Bangladesh’s forex reserves grow while India and Pakistan’s drop

News Desk :
Despite the global crisis, Bangladesh reportedly performed better than neighbouring India and Pakistan in foreign exchange reserve management, the countries’ central banks have said.
Last month’s data indicates that while the forex reserves of India and Pakistan declined, Bangladesh was the only exception of the three countries.
According to the latest data from Bangladesh Bank, the country’s foreign exchange reserves stood at $32.22 billion on January 31. On February 15, foreign exchange reserves increased to $32.6 billion and have been increasing since then as well.
In this regard, the bank officials said recently the exports and remittances returned to a positive trend, while imports had decreased due to various regulatory measures. As a result, foreign exchange reserves are gradually increasing.
Bangladesh Bank spokesperson Mezbaul Haque noted as Ramadan and Eid-ul-Fitr were ahead, the remittance flow would increase in the next few months as well.
Haque estimated that the forex reserves would come into a comfortable position, but added that things would not change overnight.
Meanwhile, according to a prediction by the International Monetary Fund (IMF), at the end of the current fiscal year, Bangladesh’s foreign exchange reserves will decrease to $30 billion. However, IMF said the amount would increase continuously from the next financial year.
The report added that at the end of the financial year 2026-27, the country’s reserves would exceed $50 billion for the first time.
The organization has predicted these outcomes in a report on Bangladesh’s economy based on various indicators.
Meanwhile, to keep the economy in check, Bangladesh Bank continued to sell dollars almost every day. As authorities have increased vigilance to control the main enemy of remittances, the Hundi, the overall dollar supply situation has improved.
In accordance with data from Bangladesh Bank, export earnings were $32.45 billion or an average of $4.64 billion per month in the seven months till January of the current fiscal year.
Meanwhile, in November, December, and January, exports averaged $5.2 billion per month. Remittance and expatriate income increased to $1.96 billion in January, while it was below $1.7 billion in December. The first ten days of February saw $640 million in remittances, and hence, it is expected to increase further this month.
Besides, by implementing several measures, such as increasing the LC margin up to 100%, and enhancing supervision, the import expenditure has been reduced by 2.15% to $38.13 billion in the six months till December. As a result, the overall strain on the foreign exchange reserves is gradually decreasing.
According to the information provided by the Bangladesh Bank, after paying the import bill to the Asian Clearing Union (ACU) on January 9, Bangladesh’s foreign currency reserves stood at $32.52 billion.
Although the reserves had fallen below $33 billion after that day, the Bangladesh Bank officials have shown prudence in managing the reserves in a month.
Meanwhile, India’s forex reserves saw the biggest decline in the past 11 months last week.
In this regard, Indian news outlet Times of India published a report that said the fall was likely due to the fact that the Reserve Bank of India is selling dollars to keep the value of the Rupee stable.
The latest data released by the Reserve Bank of India on Friday showed that the country’s reserves fell by $8.3 billion and now stand at $566.95 billion. This is the biggest decline since April last year.
Meanwhile, according to the data from the State Bank of Pakistan on February 3, the foreign exchange reserves of Pakistan, which is in a severe financial crisis, decreased by $170 million, and now stand at $2.9 billion.