FROM PAGE B1

and regulatory requirements, which have favoured fundamentally stronger firms.

OUTLOOK CLOUDED BY WAR FALLOUT

At the beginning of the year, companies expected a recovery after the national election in February. That optimism has since faded.

The US-Israel war on Iran has cast a shadow over the outlook, Imam said, with the duration and intensity of the conflict now the key variables.

The turmoil has already disrupted regional energy markets. The government is scrambling to secure fuel and liquefied natural gas (LNG) supplies even at higher prices.

Although retail fuel prices have not yet been raised, a prolonged war could force an increase.

“If fuel prices rise, it will impact almost all the firms. Only the financial sector has a positive outlook amid a high-interest rate regime,” Imam said.

Mahmud, president of the Bangladesh Association of Publicly Listed Companies and also the managing director of National Polymer Industries PLC, echoed the concern.

He said the fallout from the Middle East war could exceed that of the prolonged Russia-Ukraine war.

“It could even be as serious as Covid,” he said.