Bangladesh shielded from direct effects of global meltdown

Bangladesh economy is largely shielded from the most immediate and direct effects of the ongoing global financial crisis, said the country's apex trade body chief yesterday.
However the nation's exposure to real economic effects of the financial crisis is likely to be greater through exports, remittances and foreign capital inflow channels, said Annisul Huq, president of the Federation of Bangladesh Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FBCCI).
He was speaking at the annual general meeting (AGM) of the trade body, said a statement.
Huq presided over the meeting, while FBCCI First Vice President Abul Kashem Ahmed and Vice President Abu Alam Chowdhury, among others, were present.
The president said the federation received Tk 20 crore from the government for infrastructure development of the district chambers.
He said the price monitoring activities of the FBCCI have been appreciated by the civil society.
FBCCI is also working towards reducing bank interest rate and service charges, Huq added.
The FBCCI president said the world economy for the year 2008 is very important for two reasons. The first half of the year witnessed unprecedented price hikes in oil and other commodities, which increased inflation, and the last quarter experienced credit crisis in the United States, which took a heavy toll on all major economies.
In Bangladesh context, he said in fiscal year 2007-08 economic performance was better than expected considering the effects of natural disasters in the first half of the fiscal year and higher international commodity prices.
The recovery in agriculture and services, and the rebound in exports in the second half of the fiscal year contributed to the reasonable 6.2 percent growth, he added.
The FBCCI president said the private sector is playing a significant role in the fields of investment, employment generation and savings of the country.
The private sector is also working successfully under public-private partnerships in many regulatory bodies such as Bangladesh Better Business Forum and Bangladesh Regulatory Reforms Commission, he added.
"A new generation of private sector entrepreneurs has emerged in Bangladesh who are well educated, hard-working, capable and eager to face the challenges of the globalised competitive market."
Total exports during fiscal year 2007-08 increased by 15.9 percent to US$ 14.11 billion compared to $ 12.18 billion during the previous fiscal year, Huq said.
He said in the first seven months of FY 2008, exports showed single-digit growth, but rebounded strongly during the end of the fiscal, driven by a rise in knitwear and woven garment exports.
"Knitwear export rose by 21.50 percent, while woven garment export increased by 10.90 percent.”
With the economic slowdown in the US and the European Union, the garment sector in Bangladesh is under growing pressure to augment productivity to stay competitive, the FBCCI chief warned.