Bangladesh’s earnings from exports crossed $5 billion for the first time in the 2023-24 fiscal year in December. However, the figure still represented a 1.06 percent decline year-on-year.

Exports raked in nearly $5.31 billion in December 2023, down slightly from the $5.36 billion in December 2022, according to data from the Export Promotion Bureau on Tuesday.

Exports had trended down since October of the current fiscal year. As such, export growth has stagnated over the past three months.

The 2023-24 fiscal year got off to a strong start in July, with exports hitting $4.59 billion, a 15.26 increase year-on-year. It stood at $4.78 billion in August – a 3.8 percent increase year-on-year – and at $4.31 billion in September – a 10.37 percent increase year-on-year.

But in October, exports slumped to $3.76 billion – a 13.64 percent drop from the previous year.

It rose again to $4.78 billion in November, but it was still a 6.05 percent drop year-on-year.

Total exports since June stand at $27.54 billion.

Bangladesh had targeted export earnings of $62 billion in 2023-24 fiscal year. Accordingly, the country had to earn $30.11 billion in the first six months. This means exports trail targets by 8.55 percent. 

However, compared with the same period in the 2022-23 fiscal year, export earnings are up 0.84 percent.