The country’s current account balance deficit reached $15.32 billion in July-April of the current fiscal year as import payments continue to rise with rising domestic demand, spiralling commodity prices across the world, and continuous depreciation of the taka against the US dollar.
However, in July-March period, the deficit amount was at $14.15 billion, adding $1.17 billion in one month.
The information was disclosed on Thursday by Bangladesh Bank in its monthly report on the Balance of Payment (BoP).
In July-April period of this financial year, import expenditure increased by 41.42 per cent to $68.67 billion, compared to the same period of the previous year.
Export earnings increased by 34.58 per cent to $35.36 billion. However, the trade gap widened to $27.56 billion.
The trade deficit during July-March was $24.90 billion, which means the deficit has increased by $2.6 billion in one month.
Besides, in the first 10 months (July-March) of the current financial year, remittance income decreased by 16.25 per cent compared to the same period of the previous year, causing the current account balance deficit to increase further.
