As per a Hindustan Times report, a rebound in garment orders after demand crashed during spring shutdowns is helping to revive the Bangladesh economy.
Remittances from Bangladeshi workers employed overseas have also recovered, helping to relieve pressures from a pandemic quasi-shutdown during the spring. The Asian Development Bank is forecasting the economy to grow at a robust 6.8 per cent annual pace in the fiscal year that ends in June if current conditions persist.
That’s a much brighter outlook than in April-May, when global clothing brands suspended or cancelled orders worth more than $3 billion, affecting about 4 million workers and thousands of factories.
According to BGMEA, Bangladesh’s garment exports rose by 0.6 per cent to $3.9 billion in July, after plummeting 83 per cent to $520 million in April. Imports, which are reported on a quarterly basis, began recovering earlier, rising 36 per cent in May-June.
In August, exports rose 4.3 per cent from a year earlier, to $2.96 billion, mostly driven by apparel shipments, according to the government’s Export Promotion Bureau. Garment shipments totaled $5.7 billion in July and August.
