Expats remitted Tk 1.3 trillion in 2018

Send
Golam Mowla
Published : 07:30, Jan 05, 2019 | Updated : 07:30, Jan 05, 2019

A woman counts U.S. dollar bills at her home in Buenos Aires, Argentina August 28, 2018. Picture taken August 28, 2018. REUTERS/File PhotoIn 2018, expatriates have sent $5.54 billion to the country from overseas.
In Bangladeshi Taka, this exceeds Tk 1.305 trillion, says a central bank report.
As per Bangladesh Bank report, expats remitted $1.202 billion in December, which is 3.35 percent higher than the same period in 2017.
Bangladesh Bank’s spokesperson and executive director, Sirajul Islam, told Bangla Tribune, “Due to multifaceted initiatives of the Bangladesh Bank, remittance is seeing a surge.”
Bangladesh Bank officials say that to increase income, the authority has clamped down on illegal mobile banking.
To meet the Dollar crisis in the banking sector, banks are trying to persuade expatriates to use banking channels to send back the money.
Executive Director of Policy Research Institute (PRI), Ahsan H Mansur, says that remittance has risen due to the rise in Dollar’s price against the Taka.
To increase export income, the price of Dollar has to be fixed at Tk 85.
Just like India, China, Vietnam, the local currency has to be devalued against the Dollar, he observed.
Remittance sent by expats contributes to 12 percent GDP to Bangladesh’s economy.
In 2018-19 first part (July-December), Bangladesh earned $20.49 billion which is 14.42 percent more than the same time last year.
As per Export Promotion Bureau, EPB, 83.34 percent of total export earning came from the textile sector.
The Bangladesh Bank foreign reserve has exceeded $32 billion and on Thursday (Jan 3) stood at $32.122 billion.

/tf/
Top