Muhammad Ayub Ali :
The country’s gross domestic product (GDP) growth rate declined to 7.1 in the fiscal 2023-24, from the provisional estimate of 5.82 according to the Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics’ final report for the last fiscal year.
The per capita income also decreased to $2,738, a $46 drop from the provisional figure of $2,784, due to the increase in total population and depreciation of the local currency against the US dollar.
Taskeen Ahmed, current President of the Dhaka Chamber of Commerce & Industry (DCCI) said to the New Nation that for increasing industrial growth repo rate should remain fewer than 10 percent, apart from the law and order situation keep sound for attracting investment because no one will not invest their money in an unfriendly environment.
Though the GDP growth rate was 7.10 percent and 5.78 percent, respectively in the final estimate of the 2021-22 and 2022-23 fiscal years
However, the growth rate decreased by 3.51 percent in the industrial sector. The growth in this sector this information was revealed in a report published by the Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics (BBS) on Monday.
According to the final estimate, the growth rate of the industrial sector in the 2023-24 fiscal years was 3.51 percent which was 6.66 percent in the provisional estimate.
In terms of sectoral growth, the GDP growth rate of the industrial sector was 8.37 percent. The growth rate of the industrial sector in the fiscal year 2023-24 has decreased by 4.86 percent compared to the fiscal year 2022-23.
The growth rate of the industrial sector has decreased significantly due to the slowdown in the production of export-dependent industries, especially the ready-made garment industry.
The growth rate of the agricultural sector in the fiscal year 2023-24 has been 3.30 percent which was 3.21 percent in the provisional estimate.
The growth rate of the agricultural sector in the final estimate of the fiscal year 2022-23 was 3.37 percent. The growth rate of the agricultural sector in the fiscal year 2023-24 has decreased by 0.07 percent compared to the fiscal year 2022-23.
The services sector growth rate is 5.09 percent which was 5.80 percent in the provisional estimate. The GDP growth rate of the services sector was 5.37 percent. Compared to the 2022-23 fiscal year, the growth rate of the services sector in the 2023-24 fiscal year has decreased by 0.28 percent.
BBS says that the main reason for the decrease in GDP growth in the final estimate compared to the provisional estimate is the slowdown in industrial production in the context of the revised estimate of export earnings.
BBS calculations also reveal that the GDP size at current prices in the last fiscal year 2022-23 was Tk 50,2,0007 billion ($450 billion).
