Bangladesh’s foreign exchange reserves fell from $21.39 billion to $19.7 billion yesterday after the country paid $1.75 billion in regional import bills through the Asian Clearing Union (ACU).
The ACU, a Tehran-based organisation, facilitates payment settlements among nine member countries: India, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Iran, the Maldives, Myanmar, Nepal, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka.
For all latest news, follow The Daily Star’s Google News channel. Under the ACU mechanism, Bangladesh clears its import bills every two months, leading to a temporary decline in reserves after each payment.
As of March 6, the country’s forex reserves stood at $21.39 billion, calculated in accordance with the International Monetary Fund’s (IMF) BPM6 manual.
Due to a growing trend in remittance inflows in recent months, the central bank has been able to mitigate the sharp decline in forex reserves, particularly since the end of the Awami League-led government’s regime on August 5 in the face of mass uprising.
Last month, remittance inflows to Bangladesh rose 25 percent year-on-year to $2.52 billion as migrant Bangladeshi workers sent larger-than-expected amounts to their families back home for Ramadan-related purchases and Eid shopping.
