Staff Reporter :
Bangladesh’s foreign exchange reserves have fallen to $18.46 billion following a $1.50 billion payment to the Asian Clearing Union (ACU) for September and October import bills, as per the International Monetary Fund’s Balance of Payment Manual 6 calculations. The payment was made on November 9.
Before this bimonthly payment, reserves stood at $19.96 billion. According to conventional central bank calculations, Bangladesh’s gross reserves are now at $24.19 billion post-ACU payment.
Hosne Ara Shikha, Executive Director and spokeswoman for Bangladesh Bank, shared this information with the media. Previously, a $1.36 billion payment was made to the ACU in September for July and August import bills.
The ACU facilitates payment settlements among member countries, including Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Iran, the Maldives, Myanmar, Nepal, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka.
Over the last three months, remittances surpassed $6 billion, and export earnings exceeded $10 billion, helping to alleviate pressure on import Letters of Credit (LCs) as banks maintained adequate dollar reserves due to a stable supply in the market.
Export growth reached 10.80% in the first four months of the fiscal year, July to October, totalling $15.78 billion.
Meanwhile, remittance inflows rose by more than 32% year-on-year, reaching $8.83 billion during the same period.
In an unscheduled meeting, the central bank governor cautioned the Managing Directors and Chief Executive Officers of 17 banks against delays in opening LCs, despite the availability of sufficient dollars.
He warned that future delays could lead to administrative action.
Bank MDs assured the governor that the foreign exchange market is now stable and likely to improve further by January.
Bangladesh’s foreign exchange reserves reached a historic high of over $48 billion in August 2021.
However, increased demand post-Covid, coupled with the impacts of the Russia-Ukraine war, led to dollar sales from reserves, reduced foreign loans and investments, and increased debt repayments.
Reserves, which stood at $46.39 billion at the end of FY21, declined to $41.82 billion in FY22 and further to $31.20 billion by the end of FY23.
Usable reserves fell below $13 billion during FY24, while on August 4, reserves were $25.96 billion, with $15.53 billion in usable reserves.