Business Desk :
The country’s economy will turn around based on two factors – remittances and private sector credit growth. Although the recently-released Monetary Policy Review report of the central bank has expressed this optimism, private sector credit growth does not currently reflect this.
Credit growth is still far lower than the target though it increased slightly in December over November. In December, the central bank reduced the credit growth target to 11.5% though it had been projected at 14.8% for the current fiscal year.
However, this goal was not achieved as growth is stuck at 8%. The main reason behind this is the uncertainty caused by the Covid-19 pandemic, think the people concerned.
They think though the government has announced various incentives packages for the private sector, businesses are trying to survive with the money of these packages. No one has a plan to make a new investment. “We are not seeing any new projects from private entrepreneurs. It will take time to change the situation as the uncertainty caused by the pandemic is still there,” said Mohammad Arfan Ali, former general secretary of the Association of Bankers (ABB) and managing director of Bank Asia, reports TBS.
Anis A Khan, former ABB president and former managing director of Mutual Trust Bank, told that credit growth increased slightly in December but he did not see the possibility of the growth increasing on a large scale in the coming days as the uncertainty is not gone.
“No investor will make a new investment or expand existing businesses amid this uncertainty,” he said. However, he is hopeful that the situation might change towards the end of this year if the vaccination programme is fully implemented and uncertainty is reduced.
AK Azad, former president of the Federation of Bangladesh Chambers of Commerce and Industries (FBCCI), also said the uncertainty was the main reason behind no new investment. He said the private sector will turn around as soon as Covid-19 leaves.
