Thursday, 30 January, 2025
The country's foreign currency reserves have once again dipped below the $20 billion threshold, much lower than its highest level of $21.33 billion on Dec 29, 2024, marking a recurring trend in decline within a month.
According to the recent data released by the Bangladesh Bank on Thursday, Bangladesh's foreign currency reserves stood at $19.93 billion - a figure calculated using the International Monetary Fund's BPM-6 methodology.
A significant contributor to this decline was the $1.67 billion payment made to the Asian Clearing Union, or ACU, for import bills accumulated over November and December.
This figure peaked at $21.33 billion on Dec 29, 2024, the highest level since Jun 30, 2024, only to fall below $20 billion again three weeks later, after the ACU bill was paid.
The ACU is an inter-regional settlement system facilitating instant transactions between central banks in Asia. Member countries, including Bangladesh, India, Iran, Nepal, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Myanmar, Bhutan, and the Maldives, rely on the system for import-export settlements.
The country's foreign exchange reserves peaked at a record $48 billion during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020.
However, since the pandemic subsided, rising import costs, exacerbated by global fuel and food price surges and the ongoing war in Ukraine, have contributed to the steady decline of reserves, a trend that has persisted since 2022.
Just four days before the fall of the Awami League government, the central bank released its reserve figures, which stood at $20.48 billion on Jul 30, 2024. The same amount was recorded again on Aug 21, 2024.
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The country's foreign currency reserves have once again dipped below the $20 billion threshold, much lower than its highest level of $21.33 billion on Dec 29, 2024, marking a recurring trend in decline within a month.
According to the recent data released by the Bangladesh Bank on Thursday, Bangladesh's foreign currency reserves stood at $19.93 billion - a figure calculated using the International Monetary Fund's BPM-6 methodology.
A significant contributor to this decline was the $1.67 billion payment made to the Asian Clearing Union, or ACU, for import bills accumulated over November and December.
This figure peaked at $21.33 billion on Dec 29, 2024, the highest level since Jun 30, 2024, only to fall below $20 billion again three weeks later, after the ACU bill was paid.
The ACU is an inter-regional settlement system facilitating instant transactions between central banks in Asia. Member countries, including Bangladesh, India, Iran, Nepal, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Myanmar, Bhutan, and the Maldives, rely on the system for import-export settlements.
The country's foreign exchange reserves peaked at a record $48 billion during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020.
However, since the pandemic subsided, rising import costs, exacerbated by global fuel and food price surges and the ongoing war in Ukraine, have contributed to the steady decline of reserves, a trend that has persisted since 2022.
Just four days before the fall of the Awami League government, the central bank released its reserve figures, which stood at $20.48 billion on Jul 30, 2024. The same amount was recorded again on Aug 21, 2024.
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