Bangladesh’s exports fell year-on-year for the fourth consecutive month in November.
The Export Promotion Bureau (Export Promotion Bureau) said the country shipped $3.89 billion in goods in November, marking a 5.54 per cent decline from the same month last year.
Exports, however, rose 1.77 per cent from October, and a strong 25 per cent surge in July helped total earnings in the July–November period edge up 0.62 per cent to $20.03 billion.
Month-on-month figures have shown modest improvement for two straight months, but year-on-year numbers continue to signal persistent weakness.
Much of the downturn stems from falling shipments across major product categories.
Readymade garments (readymade garments), which account for over 80% of the export basket, dropped 5 per cent year-on-year to $3.31 billion in November.
Knitwear exports were down 6.9 per cent and woven garments slid 2.9 per cent compared to the same month last year.
The exceptional July spike, driven by pre–United States tariff shipment rushes, helped keep readymade garments earnings marginally positive at 0.09 per cent growth in the July–November period.
Other key sectors also struggled in November. Home textile exports fell 7.75 per cent year-on-year to $66 million, while headgear exports dropped 19 per cent to $29.64 million.
Bangladesh Apparel Exchange Managing Director Mohiuddin Rubel said Bangladesh has not yet recovered from the impact of the United States’ counter-tariff measures.
“Nearly 80 per cent of our total exports go to the European Union (European Union) and US markets, yet apparel sales in both destinations have declined, which is reducing our export volumes,” he told Times of Bangladesh.
He said competing countries have redirected large volumes towards the European Union, benefiting from the changed market dynamics.
“On the other hand, we have not been able to take an equally assertive position in the European Union market—this is another major factor,” Rubel added.
He expects export performance to improve after the Christmas and New Year retail cycles.
Leather and leather products export grew 5.14 per cent year-on-year to $99 million, which grew 9.88 per cent to $512 million in the first five months of the fiscal year.
Primary commodities saw a 20.12 per cent decline in November, including a 24.68 per cent fall in agricultural products, a 9.31 per cent drop in frozen and live fish and a sharp 51.28 per cent plunge in tobacco shipments.
Also, most of the other manufactured goods slipped 4.96 per cent. Cement, salt and stone exports dropped 38.34 per cent, wood and wood products fell 61.31 per cent, ores, slag and ash slid 27.64 per cent, plastic products declined 15.49 per cent, jute and jute goods were down 10.30 per cent and cotton and cotton products fell 21.09 per cent.
A handful of sectors, however, registered growth. Exports of ships, boats and floating structures jumped 167.45 per cent, engineering products rose 11.97 per cent, carpets increased 15.02 per cent, rubber products climbed 6.39 per cent, chemical products expanded 8.35 per cent and fruits surged 131.43 per cent.
