Marked growth in import orders for industries in July :: Financial Express :: Financial Newspaper of Bangladesh
Marked growth in import orders for industries in July
Published : Tuesday, 01 October 2013
Siddique Islam
The country's overall import orders for the industrial sector grew significantly in July last because of higher imports of capital machinery, particularly those for apparel, power and energy sectors, officials said Monday.
Opening of letters of credit (LCs), generally known as import orders, for industrial sectors has increased by 14.90 per cent to US$ 2.49 billion in July 2013 from $2.17 billion a year ago, according to the central bank statistics.
"The import orders of capital machinery for readymade garment (RMG), energy and power sectors have picked up significantly during the period under review," a senior official at the Bangladesh Bank (BB) told the FE.
The import orders for capital machinery of garment industries increased by 31.31 per cent to $47.27 million in July last from $27.54 million a year ago, while opening of LCs for energy and power sectors rose to $38.35 million from only $1.69 million.
The BB official also said steady growth of export, particularly woven garments and knitwear, has contributed to opening of more LCs for capital machinery of the apparel and clothing sectors.
"Entrepreneurs have been encouraged to invest in a bigger way in the RMG sector against the backdrop of shift in buying orders from China to Bangladesh due mainly to competitive lower labour cost," the central banker explained.
Regarding the energy and power sector, the BB official said the rising trend in importing capital machinery for the power and energy sector has started since March this year, which has continued until July last.
The import orders for the overall capital machinery increased by 62.45 per cent during the period under review, while opening of LCs for intermediate goods grew by 14.84 per cent.
The import orders for capital machinery rose to $254.98 million in the month of July from $156.96 million in July 2012, while opening of LCs for intermediate goods reached the amount of $322.53 million from $280.86 million.
Talking to the FE, a senior official at a leading private commercial bank (PCB) said the import orders for capital machinery, particularly for textile, garment, power generation and pharmaceuticals, increased in the period under review to meet the growing demand for them.
"The country's overall import orders for the industrial sector may fall in the coming months because of political uncertainty centring the next general election," the private banker noted.
He also said most of the entrepreneurs are closely observing the current political situation now, and following a 'go-slow' strategy to avert financial risks.
"Weak infrastructural facilities and inadequate gas and power supply have also discouraged the entrepreneurs from investing in the industrial sectors," the banker observed.
LCs against industrial raw material imports worth $1.21 billion were opened in the first month of the current fiscal year (FY) 2013-14 compared to $1.17 billion in the same period of the FY `13.
The import orders of machinery for miscellaneous industries increased by 39.33 per cent to $477.86 million in July last from $342.98 million, the BB data showed.
Marked growth in import orders for industries in July
Published : Tuesday, 01 October 2013
Siddique Islam
The country's overall import orders for the industrial sector grew significantly in July last because of higher imports of capital machinery, particularly those for apparel, power and energy sectors, officials said Monday.
Opening of letters of credit (LCs), generally known as import orders, for industrial sectors has increased by 14.90 per cent to US$ 2.49 billion in July 2013 from $2.17 billion a year ago, according to the central bank statistics.
"The import orders of capital machinery for readymade garment (RMG), energy and power sectors have picked up significantly during the period under review," a senior official at the Bangladesh Bank (BB) told the FE.
The import orders for capital machinery of garment industries increased by 31.31 per cent to $47.27 million in July last from $27.54 million a year ago, while opening of LCs for energy and power sectors rose to $38.35 million from only $1.69 million.
The BB official also said steady growth of export, particularly woven garments and knitwear, has contributed to opening of more LCs for capital machinery of the apparel and clothing sectors.
"Entrepreneurs have been encouraged to invest in a bigger way in the RMG sector against the backdrop of shift in buying orders from China to Bangladesh due mainly to competitive lower labour cost," the central banker explained.
Regarding the energy and power sector, the BB official said the rising trend in importing capital machinery for the power and energy sector has started since March this year, which has continued until July last.
The import orders for the overall capital machinery increased by 62.45 per cent during the period under review, while opening of LCs for intermediate goods grew by 14.84 per cent.
The import orders for capital machinery rose to $254.98 million in the month of July from $156.96 million in July 2012, while opening of LCs for intermediate goods reached the amount of $322.53 million from $280.86 million.
Talking to the FE, a senior official at a leading private commercial bank (PCB) said the import orders for capital machinery, particularly for textile, garment, power generation and pharmaceuticals, increased in the period under review to meet the growing demand for them.
"The country's overall import orders for the industrial sector may fall in the coming months because of political uncertainty centring the next general election," the private banker noted.
He also said most of the entrepreneurs are closely observing the current political situation now, and following a 'go-slow' strategy to avert financial risks.
"Weak infrastructural facilities and inadequate gas and power supply have also discouraged the entrepreneurs from investing in the industrial sectors," the banker observed.
LCs against industrial raw material imports worth $1.21 billion were opened in the first month of the current fiscal year (FY) 2013-14 compared to $1.17 billion in the same period of the FY `13.
The import orders of machinery for miscellaneous industries increased by 39.33 per cent to $477.86 million in July last from $342.98 million, the BB data showed.
