Bangladesh’s exports plummeted over 4 per cent – export earnings declined by 4.08 per cent year-on-year to US $ 2.95 billion – in October as shipments of apparel products took a hit due to the COVID-19 pandemic, as per media reports.
However, according to the data released by the country’s Export Promotion Bureau on Monday, the overall export earnings in July-October of FY21 grew by 0.97 per cent to US $ 12.84 billion from what was US $ 12.72 billion in the same period of FY20.
The shipment of readymade garments, which typically contributes more than 84 per cent to the national exports, recorded a negative growth of 7.78 per cent in October even as in the 4-month period exports declined 1.2 per cent to US $ 10.45 billion in FY21 from what was US $ 10.58 billion in the same period of FY20.
The shipment of woven items in the said period was down 7.76 per cent to US $ 4.64 billion even as knitwear export in the 4 months of this fiscal year registered 4.76 growth to fetch US $ 5.80 billion from what was US $ 5.54 billion in the corresponding period of last fiscal year.
Export of woven items in October fell 14.43 per cent, while knitwear marked a decline of 2.19 per cent.
As per apparel exporters, the situation was a warning about faltering recovery in global demand, who went on to further express apprehensions that earning might fall further in the wake of coronavirus’s second wave in major export destinations.
Meanwhile, earnings from leather and leather products in July-October of FY21 fell by 10.63 per cent to US $ 283.2 million from US $ 316.9 million in the same period of last fiscal year while earnings from the home textile export increased by 47.86 per cent to US $ 354.25 million from US $ 239.59 million and earnings from export of jute and jute products also increased by 39.52 per cent to US $ 438.78 million from US $ 314.49 million, as per the data.
