According to a report, Bangladesh is not making the most of its potential for regional trade in Asia, since less than 5 per cent of its overall exports are directed towards China and India, two of the region’s largest economies, and the ASEAN nations.
Based on the analysis, Bangladesh exported goods and services worth just US $ 2.64 billion to China and India in 2022 out of a total of US $ 4,050 billion in annual exports.
It further stated that of Bangladesh’s almost US $ 60 billion in exports in 2022, only 4.5 per cent went to China and India, demonstrating a weak trade flow to the two nearby economic powerhouses.
The report Post-LDC graduation: Opportunities, Challenges, and the Way Forward was carried out by Atiur Rahman, a former governor of Bangladesh Bank. In it, he provided examples of Bangladesh’s low export to Asian nations, including South Korea, Japan, China, India, and China.
About 40–60 per cent of Bangladesh’s export potential to Southeast Asia and the ASEAN countries, according to Rahman, an emeritus professor at Dhaka University, is still unrealized.
At the regular lunchtime meeting of the American Chamber of Commerce (AmCham) in Bangladesh, held at the Sheraton Dhaka hotel in the capital, he delivered the study’s findings.
In November 2026, Bangladesh will graduate from the least developed country (LDC) category and lose its most-favoured nation (MFN) tariffs and duty-free market access to partner countries, which may cut the country’s baseline exports by 7-14 per cent, he said.
He suggested for continuation of the cash incentive on export receipts as long as possible as different export sectors need some time to prepare to be more stable in the volatile global economic situation.
The former central bank top official also recommended that the government should instead increase the incentive, if possible.
In addition, he called on the government to act to stabilise the currency rate, rein in inflation, encourage product and destination diversification in exports, and increase remittances.
According to him, the capital market should be consistent, and the development of human capital should be prioritised through more private sector involvement in higher education and other training providers.
The results of a research project titled “Development of labour conditions in Bangladesh for sustainable growth” were presented in a panel discussion at the AmCham event by Md. Humayun Kabir, additional labour secretary.
