Government Targets 15% Export Growth Despite Continued Decline in Export Earnings

❐ BD Digest Desk

The government has set a target of 15 percent growth in merchandise exports for the current fiscal year 2026-27, at a time when the country’s export growth is under pressure due to the war situation in West Asia, the continuous imposition of tariffs by US President Donald Trump’s administration, and weak global demand.

According to the government’s target, the export earnings of goods will increase from about $48 billion in the outgoing fiscal year 2025-26 to $55 billion in the current fiscal year. That is, a plan has been made to earn an additional export earnings of about $7 billion in a year. The target has also been set to increase service exports at the same rate. As a result, the government’s target is to take the total export earnings of goods and services to $63.4 billion.

Commerce Minister Khandaker Abdul Muktadir announced the export target for the current fiscal year at a press conference held at the conference room of the Ministry of Commerce at the Secretariat on Sunday.

The minister said, “A target of 15 percent growth has been set for goods and 15 percent growth for services. If this target is achieved, goods exports will be about $55.2 billion and services exports will be $8.2 billion. In total, total exports will stand at $63.4 billion.”

According to data from the Ministry of Commerce, the service sector generated export revenue of about $7 billion in the outgoing fiscal year.

The export sector did not get the expected momentum throughout the last fiscal year. The merchandise export revenue was about 13 percent lower than the set target. The merchandise export target for the fiscal year 2025-26 was $55 billion. However, the final revenue was about $48.3 billion.

However, a major decline was averted as export earnings rose significantly in June, the last month of the fiscal year. Export earnings in that month reached $4.20 billion, about 26 percent more than in the same period the previous year. After eight consecutive months of declining exports, there was some growth in April, but it declined again in May.

The Commerce Minister expressed optimism about achieving the target in the new fiscal year despite the current global and domestic situation. He said, “I hope we will be able to break out of the recession in exports this fiscal year.”

In this regard, he said, after the new government took office, various initiatives have been taken to create a business-friendly environment. The government believes that the benefits of initiatives to simplify the process of starting and running a business, reduce the time, and create an investment-friendly environment will be seen quickly.

The press conference raised questions about whether the target of increasing export earnings by 15 percent is realistic in the face of political instability, gas and electricity shortages, inflation, and factory closures, or is it just an ambitious announcement?

In response, the Commerce Minister said that there were concerns among businessmen about policy stability due to political uncertainty and the interim government in the last fiscal year. That uncertainty has largely disappeared after the elected government took office.

“Policy predictability has increased now. The government has been working with stakeholders since day one to remove barriers to business and expand trade,” he said.

The minister said that various steps have been taken in the current budget to increase industrialization and exports, such as expanding BSCIC’s industrial zones, taking initiatives to utilize unused industrial plots, and involving local entrepreneurs.

The Commerce Minister highlighted several other positive aspects for export growth.

He said that a major uncertainty regarding Bangladesh’s graduation from the Least Developed Country (LDC) list has been removed. Two steps of the UN technical stage have already been successfully completed. As a result, there will be no uncertainty among importers regarding market benefits for at least the next three years.

He also said that negotiations for signing free trade agreements (FTAs) with several countries are in the final stages. He said that FTAs ​​could be signed with at least five countries this year. Preparations for FTA negotiations with the European Union are also underway.

The minister said, “The message that Bangladesh is a reliable partner for global business is reaching the international market positively. We hope that this will be reflected in exports in the coming days.”

However, he acknowledged that global wars, economic slowdown and various internal challenges still remain. Even so, the government believes that by addressing these obstacles, it is possible to achieve 15 percent export growth in the current fiscal year.