Export earnings in July soared 26.54 percent to $3.2 billion, marking a strong rebound after lackluster performance in the fiscal year that concluded in June. July's receipts, however, narrowly missed the monthly target of $3.23 billion, according to data from the Export Promotion Bureau. Figure 1: National Export graph in Billions of USD (Source: EPB) The surge in exports was led by garment, whose shipments soared 17.08 percent year-on-year to $2.47 billion in July. Still, the sector's export earnings fell short of the monthly target by 5 percent. Figure 2: Export performance for FY 2017-18 July in Millions of USD (Source: NBR) Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA) Senior Vice-President Faruque Hassan attributed the positive monthly data for July to the clearing of backlogs from the Eid-ul-Fitr and Ramadan vacations in June. “Since the congestion at the Chittagong port has been eased and goods were delivered in July, export earnings reflected a sharp rise,” Faruque said. “In maintaining the growth rate, the government should ensure that there should be no congestion at Chittagong port”, he added. “It is most important to provide utility services to new factories as well as relocated RMG units, or else it would hit the production capacity hard”, Faruque said. In the just-concluded 2016-17 fiscal year, Bangladesh’s export earnings from the apparel industry saw only a 0.20% rise to $28.15 billion, the lowest growth figure for 15 years for the key foreign currency earner. However, Bangladesh’s overall export earnings stood at $34.83 billion in the last fiscal year, which is 1.68% higher than the $34.25 billion of a year ago.
