Dhaka, Bangladesh (BBN)– Bangladesh’s overall import orders increased slightly in this February over the previous month, mainly due to higher opening of letters of credit (LCs) for petroleum products import, officials said.
“The country’s overall import orders increased in February 2012 mainly due to rise in opening of fresh LCs for fuel oil import,” a senior official of the Bangladesh Bank (BB), the country’s central bank, told BBN in Dhaka, adding that the import orders for petroleum products rose in February for harvesting of Boro crop across the country.
Opening of LCs against import, generally known as import orders, increased by 3.61 percent in February over January 2012, according to the central bank statistics.
On the other hand, the settlement of LCs, generally known as actual imports, decreased by 6.79 percent in the month under review over the previous month, the BB officials added.
LCs against import worth $3.004 billion were opened in the second month of this calendar year, against $2.928 billion of the previous month. Besides, import LCs worth $2.878 billion were settled in February, compared to $3.088 billion in January.
“The increasing trend of fuel oil import may continue until April to meet their increasing demand for oil-based power plants and irrigation purposes,” another central banker said.
The import orders for petroleum products increased by 46.49 percent to $612.38 million in February 2012 from $418.03 million in January. Besides, LCs against import worth $322.81 million were settled in February against $264.20 million in January.
Bankers also said the actual import declined during the period under the review mainly due to liquidity pressure on the country’s money market.
“The import may increase slightly in the month of April, because the country’s money market is now in a stable position,” a senior official of a leading private commercial bank said.
BBN/SSR/AD-22Mar12-8:30 am (BST)
