Export earnings in Feb post 6.36pc growth

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UNB, Dhaka :
The country’s export earnings in February last notched a 6.36 percent growth compared to the same month last year totalling $ 2389.42 million buoyed by the good performance of RMG, leather and leather products and footwear.
The single-month export earnings in February was, however, 3.76 percent, lower than the strategic export target of 2482.70 million, according to the latest statistics of the Bangladesh Export Bureau (EPB).
The export earnings in February last year were $ 2246.51 million.
The EPB figures also showed that the country’s overall export earnings during the July-February period of the current fiscal year (FY14) totalled $ 19,829.00 million having a 13.96 percent growth over the same period last year. The eight-month export earnings were also 2.17 percent, higher than the strategic target of $ 19407.15 million.
In the last fiscal year (2012-13), Bangladesh failed to achieve its export target having a shortfall of US$ 981.74 million although the export earnings witnessed 11.18 percent growth over the previous fiscal (2011-12).
According to the EPB, Bangladesh fetched $ 27,018.26 million from exports in the last fiscal against the strategic target of $ 28,000 million. The figure represents 3.51 percent shortfall over the target.
The total export earnings during the (2011-12) fiscal stood at $ 24,301.90 million compared to $ 22,924.38 million in the previous fiscal year (2010-11).
According to the EPB statistics for the July-February period of the current fiscal year (2013-14), woven garment fetched the bulk of the export earnings with $ 8228.35 million that represents a good 15.92 percent growth over the same period of 2012-13 fiscal while knitwear accounted for $ 7910.28 million having a healthy growth of 17.50 percent.
During the July-February period of FY 14, the export of home textiles totalled $ 500.21 million posting a fall by 0.34 percent; footwear exports fetched $ 376.67 million; primary commodities $ 818.87 million; frozen foods, including frozen fish, shrimps and others $ 458.30 million; and agricultural products $ 360.57 million.
Of the other major performing commodities, fruit exports totalled $ 13.59 million with a 72.28 percent fall, cement, salt and stone $ 3.46 million while tea export accounted for $ 1.81 million with a 10.37 percent growth.
The export trend for leather and leather products except plastic products maintained their uptrend during the July-February period of the current fiscal.
Leather exports totalled $ 332.89 million, while leather products $ 138.12 million, cotton and cotton products together earned $ 78.75 million, plastic products $ 52.64 million and rubber fetched $ 10.57 million.
The export of jute and jute goods during the seven-month period of FY 14 increased to $ 534.76 million, registering a percent fall of 20.71 percent. Raw jute exports fetched $ 80.11 million with a 47.31 percent decline, jute yarn and twine $ 347.62 million, and other items brought some $ 31.80 million.
Jute sacks and bags also suffered a fall of 52.95 percent as exports totalled $ 75.23 million.
Engineering products, including iron and steel, bicycle and electronic products fetched almost $ 235.40 million. Engineering equipment fetched $ 47.88 million with a fall of 32.48 percent.

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