From close to the beginning of 2022, as soon as the Russia-Ukraine conflict started, we said that it would be important to keep an eye on whether, how, and if, it affects exports from Bangladesh due to disruptions in supply chains, etc. In our September 2022 report, we reported from sources that there would be a fall-off in exports due to this reason (even though the war had not impacted exports in earlier months, surprisingly); “however, Shahidullah Azam, vice-president of the Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA), has said that exports are likely to decline in the next few months, with Mohiuddin Rubel, director of BGMEA, saying that the decline will be because of the ongoing geopolitical tensions and resulting volatility in the economy.”
Sure enough, the very next month, in our October 2022 report, we reported that “Bangladesh’s export earnings in September 2022 fell 6.25% year-on-year, with a total amount of USD 3.90 billion, compared to USD 4.16 billion in September last year. This was the first fall for 13 months in Bangladesh, and can be attributed to a fall in demand for apparel products due to the economic slowdown caused by the Russia-Ukraine war. The export earnings for September 2022 fell around 7% short of the government’s target of USD 4.20 billion.”
In our March 2023 report, we said “There are cautiously positive signs that the pharma industry in Bangladesh is slowly recovering from the challenges it faced as a result of the US dollar crisis, with year-on-year figures showing improvement.
Going forward, it remains to be seen whether this momentum can be kept up.” By August, the pharma industry, despite its struggles at different times of the year, had indeed made a good recovery.
In our September 2023 report, we reported from sources that: “Pharmaceutical exports from Bangladesh grew nearly 15% year-on-year in the first two months of the current fiscal year as drug-makers secured international tenders.” The combined amount for July and August stood at USD 31.64 million, according to the Export Promotion Bureau.’
Also, in March 2024, we further reported that: “Bangladesh’s pharmaceutical industry seems to be on the steady path to recovery as the opening of letters of credit (LCs) for raw materials is gaining momentum after the difficulties brought about by the Covid-19 pandemic and Russia-Ukraine war. The opening of LCs in the sector in the July 2023-January 2024 period (the first seven months of the current fiscal year) was USD 636.26 million, a 14% increase year-on-year from the corresponding period in the previous fiscal year. Industry experts have said that as the dollar crisis in the country is slowly easing, the global supply chain is also slowly getting back to normalcy, and this has helped the pharma industry” hinting at even more recovery in the sector.
