Exports cross $5b for third month in a row
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Exports crossed the $5 billion-mark for the third month in a row in February, in yet another bright spark for the economy battling a persistent strain on the dollar stockpile.
In February, exports brought home $5.18 billion, up 12.04 percent from a year earlier, according to data from the Export Promotion Bureau.
The strong showing was led by garment exports, which fetched about 14 percent more at $4.5 billion last month.
"That is one of the highest monthly receipts," said Faruque Hassan, president of the Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association.
Garment shipments will continue to grow in the coming months as inflation and bank interest rates in the major export destinations like Europe and the US are on the decline, he said. The Western retailers have almost cleared their old inventories.
Moreover, exports to non-traditional markets like Japan, India, Russia, South Korea, Brazil, Argentina, Turkey, South Africa, Australia and China are on the rise, Hassan added.
February's receipts take the total earnings from garment shipments in the first eight months of the fiscal year to $32.9 billion, up 4.8 percent year-on-year but missing the export target by 5.2 percent.
Similarly, overall export receipts of $38.5 billion during the period were 3.7 percent from a year earlier but fell short of the periodic target by 6.5 percent.
Apart from garment items, agricultural products, cotton waste, carpet, plastic goods, handicrafts, man-made filament and non-leather footwear also performed well in the first eight months of the fiscal year.
However, some potential sectors like leather and leather goods, jute and jute goods, frozen and live fish, home textiles, ceramic products and furniture could not perform well during the July-February period of fiscal 2023-24.
During the period, leather and leather goods export fell 14.4 percent, jute and jute goods 4.68 percent and home textiles 29.94 percent.
The strong export showing along with the 7.5 percent growth in remittances means the country's foreign exchange reserves, which have been under pressure for more than two years now, can stage a recovery from here onwards.
Remittance inflows soared 39 percent in February to $2.16 billion, the highest in eight months, to take the tally to $15.06 billion.
As of February 28, foreign exchange reserves stood at $20.57 billion, enough to meet about three months' import bills, according to the latest published data by the Bangladesh Bank.
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