40pc SMEs shut down in post-Covid period

Staff Reporter :
More than 40 percent of small and cottage enterprises in the country went out of business in the post-Covid era due to harsh economic conditions, Bangladesh Chamber of Industries (BCI) President Anwar Ul-Alam Chawdhury Parvez said on Wednesday.

The BCI President expressed that the economic situation is not improving yet as a result the trend of businesses closing down is continuing.

He also projects that the chances of economic recovery this year still remain low at a pre-budget meeting organized by the National Board of Revenue (NBR) at its Agargaon headquarters in the capital.

NBR Chairman Abu Hena Md Rahmatul Muneem presided over the meeting.

“We did a study six months ago, through which we found out that more than 40 percent of small and cottage enterprises have closed post-Covid. As a result, a large number of people lost their jobs.

Many of those who were once entrepreneurs are now looking for work.” Anwar Ul-Alam Chawdhury Parvez informed the media after the meeting.

At the pre-budget discussion , the BCI chairman also said the government did not recognize miscellaneous spending as expenses, meaning businesses had to pay taxes on those, which was “doubling the pressure”.

Mentioning that due to various conditions of the NBR, the corporate tax has been reduced by 7.5 percent in three years, but companies are not being able to take advantage of it.

At a pre-budget discussion, entrepreneurs alleged that they are harassed at the port by the customs.

They also said that since the assessment value of the imported goods by the customs authority is higher than the actual value, the traders are being burdened with additional tax.

However, they added fines and port demurrage are increasing and the burden is ultimately falling on the consumer.