Bangladesh’s earnings from merchandise exports witnessed a positive growth of 15.63% year-over-year (YoY) to $4.11 billion in November in the ongoing FY25.
This was $3.56 billion in the same period of last fiscal year.
In November, the readymade garment (RMG) sector, the highest export earner of the country, bagged $3.3 billion, fetching a positive growth of 16.25% YoY against 2023, which was $2.84 billion last year, according to the Export Promotion Bureau (EPB) data published on Wednesday.
The state agency provided this data, reflecting real-time shipment updates as per Asycuda World from the National Board of Revenue (NBR).
According to EPB data, Bangladeshi exporters shipped goods worth $19.9 billion, which was $17.81 billion in the first five months of FY24.
This was YoY growth of 11.76% in July-November of FY25.
In that period, export earnings from almost all major sectors witnessed positive growth.
Breakdown
EPB data also stated that in the July-November period, the RMG sector earned $16.11 billion from its global destinations, which was 12.34% higher than the $14.34 billion earned in FY24.
In this period, knitwear earned $8.95 billion, 12.23% higher than $7.97 billion, and woven earned $7.17 billion, 12.48% higher than $6.37 billion in FY24.
In this period, knitwear earned $8.95 billion, 12.23% higher than $7.97 billion, and woven earned $7.17 billion, 12.48% higher than $6.37 billion in FY24.
After repeated narrow growths for a long time, home textiles saw a positive growth of 5.03% to $326.83 million in the July-November period of FY25, up from $311.19 million in the same period last fiscal.
In the first five months of FY25, export earnings from agricultural products increased by 8.34% to $495.38 million, up from $457.25 million in the same period last fiscal year.
Export receipts from jute and jute goods experienced negative growth of 9.99% to $341.70 million, down from $379.62 million in July-November of FY24, EPB data stated.
Leather and leather goods experienced positive growth of 7.61% to $466.39 million, up from $433.42 million in the first five months of FY24.
Another potential export sector, engineering products, fetched a positive growth of 5.70% to $205.80 million, up from $194.71 million in last FY.
Behind the growth
EPB vice chairman Anwar Hossain said that the significant dynamics behind the growth were peak season for RMG shipment (holiday, Christmas, Black Friday, Thanks Giving), completion of backlog orders, year-end inventory management, 1% growth in developed countries, and 2% growth in developing countries, as per Unctad.
Hossain further said that although private investment was sluggish, the economy was not at standstill, and the growth indicated a favourable situation.
Talking to Dhaka Tribune, Mohiuddin Rubel, former BGMEA director, said that the global economy is gradually improving, which accelerated the purchasing practices of the consumers of the export destinations, which impacts exports.
“Moreover, we have the capacity and infrastructure to meet the buyer’s demands. It’s proven. For this, buyers also supported us during our transitional period,” he added.
He also said that buyers trusted and were committed to Bangladeshi manufacturers. They hoped that exports would remain positive in the coming days as the country was also regaining stability.
Another former director of the BGMEA, Shams Mahmud, said that the growth happened riding on the growth of some top exporters, as firm financial footing allowed them to perform well.
However, small factories are struggling and lack the economic resilience to absorb shocks.
He also said that the apparel sector has made significant progress after addressing the unrest in two major industrial zones—Ashulia and Gazipur.
However, factories in the Ashulia industrial belt continued to face challenges securing direct orders. The buyers remain hesitant to place orders in this zone due to concerns over the lingering effects of recent unrest.
As a result, these factories are now compelled to sustain their production primarily through subcontracting arrangements, he added.
According to the EPB, the revised export earnings in FY24 was $44.47 billion, which was $55.28 billion in mismatched data.
