New Delhi, Aug 13 (IANS) Bangladesh’s trade deficit widened to a three‑year high of $27.28 billion in FY26, surging 34 per cent year-on-year as imports climbed while export earnings remained largely unchanged, a new report has said.
The report from Bangladesh-based The Daily Star cited the country’s central bank data showing exports touched $43.85 billion, almost flat year‑on‑year, while imports rose 10.5 per cent to $71.14 billion, marking the largest annual import increase since FY22.
Khondaker Golam Moazzem, research director at the Centre for Policy Dialogue (CPD) said global factors, rather than domestic demand, were the main drivers of the widening trade gap. Import value surged due to higher petroleum prices from West Asian conflict, while tariff barriers in key markets and supply disruptions dampened export orders, he said.
“Abdur Razzaque, chairman of the Research and Policy Integration for Development (RAPID), cautioned against reading the higher import bill as a sign of stronger investment or domestic activity,” the report said.
He pointed out that imports of capital-machinery and industrial raw materials have remained weak, indicating that the “increase in aggregate imports has not yet been accompanied by a broad-based revival in productive investment.
A larger trade deficit can be deemed healthy when it reflects imports of machinery, technology and other inputs that expand future productive and export capacity.
The RAPID chairman, however, maintained that recovery in imports is not necessarily a bad sign after years of import compression amid persistent inflation.
He added that greater availability of food, fuel, essential consumer goods and production inputs can help ease domestic supply constraints, improve competition and reduce price pressures.
Another analyst noted private credit growth stood at a historic low, pointing to subdued domestic demand and investment.
However, the widening deficit has not triggered an immediate balance of payments (BoP) crisis as remittances rose to a record $35.6 billion in FY26, providing a “large cushion that helped contain the current-account deficit to around $1.6 billion.”
—IANS
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