Bangladesh gets green signal to reduce countervailing duties in Washington meeting

Commercial Secretary Mahbubur Rahman said that he has received the green signal to reduce countervailing duties on the first day of the third round of talks on the Bangladesh-US tariff issue. He said that fruitful discussions were held with the US on July 29 as per the agenda. He also said that he has received an impression from officials of the country’s Trade Representative’s office that the duties imposed on Bangladesh will be reduced. The Commerce Secretary said that the duties will be reduced by a considerable amount, but it is not possible to say how much it will be reduced right now. The Commerce Secretary expects that something good awaits Bangladesh after tomorrow’s meeting. It is to be noted that the first day of the meeting will be held from 12:30 pm to 5:30 pm local time on Tuesday. The Bangladesh delegation is led by Trade Advisor Sheikh Bashiruddin. The delegation also includes Principal Advisor National Security Advisor and High Representative on the Rohingya Issue Dr. Khalilur Rahman, Commerce Secretary Mahbubur Rahman and Additional Secretary of the Ministry of Commerce Dr. Nazneen Kawsar Chowdhury. Officials from various ministries and departments participated in the meeting virtually from Dhaka. On the other hand, Assistant Trade Representative Brendan Lynch led the US side. Other officials related to trade and customs are also present. The entire matter of the tariff-related discussions was coordinated by the Bangladesh Embassy in Washington DC.