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decisions taken without consulting key stakeholders.

“Why would businesses invest when there is no policy predictability or institutional support? Costs of business are high, demand is low, interest rates are up, and even gas supplies are inconsistent. As a result, industries are slowing down, layoffs are rising, and unemployment is surging,” he told The Daily Star in an interview marking one year of the interim government.

While he acknowledged improvements in some macroeconomic indicators, such as foreign exchange reserves and remittance inflows, he criticised the government for failing to deliver on its early reform pledges.

“The government came with the promise of reform, but so far, it has failed to bring any structural change,” Parvez said. “One year is a long enough time to show intent, but the confidence crisis has only deepened.”

The government took charge at a time when the economy was already under severe stress, recalled the BCI president.

“High inflation, volatile exchange rates, dwindling forex reserve, and widespread institutional failure had eroded public trust during the previous regime,” he said. “But there was hope that the interim government would stabilise the system, restore law and order, and prepare for a credible election.”

However, the political uncertainty has remained unchanged, and institutions like the judiciary, police, and regulatory bodies remain either inactive or under pressure, Parvez commented.

Inflation remains close to 9 percent, while both private and public investment have stalled, the BCI president said.

He said that private sector credit growth fell to 6.4 percent in June, below the 7.2 percent target set by the Bangladesh Bank.

Parvez argued that the central bank’s cautious stance, aligned with recommendations by the International Monetary Fund (IMF), had slowed industrial productivity without ushering in genuine reform.

One area where he sees progress is in the banking sector, as he pointed to a rise in foreign reserves, greater stability in the currency market and improved monitoring of illicit capital flows.

“The remittance flow is rising again, thanks to tighter monitoring on money laundering,” he said. “It is a big success for the government.”

However, non-performing loans had reached a record Tk 4.20 lakh crore by March this year, raising serious concerns about long-term creditworthiness and access to international finance, he added.

According to Parvez, the government’s failure to engage with business leaders and economists had been a major setback.

“Every household is connected to business in some way. You cannot make economic policy without involving businesspeople,” he said. “This government has not sat with us. They are listening to a handful of bureaucrats and blindly following IMF guidelines without ground-level understanding.”