Thomson Reuters
Bangladesh forex reserves top record $10 billion
11.11.09, 03:51 AM EST
DHAKA, Nov 11 (Reuters) - Bangladesh's foreign exchange reserves reached a record $10 billion, the central bank said on Wednesday, following a steady rise since February on higher inflows of remittances.
The reserves jumped to an all-time high after the country received nearly $650 million in funding from the Asian Development Bank, a senior central bank official said.
A sharp decline in imports amid the global economic slump also helped the reserves to rise, the official said.
Imports for July-September decreased by 19 percent from a year earlier to $5.12 billion, while exports plunged 11 percent to $3.87 billion, shrinking the trade deficit to $1.25 billion from $1.94 billion in the same period of last year.
Officials said strong remittances from more than 6 million Bangladeshis working abroad helped offset the impact of the trade shortfall and kept the overall balance of payments in surplus.
Bangladesh received $3.6 billion in remittances in July-October, 21 percent higher than the previous year.
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Bangladesh forex reserves top record $10 billion
11.11.09, 03:51 AM EST
DHAKA, Nov 11 (Reuters) - Bangladesh's foreign exchange reserves reached a record $10 billion, the central bank said on Wednesday, following a steady rise since February on higher inflows of remittances.
The reserves jumped to an all-time high after the country received nearly $650 million in funding from the Asian Development Bank, a senior central bank official said.
A sharp decline in imports amid the global economic slump also helped the reserves to rise, the official said.
Imports for July-September decreased by 19 percent from a year earlier to $5.12 billion, while exports plunged 11 percent to $3.87 billion, shrinking the trade deficit to $1.25 billion from $1.94 billion in the same period of last year.
Officials said strong remittances from more than 6 million Bangladeshis working abroad helped offset the impact of the trade shortfall and kept the overall balance of payments in surplus.
Bangladesh received $3.6 billion in remittances in July-October, 21 percent higher than the previous year.
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