'First Bangladesh-US dialogue in Washington'

Dhaka, June 6 (bdnews24.com) ? The first Bangladesh-US Partnership Dialogue will be held in Washington, DC on the margins of the next UN General Assembly.

US Ambassador in Bangladesh Dan W Mozena conveyed this message to Foreign Minister Dipu Moni on Wednesday when he handed over a letter of Secretary of State Hillary Clinton to the Prime Minister.

In the letter, Clinton expressed her thanks for the warm 'welcome' extended to her by the government and the people of Bangladesh.

The US-Bangladesh Partnership Dialogue Agreement was signed in Dhaka during her visit on May 5-6.

Following up on the Agreement, the Secretary in the letter expressed her satisfaction that preparations are underway to convene the first dialogue in Washington, DC.

According to a US embassy media release, the Ambassador called on Foreign Minister Dipu Moni to follow up on the 'successful' visit to Bangladesh of the US Secretary of State as he prepares to return to Washington, DC, for consultations.

They discussed a wide range of follow-up activities, including the Partnership Dialogue, Trade and Investment Cooperation Forum Agreement (TICFA), and Trafficking in Persons, it said.

They reviewed recent developments related to labour rights in Bangladesh and its importance to the future of Bangladesh's 'vital' readymade garment sector.

In the letter, the Secretary also shared her 'high regard' for Grameen Bank and 'the hope it brings to more than eight million of Bangladesh's most vulnerable, particularly women'.

She expressed hope that the Bangladesh government would endeavour to ensure that the Bank's integrity, including its innovative governance and ownership structure, is sustained as an effective development tool for the poor.

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Source: bdnews24.com

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Czech Republic clinch first Fed Cup title

Kveta Peschke and Lucie Hradecka beat Maria Kirilenko and Elena Vesnina 6-4, 6-2 in the decisive doubles to give the Czech Republic a 3-2 win over Russia in the Fed Cup final on Sunday, clinching the country's first title as an independent nation.

Earlier, Wimbledon champion Petra Kvitova prevailed over Svetlana Kuznetsova 4-6, 6-2, 6-3 in the first match of the day to put the Czechs within a point of claiming their first Fed Cup crown after they split from Slovakia in 1993.

Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova, who replaced Kirilenko after the latter's straight-set loss to Kvitova on Saturday, overpowered Czech number two Lucie Safarova 6-2, 6-4 in the second reverse singles to pull the hosts level at 2-2.

The Czechs' last triumph came when, playing as Czechoslovakia, they beat the former Soviet Union 2-1 in the 1988 final.

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Source: bdnews24.com

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DSE gains in first hour

  The country's premier bourse saw an 101.08 point rise in the general index on the first hour of trading, on the second last working day of the week.

The benchmark index at the Dhaka Stock Exchange (DSE) stood at 5306.25 points at 11.58am on Wednesday. Shares worth a total of Tk 823.44 million have change hands with gainers heavily outweighing losers 202 to eight.

On Tuesday, the DSE reclaimed some ground, 169 points in the general index, following the fall that persisted in the previous trading days.

The market shed 40.62 points or 0.8 percent on Monday, and the benchmark index closed at 5036.49 points, amid continued protests by retail investors following continuous drop in share prices.

A platform of small investors called for making bank investments compulsory to stabilise the stock market. They also called for steps from the government forcing the banks to invest up to their limits and for implementation of investment declaration by banks from Tuesday.

The investors also urged the government to force merchant banks, financial organisations and insurance companies to maximise their investments to the limit allowed and for making a compulsory investment of 80 percent of mutual funds in the market.

On Sunday, the benchmark index lost 231.65 points or 4.36 percent to close at 5077.12 points.

Last week, the index shed 237 points to stand at 5308.79 points at the close on Thursday.

Source: bdnews24.com

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