DHAKA: Despite a 4.36 percent growth in exports during the first seven months of the 2116-17 fiscal, earning from Bangladesh exports have failed to scale the target.
According to details, export earning notched up $20.11 billion during July-January period of the current fiscal and yet fell 4.43 percent short of the estimated figures. The export figure for January 2017 alone is 4 percent higher than that of January 2016.
Garment exports that account for the lion’s share of Bangladesh exports have generated 5 percent less foreign currency despite a 4.14 percent growth during the period
Garment exporters’ apex body, BGMEA Vice President Mahmud Hasan Khan said that a fall in garment prices in US and European Union markets recently had left Bangladesh short of achieving its desired exports target. The expected 10 percent growth seen in the past may be impossible to hold on to, he added.
BGMEA findings show Bangladesh garment prices in US markets slumped by 3.81 percent in 2015 compared to a 0.76 percent slump in 28 European Union markets in the same period.
However, in 2016, while garment prices fell 1.1 percent in the US market, it slid 3.19 percent in the EU markets in the same period.
Exports Development Bureau statistics released Monday showed 82 percent of all exports income was generated from the ready-made garment sector alone. Woven garments earned $8.35 billion, exhibiting a 2.3 percent growth and yet falling short by 9.4 percent short of the target.
