Banglabandha port reopened to import yarn from Nepal

Bangladesh has again allowed traders to import yarn from neighbouring Nepal through the Banglabandha Land Port – a major port in Northern Bangladesh – after a two-decade-long restriction.

The National Board of Revenue issued a statutory regulatory order last week to this end. 

"Only acrylic yarn has been provisioned to be imported to the country through the port. Nepal had a request to open the port for all kinds of yarn. Local importers also had the same demand," a senior revenue official, wishing to remain unnamed, told The Business Standard. 

"The door has been opened for only export-oriented traders only," he added and noted that the Bangladesh Land Port Authority will soon take necessary steps accordingly.

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Banglabandha Dry Port opens for Nepali traders to export all types of Nepali yarn to ?? ending the 2 decade-long restrictions to export Nepali yarn through this port. <br><br>Confident that it will be an imp. breakthrough to boost ??-?? trade! <a href="https://twitter.com/MofaNepal?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@MofaNepal</a> <a href="https://t.co/Tw8wfZcxO4">https://t.co/Tw8wfZcxO4</a></p>&mdash; Nepal Embassy, Dhaka (@NepalinBD) <a href="https://twitter.com/NepalinBD/status/1612032920683966466?ref_src=twsrc%5...">January 8, 2023</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>[/embed

When contacted, Bangladesh Land Port Authority Chairman Md Alamgir said they are yet to receive the revenue board order regarding the development. "Action will be taken immediately after we receive that."

In 2002, Bangladesh imposed the restriction on yarn import through the land port seeking to safeguard the local cotton yarn industry from foreign products. The country instead opened up its Benapole Land Port and Chattogram Sea Port for yarn import.

"Banglabandha Dry Port opens for Nepali traders to export all types of Nepali yarn to Bangladesh, ending the two-decade-long restrictions to export Nepali yarn through this port. [We are] confident that it will be an important breakthrough to boost Nepal-Bangladesh Trade," Nepal Embassy in Dhaka tweeted Sunday. 

Meanwhile, a Nepalese news portal said polyester yarn is one of the major export items of Nepal. "According to Nepal Rastra Bank (NRB), the country exported yarn worth Rs 3.30 billion in the first four months of the current fiscal year. Nepal earned Rs 9.51 billion by exporting this product in the fiscal year 2021/22. The figure was Rs 7.34 billion in the FY 2020/21," it added.