Dhaka, Bangladesh (BBN) - Bangladesh’s overall export earnings rebounded in August after a dip in July on the back to higher shipments of apparel items.
Overcoming a 3.49-per cent negative growth in July, the first month of the ongoing fiscal year (FY) 2016-17, the export earnings in the July-August period registered a satisfactory growth due to a strong performance in the month of August, officials and exporters said.
The overall export earnings in August increased by 19.76 per cent to $3.30 billion from $2.75 billion in the same month of the previous year, according to the state-run Export Promotion Bureau (EPB) statistics.
However, the export earnings grew by 8.42 per cent to $5.83 billion during the July-August period of the FY 17 compared with that of $5.38 billion in the same period of the FY 16.
Terming the August growth 'very good', Commerce Minister of Bangladesh Tofail Ahmed said many people though that buyers’ would not come to Bangladesh after the Holey Artisan incident, but the export data did not prove it.
The export earnings growth in July-August proved that Bangladesh was on right track and the export earnings would increase more in the coming days, the minister told reporters in Dhaka on Monday.
Earnings from the country’s key sector, readymade garments, comprising knitwear and woven items, stood at $4.84 billion that marked an 8.0 per cent growth during the period.
Knitwear fetched $2.47 billion in July-August, recording 9.49 per cent growth compared to the corresponding period of last fiscal. It also surpassed the target by 3.97 per cent.
Earnings from woven items came to $2.37 billion, showing a 6.49 per cent growth. The earnings, however, fell short of target by 12.86 per cent set for the first two months.
The EPB data showed that leather and leather product exports in the July-August period of FY17 grew by 15.31 per cent to $226.74 million from $196.63 million in the same period of the last fiscal.
Earnings from leather footwear export in the two months of FY17 grew by 23.62 per cent to $120.59 million from $97.55 million in the same period of FY16 while the earnings from leather products increased by 18.96 per cent to $62.24 million.
Frozen food and fish exports in the July-August period of FY17 grew by 21.19 per cent to $89.51 million from $73.86 million.
Earnings from jute and jute goods in the two months of FY17 grew by 5.52 per cent to $140.75 million from $133.39 million in the same period of FY16.
Mahmud Hasan Khan, vice-president of the Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA), said that export witnessed a negative growth in July 2017 due to a long vacation for Eid-ul-Fitr that was celebrated in the month.
The growth might decline in September as many of the exporters rushed to make early shipments in August before Eid-ul-Azha which will be celebrated on September 13, he hinted.
BBN/SSR/AD