Export earnings defy hard times

Despite the persisting volatility in the global economy and higher  consumer prices in the western markets, Bangladesh’s merchandise shipment grew 5.89 per cent year-on-year to $5.13 billion in January, official data showed yesterday.

This was the second-highest single-month shipment in the history of the country. The previous highest was recorded in December when exporters brought home $5.35 billion.

The higher export earnings, along with rising remittance flow, would give some breathing space to the economy reeling under foreign exchange instability owing to US dollar shortages. Remittance flow to Bangladesh rose to a five-month high in January as expatriates sent home $1.95 billion.

M A Razzaque, research director of the Policy Research Institute of Bangladesh, describes the January earnings as commendable given the volatile economic situation.

The recent depreciation of the local currency against the US dollar contributed to the overall export receipts since the country’s competitiveness has improved globally, he said.

The taka has weakened by about 25 per cent against the US dollar in the past one year owing to the crunch of the American greenback.

In July-January, the first seven months of the current financial year, exports grew 9.81 per cent year-on-year to $32.44 billion, according to data from the Export Promotion Bureau (EPB).