DHAKA: Bangladesh’s exports, down in July at the start of the new fiscal, has skyrocketed in August. Exports have not only risen in readymade garments, but also in leather and leather goods, jute and jute goods, frozen fish, pharmaceuticals and many other sectors in August.
According to data published by Export Promotion Bureau (EPB) on Tuesday, the country earned $3.3 billion in the month. The amount is 20 percent more than the exports income in the same month last year and 16.53 percent higher than the target. July witnessed a 3 percent drop in exports, but now the combined figure for July-August represents a 8.42 percent rise.
Analyst Zaid Bakht hopes the 2016-17 fiscal will end with a more than 10 percent growth in exports. The BIDS researcher says political stability and avoiding a repeat of July 1 Gulshan attack holds the key to achieving higher exports. Garments entrepreneurs organisation BGMEA Vice President Nasir Uddin also hopes exports would continue to grow.
Nasir thinks the buyers’ concern over rise of terrorism in the country that peaked with the killing of 17 foreigners and five others at the Gulshan cafe has been largely addressed by the government’s determined efforts to tackle militancy. He told bdnews24.com that the exports in July dropped due to a week of Eid-ul-Fitr holidays in the factories. He also thinks exports may drop again in September due to the Eid-ul-Azha holidays. RMG sector contributed 82 percent of the July-August exports.
