Bangladesh’s imports have decreased by 14.40% year-on-year to $58.78 billion in the July-April period of the current financial year, according to official figures. While this decline offers some relief for the volatile foreign exchange regime, it also presents challenges to the country’s economy. The drop in import bills, which is nearly 9% compared to the previous year’s period, is largely driven by a shortage of US dollars.
Purchases of intermediate goods, including crude petroleum products, declined by 17.7% to $37.48 billion due to the forex crisis. Food grain imports, specifically rice and wheat, decreased by 4.5% to $22.03 billion, despite a 35.4% increase in rice imports.
The import of raw materials used by the ready-made garment industry, Bangladesh’s primary export earner, also experienced a decline. Capital goods imports decreased by 18.8%, with capital machinery imports falling by 13.8%. On the other hand, consumer goods imports rose by 1.9% to $4.92 billion, driven by increased purchases of spices, edible oil, and pulses.
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