the Business News.

Editor

Kaladan Press Network