, Feb. 18 -- The newly elected BNP government will take necessary steps to defer Bangladesh's graduation from the Least Developed Country (LDC) status, Commerce Minister Khandaker Abdul Muktadir said on Wednesday.

"We will take all required measures to defer the LDC graduation. Work on the matter has already begun," Muktadir told reporters at the Secretariat on his first day in office.

Muktadir said the government is keen to defer the graduation timeline and will do whatever is necessary to that end.

The initiative has started from the Ministry of Commerce and will be pursued in coordination with the Economic Relations Division (ERD) to expedite required communications and procedures.

Referring to long-standing demands from business l...