Bangladesh’s exports surge 31% in Jul-Feb

Led by garments, agro products, home textiles and leather and leather goods, Bangladesh’s merchandise exports rose 30.84 percent to $33.84 billion in July-February period of the current fiscal year, according to Bangladesh Export Promotion Bureau (EPB) data released on Wednesday.

Bangladesh exported goods worth $4.29 billion in February, down from $4.85 billion a month ago. However, year-on-year export in February was 34.54 percent higher.

EPB data shows the country’s export earnings have remained over $4 billion per month since September, a development Bangladesh had never seen.

Of the July-February export earnings, $15.06 billion came from knitwear and $12.42 billion from woven. And, home textile exports increased by 35.98 percent to over $993 million during July-December period.

Two other major export sectors agricultural and leather and leather products also saw 28.36 percent and 29.61 percent growth respectively during the period.

“February was a month of 28 days. Also, there were four holidays and that’s why Bangladesh’s shipment declined slightly this month,” Shahidullah Azim, vice president of BGMEA, told the Business Insider Bangladesh.

Muhammad Hatem, executive president of Bangladesh Knitwear Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BKMEA), said Bangladesh’s export is on a steady growth line.

“Sometimes global market may become vulnerable to natural or man-made disasters. So, we may experience lower exports but it is not a matter of tension,” Hatem told the Business Insider Bangladesh.