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Bangladesh Bank doubles loan limit for plastic industries
The Bangladesh Bank has doubled the loan limit for plastic industries from the Export Development Fund (EDF).
Published : 17 Sept 2014, 04:24 AM
Updated : 17 Sept 2014, 04:24 AM
All member units of the Bangladesh Plastic Goods Manufacturers & Exporters Association (BPGMEA) can now take maximum $1 million as loan, a BB circular said on Tuesday.
The central bank increased the fund to $1.5 billion to further assist the country’s export sector. Exporters are given loans from here with special interests. The interest rate now was 2.50 percent more from that of London Interbank Offered Rate (LIBOR).
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The rate therefore stays within 3 percent, according to Bangladesh Bank officials.
Plastic manufacturers have long been demanding that their limit for taking loans from the fund be raised, they said.
Prices of raw materials used in making plastic have gone up, much as demand for the products has grown. Traders say the previous limit - $ 500,000 - was insufficient.
BPGMEA President Md Jashim Uddin has welcomed the central bank’s decision saying it will lead to more exports as the sector will become more competitive globally.
The association has more than 3,000 members but only 500 were currently exporting.
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