Bangladesh could more than double exports to the United Kingdom (UK) to about $9.5 billion by diversifying beyond garments and capturing 1 per cent of Britain’s $948.1 billion goods import market, up from its current 0.49 per cent share, business leaders and experts said on Wednesday.
It will need stronger standards, testing, and certification for market access, which is essential to expanding higher-value non-RMG exports, they said at a workshop jointly organised by the Export Promotion Bureau (EPB), Dhaka Chamber of Commerce & Industry (DCCI) and British High Commission.
Exports to the UK reached $4.67 billion in fiscal 2025-26, but 94 per cent came from readymade garments (RMG), leaving non-RMG shipments at just $282 million, according to an EPB presentation.
The presentation showed that each additional 0.1 percentage point of UK import-market share would be worth about $950 million a year on the 2025 import base.
The opportunity is concentrated in sectors where British demand is large but Bangladesh’s presence remains small.
For instance, the UK imported $32.8 billion of pharmaceuticals in 2025, compared with just $4.1 million from Bangladesh. Furniture imports totalled $13.8 billion against Bangladesh shipments of $1.2 million, while footwear exports from Bangladesh stood at $34.1 million in a $5.4 billion market.
Food also offers room for expansion. Bangladesh exported about $101 million of selected food products to the UK against a market worth roughly $64.7 billion across those categories.
Fish and crustaceans led Bangladesh’s non-apparel exports at $48.6 million, followed by footwear at $34.1 million and vehicles, mainly bicycles, at $30.1 million.
EPB Vice Chairman and CEO Mohammad Hasan Arif said stronger testing, certification and production capacity would be critical to expanding higher-value exports.
The presentation identified food-safety rules, medicines regulation, product standards, testing costs, origin documentation and private-sector sustainability requirements among the main barriers.
DCCI President Taskeen Ahmed also stressed product quality, certification, traceability, branding and market intelligence as priorities for exporters seeking to diversify.
Bangladesh currently receives broad duty-free access under the United Kingdom’s Developing Countries Trading Scheme (DCTS). The presentation said 99.8 per cent of exported goods qualify for duty-free treatment under the current least developed country arrangement.
After graduation and the transition period, about 92 per cent of goods are expected to retain duty-free access under enhanced preferences, while apparel access would remain unchanged under the scheme.
The policy window could help Bangladesh build market share in processed food, pharmaceuticals, footwear and leather goods, bicycles and light engineering, furniture, home textiles and other value-added products.
Bangladesh’s exports to the UK have already more than doubled from $2.07 billion in fiscal 2010-11 to $4.67 billion in fiscal 2025-26. Shipments grew at an average annual rate of 5.9 per cent through fiscal 2024-25.
Exports reached another $1.37 billion in the first quarter of fiscal 2026-27.
Experts said the challenge is now less about finding demand than building the compliance, certification capacity and buyer relationships needed to compete in a much larger market.
