Export earnings increased by 9.51pc in first quarter of FY24
Staff Reporter :
Earnings from merchandise exports from Bangladesh rose by 9.51 per cent to $13.68 billion in the first quarter (July-September) in the current financial year of 2023-2024, compared to $12.49 billion in the same period of FY23, thanks to increased exports of readymade garment (RMG).
The earnings in the first quarter of FY24, however, fell short by 2.16 per cent of the government set target of $13.99 billion, according to the recent Export promotion Bureau (EPB) data.
The country’s merchandise trade in September 2023 grew by 10.37 per cent to $4.31 billion year-on-year from $3.90 billion in the same month of 2022.
Export earnings from readymade garments in the July-September period of FY24 increased by 13.07 per cent to $11.61 billion from $10.27 billion in the same period of FY23.
Earnings from Knitwear export increased by 19.70 per cent to $6.76 billion, compared to $5.65 billion in the same period of the past financial year.
Besides, woven garments export grew by 4.97 percent to $4.85 billion from $4.62 billion in the same period of FY23.
On the other hand, export earnings from leather and leather goods in July-September of FY24 decreased by 18.44 per cent to $267.49 million from $327.97 million in the same period of the past financial year.
Likewise, Home textile export fell by 46.39 per cent to $189.5 million from $353.48 million in the same period of FY23. Besides, export earnings from agriculture products also fell by 5.2 percent to $257.49 million from $271.62 million in the same period of FY23.
Jute and jute goods export decreased by 9.67 per cent to $221.89 million from $245.65 million in the same period of the past fiscal year, the EPB data showed.
Export earnings from frozen and live fish decreased by 25.05 per cent to $99.54 million from $132.8 million while shrimp export fell by 32.30 per cent to $67.77 million, the EPB data showed.
Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA) president Faruque Hassan termed the growth as positive amid the current global situation.
He also said that the RMG of the country was still in a sustained position despite fall in demands at global destinations.
“We posted earnings growth because we ventured into high-value clothes manufacturing and buyers increased unit price for those goods, though export volume has now decreased,” he also said.
However, Fazlee Shamim Ehsan, vice-president of the Bangladesh Knitwear Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BKMEA), stated that the reality is that they have been dealing with an order difficulty since the middle of last year.
Even then, the majority of factories, including his own, were operating at less than full capacity, he added.
Meanwhile, the government has set a target to export goods worth $62 billion in the current fiscal year of 2023-24, seeking an 11.59 per cent year-on-year growth.
