Economic Reporter :
The flow of inward remittances crossed $12 billion in the first eight months of this fiscal year (FY), officials said.
Remittance kept up its strong growth momentum in the last month as migrant workers sent home 10.16 per cent more than they did a year earlier, in a major boost to the economy under stress from sliding exports.
Expatriate Bangladeshis sent US$ 12,498.56 million remittances during the first eight months of the current fiscal 2019-20, which is apparently 20.06 percent higher than the same period of the preceding year, according to a Bangladesh Bank (BB) data.
The country received US$10,410.29 million remittances during July-February period in 2018-19 financial year, the data added.
“The flow of remittances into the country shows upward trend in the current fiscal 2019-20 as the government has taken measures, including two percent cash incentive, to streamline the legal channel for encouraging non-resident Bangladeshis (NRBs) to send money to the country,” central bank’s spokesperson M Serajul Islam said on Monday.
He said the recent flow of remittance indicates that it is gradually increasing and this trend is likely to continue in the upcoming months.
According to the BB data, the country received $1,452.20 million in February, $1,638.43 million in January, $1,691.68 million in December, $1,1555.23 million in November, $1,641.67 million in October, $1,476.91 million in September, $1,444.75 million in August and $1,597.69 million in July of the fiscal 2019-20.
But in 2018-19, the country got $1,317.73 million in February, $1,597.21 million in January, $1,206.91 million in December, $1,180.44 million in November, $1,239.11 million in October, $1,139.66 million in September, $1,411.05 million in August and $1,318.18 million in July.
In February this fiscal, six state-owned commercial banks- Agrani, Janata, Rupali, Sonali, Basic and BDBL- received $384.94 million while one state-owned specialised bank Bangladesh Krishi Bank received $29 million.
Of the state-owned banks, Agrani Bank received $147.91 million, Janata Bank $73.07 million, Rupali Bank $58.64 million, Sonali Bank $105.26 million and Basic Bank received $0.06 million.
Besides, the expatriates have sent $1,029.03 million through private commercial banks. Among the private commercial banks, Islami Bank Bangladesh Limited (IBBL) received the highest amount of $321.76 million while Dutch-Bangla Bank (DBBL) received $204.21 million. On the other hand, the expatriates have sent $9.23 million through the foreign commercial banks.
“Remittance has become the lifeline of the economy given the frustrating performance of all other economic indicators,” said Ahsan H Mansur, Executive Director of the Policy Research Institute of Bangladesh.
The country’s balance of payment would have faced severe crisis if remittance had failed to maintain the upward trend.
The current account deficit contracted 60 per cent year-on-year to $1.34 billion in the first half of the fiscal year. The overall balance, another major component of the balance of payment, stood at $27 million during the period. A year earlier, it was $513 million in the deficit.
Besides, the foreign exchange reserve is at a comfortable level thanks to the strong growth of remittance, said Mansur, also a former economist of the International Monetary Fund.
“The favourable exchange rate of the taka against the US dollar and a strong stance taken by the central bank against illegal money transfers have had a positive impact on remittance,” said Md Arfan Ali, Managing Director of Bank Asia.
The flow of inward remittances crossed $12 billion in the first eight months of this fiscal year (FY), officials said.
Remittance kept up its strong growth momentum in the last month as migrant workers sent home 10.16 per cent more than they did a year earlier, in a major boost to the economy under stress from sliding exports.
Expatriate Bangladeshis sent US$ 12,498.56 million remittances during the first eight months of the current fiscal 2019-20, which is apparently 20.06 percent higher than the same period of the preceding year, according to a Bangladesh Bank (BB) data.
The country received US$10,410.29 million remittances during July-February period in 2018-19 financial year, the data added.
“The flow of remittances into the country shows upward trend in the current fiscal 2019-20 as the government has taken measures, including two percent cash incentive, to streamline the legal channel for encouraging non-resident Bangladeshis (NRBs) to send money to the country,” central bank’s spokesperson M Serajul Islam said on Monday.
He said the recent flow of remittance indicates that it is gradually increasing and this trend is likely to continue in the upcoming months.
According to the BB data, the country received $1,452.20 million in February, $1,638.43 million in January, $1,691.68 million in December, $1,1555.23 million in November, $1,641.67 million in October, $1,476.91 million in September, $1,444.75 million in August and $1,597.69 million in July of the fiscal 2019-20.
But in 2018-19, the country got $1,317.73 million in February, $1,597.21 million in January, $1,206.91 million in December, $1,180.44 million in November, $1,239.11 million in October, $1,139.66 million in September, $1,411.05 million in August and $1,318.18 million in July.
In February this fiscal, six state-owned commercial banks- Agrani, Janata, Rupali, Sonali, Basic and BDBL- received $384.94 million while one state-owned specialised bank Bangladesh Krishi Bank received $29 million.
Of the state-owned banks, Agrani Bank received $147.91 million, Janata Bank $73.07 million, Rupali Bank $58.64 million, Sonali Bank $105.26 million and Basic Bank received $0.06 million.
Besides, the expatriates have sent $1,029.03 million through private commercial banks. Among the private commercial banks, Islami Bank Bangladesh Limited (IBBL) received the highest amount of $321.76 million while Dutch-Bangla Bank (DBBL) received $204.21 million. On the other hand, the expatriates have sent $9.23 million through the foreign commercial banks.
“Remittance has become the lifeline of the economy given the frustrating performance of all other economic indicators,” said Ahsan H Mansur, Executive Director of the Policy Research Institute of Bangladesh.
The country’s balance of payment would have faced severe crisis if remittance had failed to maintain the upward trend.
The current account deficit contracted 60 per cent year-on-year to $1.34 billion in the first half of the fiscal year. The overall balance, another major component of the balance of payment, stood at $27 million during the period. A year earlier, it was $513 million in the deficit.
Besides, the foreign exchange reserve is at a comfortable level thanks to the strong growth of remittance, said Mansur, also a former economist of the International Monetary Fund.
“The favourable exchange rate of the taka against the US dollar and a strong stance taken by the central bank against illegal money transfers have had a positive impact on remittance,” said Md Arfan Ali, Managing Director of Bank Asia.
