Dhaka, April 19 -- Bangladesh should intensify efforts to penetrate new markets across Asia and the Pacific, promote trade openness, create right conditions for foreign direct investment (FDI) and rationalise tariff structures to pave the way for free-trade agreements (FTAs) to tackle unfolding challenges.

The suggestions came from a cutting-edge meet Saturday that also emphasised the importance of integrating into regional value chains (RVCs) and strengthening trade in intermediate goods-an area where Bangladesh still lags behind many of its peers in the region.

Dr Zaidi Sattar, Chairman of the Policy Research Institute of Bangladesh (PRI), made these observations while delivering the keynote address at the seminar titled 'Trade Policy...