Control appreciation of US dollar against taka: CCCI

Mahbubul Alam, president of the Chittagong Chamber of Commerce and Industry (CCCI), has requested the central bank to take necessary actions to control the appreciation of the US dollar against taka.

A letter sent by the CCCI president to Bangladesh Bank Governor Fazle Kabir on Saturday noted that a rise in the value of the US dollar against taka has been observed in the currency market recently, especially over the past two weeks.

In the current situation, intervention of the Bangladesh Bank is essential to keep the value of the dollar at a tolerable and reasonable level to keep the foreign exchange market stable, control inflation and maintain balance in the import-export trade, reads a press release issued by the CCCI

On 22 August this year, the dollar was exchanged at the rate of Tk85.10 on average in the country. On this day, state-owned Sonali Bank sold US dollars at Tk87 whereas it was sold at Tk87.80 in the open market.

Before the outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic in the country last year, the value of the dollar rose to a maximum of Tk84.95 in February, which was considered to be the strongest position of the dollar at that time.

The letter also mentioned that the sudden depreciation rise in the value of the dollar against the taka has led to fears that traders and entrepreneurs involved in imported consumer goods, capital equipment and industrial raw materials will suffer financially, and ultimately customers have to take the plight.

At the same time, the epidemic will harm the economy, which will hamper the recovery process.

To maintain the normal pace of import and export trade in the country, the central bank has taken effective measures to keep the currency market, especially the value of dollars, stable at acceptable levels  and regulate the market, CCCI president said in the letter.