Exchange rate of Taka will gain again: Mahmood

Finance Minister A H Mahmood Ali on Thursday said the exchange rate of Taka will gain again once the reserve is stabilised.

"The 'Crawling Peg' system has been introduced as a primary measure to make the exchange rate market-based. As a result, exports will be encouraged and remittances through official channels will increase as well," he said.

Besides, he said though the financial account is facing a deficit, it is expected that it will reduce in the medium-run and foreign exchange reserve will continue to grow, reports BSS.

The finance minister expressed the views while placing around Tk 7.97 lakh crore national budget for FY25 at Jatiya Sangsad here this afternoon.

Describing expatriate workers as the driving force of Bangladesh's economy, he said their remittance plays an important role in ensuring the good living of their family members.

"It also contributes to strengthening our foreign exchange reserve," he added.

He hinted that the opportunity for our unskilled and semi-skilled migrant workers may narrow down in the overseas market in future since we are observing revolutionary transformation of technology caused by artificial intelligence (AI), Robot and other machine-dependent production systems due to the fourth Industrial Revolution (IR).

The minister mentioned that Bangladesh must, therefore, take initiatives to create a conducive environment for the new generation so that they can acquire necessary skills and knowledge to face the challenges arising out of fourth IR.

"Side by side, we have to create opportunities for up-skilling and re-skilling them to meet the global standards," he added.

He informed that during July-May period of the current fiscal year, a total of $21.3 billion of remittances repatriated into the country which is around 9.82 per cent higher than the remittances of the corresponding period in the last fiscal year.

The Current Account stood at a surplus of $5.8 billion at the end of March this year since the exports continued to grow, non-essential imports fell, and remittances picked up compared to the previous fiscal year, he added.