The government suspended all programmes celebrating Bangla New Year to avoid public gatherings amid growing concerns of the spread of coronavirus. Baisabi, the prime festival celebrated in CHT region marking the New Year, has also been suspended, according to a notification issued by the Cabinet Division.

Besides, the government decided to extend the ongoing closure of public and private offices and all other non-essential services till April 11, in a bid to curb coronavirus transmission. Earlier the government had declared all offices and schools shut from March 26 to April 4 in a bid to prevent the spread of coronavirus. The closure has now been extended by a week. Utility services including water, electricity, gas, telephone, internet will be open during this time.

The finance ministry unveiled the guidelines for disbursement of the Tk 5,000 crore stimulus package for the export-oriented sectors to tide them over the economic fallout of the global coronavirus pandemic. Businesses can avail funds from the package at 2% interest to pay their workers' salaries for up to three months. The salaries must be paid to either a bank or mobile financial service account.

Management of the export-oriented companies or factories would have to provide salary sheets and workers' list and their mobile banking accounts to banks so that salaries for April can be directly disbursed. The banks, afterwards, will forward the same documents to Bangladesh Bank for reimbursement. The borrowers will get a six-month grace period, meaning that they will start paying back the borrowed money in instalments to the government from the seventh month of receiving the money.

Five global fashion brands assured Bangladeshi exporters that they would receive readymade garments that had already been produced and were in the process of being made against their orders. Exporters termed the development positive for the sector as many global buyers cancelled orders or halted shipment of ready goods as the coronavirus outbreak hit hard the global consumption of apparel items.

Among the retailers, three from the European Union and the rest two from North America confirmed Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association president Rubana Huq that they would take delivery on the orders already produced and work in progress. Earlier, Swedish clothing retail company H and M assured of taking delivery of the already produced garments as well as goods in production. H and M also said that they would pay for the goods under agreed payment terms and the retailer would not negotiate prices on already placed orders.

The Bangladesh Bank said that it would operate REPO (repurchase agreement) and call money market on a limited scale during the ongoing government holidays announced to limit public movement to stop the spread of coronavirus. The decision of the central bank came after a day it announced to run the Bangladesh Automated Clearing House (BACH) during the government announced holidays.

The BB's BACH facilitates inter-bank cheque- and online-based transactions. A BB official said that a number of banks were in need of money as the BACH came to operate partially from March 30th. REPO and call money market allow banks to fulfil their short-term cash requirements by the way of borrowing. In the BB circular, interested banks were asked to submit tender for REPO within 12:30pm every working day. The banks, which would participate in the call money market, were also asked to submit transaction details by 12:30pm to the BB's debt management department.