Forex reserves cross $27b amid remittance, export boost
Reserves were $26.80 billion on 6 October
Bangladesh's foreign exchange reserves have crossed the $27 billion mark, according to the Bangladesh Bank.
"According to the IMF's BPM-6 accounting method, gross reserves currently stand at $27.12 billion, up from $26.80 billion on 6 October," the central bank spokesperson and Executive Director Arief Hossain Khan told reporters this evening.
A senior official of the central bank attributed the increase to rising remittance inflows and export earnings.
Keep updated, follow The Business Standard's Google news channel
Commercial banks, after selling dollars among themselves, are also selling additional dollars to the central bank, further boosting reserves.
When asked about the rise, Arif Hossain Khan told The Business Standard, "Reserves are increasing due to higher remittance inflows and the central bank's purchase of dollars from commercial banks through auctions."
Over the past three months, Bangladesh Bank has conducted 14 auctions, purchasing more than $2 billion from commercial banks.
Earlier in September, the reserves had fallen below $26 billion following a payment of $1.50 billion to the Asian Clearing Union (ACU). At that point, the gross reserves stood at $25.39 billion.
The ACU is an international transaction settlement system involving Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Iran, the Maldives, Myanmar, Nepal, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka.
Under the system, central banks of the member countries settle import liabilities every two months.
