Special Correspondent :
Bangladesh’s trade deficit hit an all-time high in the just concluded fiscal year 2017-18, thanks to big jump in import orders for food grains, petroleum and capital machinery.
According to Bangladesh Bank, the trade deficit, the gap between what the country exports and what it imports from foreign countries, stood at $18.26 billion during the period, up by 92.76 per cent compared with the corresponding period of the previous fiscal (2016-17).
Officials said that export growth had not advanced in line with import growth pushing the trade deficit to record high.
In the fiscal year 2017-18, import growth rose by 25.23 per cent against the export growth by 6.43 per cent. Bangladesh earned $36.20 billion from exports (including EPZs) while paid $54.46 billion for imports during the period.
“Nothing to be worried about the high trade deficit. Imports have surged due increased LC opening for to the ongoing mega projects, capital machinery, raw materials, fuel and food grains,” Dr Ahsan H Mansur, Executive Director of the Policy Research Institute told The New Nation.
He, however, said that high import raise concern over trade misinvoicing and money-laundering ahead of an election year. The concerned agencies should look into the matter.
“Bangladesh had maintained a level trade deficit earlier mainly due to steady export earnings against slower import. But, the trade gap increased massively in last fiscal year due to sluggish export growth,” Dr AB Mirza Azizul Islam, former adviser to the caretaker government told The New Nation.
He said trade deficit was not an unusual matter for a developing country like Bangladesh. But low export earnings usually put an adverse impact on the GDP growth.
Bangladesh’s trade deficit hit an all-time high in the just concluded fiscal year 2017-18, thanks to big jump in import orders for food grains, petroleum and capital machinery.
According to Bangladesh Bank, the trade deficit, the gap between what the country exports and what it imports from foreign countries, stood at $18.26 billion during the period, up by 92.76 per cent compared with the corresponding period of the previous fiscal (2016-17).
Officials said that export growth had not advanced in line with import growth pushing the trade deficit to record high.
In the fiscal year 2017-18, import growth rose by 25.23 per cent against the export growth by 6.43 per cent. Bangladesh earned $36.20 billion from exports (including EPZs) while paid $54.46 billion for imports during the period.
“Nothing to be worried about the high trade deficit. Imports have surged due increased LC opening for to the ongoing mega projects, capital machinery, raw materials, fuel and food grains,” Dr Ahsan H Mansur, Executive Director of the Policy Research Institute told The New Nation.
He, however, said that high import raise concern over trade misinvoicing and money-laundering ahead of an election year. The concerned agencies should look into the matter.
“Bangladesh had maintained a level trade deficit earlier mainly due to steady export earnings against slower import. But, the trade gap increased massively in last fiscal year due to sluggish export growth,” Dr AB Mirza Azizul Islam, former adviser to the caretaker government told The New Nation.
He said trade deficit was not an unusual matter for a developing country like Bangladesh. But low export earnings usually put an adverse impact on the GDP growth.
