Exports see 2.5pc fall till February

The global financial gloom sent the country’s exports down by over 2.5 per cent until February although other Asian countries like India, China and Pakistan are facing sharper downturn in export.
The country’s export growth fell to 15.38 per cent for the period of July-February from 18.16 per cent recorded between July and January in the current fiscal, according to an early forecast by the revenue board on Sunday.
Bangladesh’s export receipts would stand at $1207 million in last February, only $10 million higher than the export receipts in February 2009, said the revenue board officials.
The February export receipts would push up the overall earning at $10.3 billion in the first eight months of the current fiscal. The amount was $8.9 billion during the same period of the last fiscal.
The country’s export is, however, less exposed to the worst global financial downturn compared to sluggish export trends in major other Asian countries.
India’s exports are estimated to have dipped 21 per cent as it set to shrink to about US$11 billion in February 2009, compared to $14.23 billion in the same month of previous year.
It is struggling to achieve its revised target of $175 billion for 2008-09 from initially projected $200 billion.
The record decline in China’s exports accelerated in February as export in that month plunged 25.7 per cent from a year earlier.
Pakistan exported goods worth $1.266 billion in February 2009 against exports of $1.538 billion in February 2008 showing a decline of 17.68 per cent.
Local readymade garments associations apprehended that the export growth would slow further in the coming months and might stand at 10 per cent at the end of fiscal year.
The projection by the BGMEA and BKMEA, country’s two main organisations of the RMG sector, casts a bleak prospect to the projected annual export target of 16.3 billion for the fiscal year.
RMG sector accounting for around 75 per cent of the country’s annual export earnings.
The RMG associations said it will be difficult task for the country to fetch another $5 billion achieve the projected export target in the remaining four months of the fiscal year.
They have already demanded for 10 per cent cash incentive from the existing 5 per cent for the sector.
The country’s apex chamber body-FBCCI- has urged the government for a bailout package of around Tk 6000 crore with Tk 3300 crore to Tk 3500 crore for RMG sector.

The New Age