Bangladesh trade deficit widens to $24bn as exports fall, imports rise

Bangladesh's merchandise trade deficit widened sharply in the first 11 months of the 2025-26 fiscal year as export earnings declined while imports increased, according to the latest balance of payments data released by the Bangladesh Bank.

The central bank's figures, published on Wednesday, show that the trade deficit reached $23.98 billion during the July-May period, nearly 24 percent higher than the $19.38 billion recorded in the corresponding period of the previous fiscal year.

The deterioration comes after two consecutive governments pursued measures to restrain imports amid a prolonged dollar shortage.

Those policies had helped narrow the trade gap significantly in the 2023-24 fiscal year, and the downward trend initially continued under the interim government led by Muhammad Yunus during 2024-25.

However, the latest data indicate that the trend has reversed, primarily because of weaker export earnings despite continued import controls.

During the first 11 months of FY2025-26, Bangladeshi businesses imported goods worth $64.02 billion, up 6.3 percent from $60.25 billion during the same period a year earlier.

At the same time, export earnings fell by 2 percent year-on-year to $40.04 billion, compared with $40.87 billion in the corresponding period of FY2024-25.

The combination of higher imports and lower exports pushed the merchandise trade deficit to nearly $24 billion.

The Bangladesh Bank's analysis also shows that the trade gap had narrowed in the previous fiscal year.

In FY2024-25, the merchandise trade deficit declined by 9 percent to $20.45 billion, compared with $22.43 billion in FY2023-24.

The deficit had stood even higher at $27.38 billion in FY2022-23, when the country faced mounting pressure on its external accounts amid rising global commodity prices and a shortage of foreign currency.