Published in Dhaka Tribune on Wednesday, 31 December 2014.
Export earnings rise 14% in 11 months this year
Ibrahim Hossain Ovi
According to Export Promotion Bureau (EPB), Bangladesh earned $27.5bn from January to November, 2014, which was $24.17 for the same period in 2013
Bangladesh’s export earning rose by 14% to $27.5bn in 11 months of the calender year 2014 compared to the same period last year.
According to Export Promotion Bureau (EPB), Bangladesh earned $27.5bn from January to November, 2014, which was $24.17 for the same period in 2013.
Bangladesh has set $33.2bn export target for the current fiscal year 2014-15, up from $30.5bn in the previous fiscal year when total earnings stood at $30.17bn.
“The 14% growth in 11 months is acceptable and mostly came from the first quarter,” said Khondaker Golam Moazzem, additional research director at the Centre for Policy Dialogue (CPD).
“In the second quarter, the growth trend has slowed down and if we failed to retain the first quarter growth pace, it would be very tough to sustain the 14% growth,” said Moaazem.
It was also noticed that garment export to US market and EU countries has shown downward trend, which is a matter of concern, he said adding that this downtrend was also observed in some other sectors.
“The expected growth is not possible due to conservative attitude of buyers towards Bangladesh over the safety issues. To overcome the situation, Bangladesh has to resolve the problems domestically and concentrate on the new market exploration and product diversification.”
“To boost export volume, the government has taken steps in different sectors like agro-based industry, shipbuilding, leather and pharmaceutical,” Commerce Secretary Hedayetullah Al Mamoon told the Dhaka Tribune.
Mamoon said the government will provide cash incentives for non-traditional products to encourage diversification of products.