RMG hiccups pull down July-Jan export receipts

The country’s merchandise shipments fell by 5.21 per cent in the first seven months of the current fiscal year over that of the same period of last fiscal year (FY). The monthly export earnings during the period under review maintained a downtrend except in the months of July and December. The total export earnings during the July-January period of the fiscal year (FY) 2019-20 reached $22.19 billion against $24.17 billion earned in the corresponding period of the last fiscal year. The earnings also fell short of the target by 13 per cent set for the period, according to the latest data of the state-run Export Promotion Bureau (EPB). The single-month export earnings in January last edged down by 1.70 per cent to $3.61 billion. Overall export earnings from the garment items, both knitwear and woven, fell by 5.71 per cent during the seven-month period of the current fiscal year. The apparel sector fetched nearly $19.06 billion during the July-January period of FY ’20 against $20.21 billion during the same period a year earlier. Earnings from woven garments fell by 6.29 per cent to $9.44 billion, the EPB data show. Proceeds from knitwear exports during the period fell by 5.13 per cent to nearly $9.62 billion. The woven and knitwear exports fetched $10.07 billion and $10.14 billion respectively in the July-January period of last fiscal year. The EPB data showed that earnings from home textile stood at $442.67 million, down by 9.7 per cent from $490.2 million. It fell short of the target by 14.19 per cent. Unit prices of locally-made garment items declined by 2.49 per cent to US$ 13.65 per kg in January last from US$ 14.0 per kg in January 2019. Jute and jute goods exports during the period, however, climbed by 20.82 per cent to $602.49 million from $498.66 million. Agro-products like vegetables, fruits and spice fetched $603.91 million, up by 4.19 per cent. Pharmaceuticals exports grew by 8.11 per cent to $85.70 million. Frozen and live fish exports fetched $337.33 million in the first seven months of this fiscal, registering a negative growth of 6.58 per cent. Export of engineering products fell by 2.28 per cent to $194.82 million from $199.36 million. The country brought in $40.53 billion from goods exports during the last fiscal, of which about $34.13 billion came from textiles and clothing alone

Source: https://today.thefinancialexpress.com.bd/first-page/rmg-hiccups-pull-down-july-jan-export-receipts-1580838995

Less trade eases current account deficit in H1

Although the country’s merchandise trade gap widened, the deficit in current account balance declined significantly in the first half (H1) of the current fiscal year 2019-20. The central bank statistics released on Tuesday showed that the trade gap recorded at $8.22 billion in the July-December period of the current fiscal year. The trade gap registered a 5.38 per cent increase over the same period of the past fiscal year (FY’19) when it was $7.80 billion. Provisional estimation of H1 balance of payments (BoP) also showed that the deficit in services trade stood at $1.65 billion during the period under review. The figure was $1.62 billion during the same period of FY’19. Current account deficit, however, stood at $1.34 billion in the first half of the current fiscal year which was $3.38 billion in the same period of the last fiscal year. Workers’ remittance jumped by 25 per cent during the period under review while export and import of goods declined by 5.90 per cent and 2.72 per cent respectively. Financial account maintained a modest surplus of $1.79 billion in the July-December period. There was, however, a surplus of $2.97 billion in the same period of FY’19. A modest increase in inflow of foreign direct investment (FDI) and decline in medium and long-term loan contributed to keeping the financial account surplus at low level. As a result, overall balance of payments registered $27 million surplus in July-December which was in a deficit of $513 million.

Source: https://today.thefinancialexpress.com.bd/first-page/less-trade-eases-current-account-deficit-in-h1-1580839060

Country backpedals on growth goal

Bangladesh backtracks from its ambitious economic growth target as it takes a ‘conservative approach’ amid possible local and global shocks, analysts have said. In its next eighth five-year plan (FYP), the government looks to expand gross domestic product (GDP) at an 8.5-per cent rate in the terminal fiscal year (FY) 2024-25. In the Perspective Plan 2021, it set a target to the economy expand at a 10-per cent rate at the terminal FY 2021. The development strategy was framed in 2010. Meanwhile, the government has proposed to trim the GDP target in its macroeconomic framework in the next FYP to be implemented between FY 2021 and FY 2025. General Economics Division (GED) is framing the eighth FYP as the current seventh FYP expires in FY 2020. As per the draft FYP, economy will grow at 8.2 per cent in FY 2021, 8.3 per cent in FY 2022 and 2023, 8.4 per cent in FY 2024 and 8.5 per cent in FY 2025. On the mooted macroeconomic policy, Prof Alam said: “We haven’t taken a conservative approach to the growth target in the eighth FYP. We’ve taken a pragmatic approach.” Meanwhile, the country’s GDP growth in FY 2019 was buoyant as economy expanded at an 8.15-per cent rate. Analysts say GDP growth has broken past records as it is on a steep rise even after entering into the “7.0-per cent growth club” three years ago in FY 2015-16. Economy grew at the rate of 7.11 per cent in FY 2016, breaking the “6.0-per cent growth trap” after nine long years. In the national budget, the finance minister set an 8.2-per cent growth target for FY 2019-20 aiming to take it on a higher trajectory within the next few years. The GDP growth target is 0.05 percentage points higher than the 8.15-per cent final estimation in FY 2019. According to the budget speech, the total GDP size may rise to $347.7 billion in FY 2020 from last fiscal’s $301.9 billion.

Source: https://today.thefinancialexpress.com.bd/first-page/country-backpedals-on-growth-goal-1580839113