Bangladesh’s foreign exchange reserves dropped to $30.31 billion following the latest settlement with the Asian Clearing Union (ACU), according to a statement issued Sunday (September 7) by the Bangladesh Bank.
Under the IMF’s Balance of Payments and International Investment Position Manual (BPM6) accounting standard, the reserves now stand at $25.40 billion.
The decline came after the country paid import bills for July and August through the ACU mechanism. On Thursday, prior to the payment, the gross reserve was reported at $31.43 billion, while the BPM6-compliant figure stood at $26.45 billion.
Back in early July, a similar ACU payment of $2.02 billion had driven the gross reserve down to $29.53 billion and the BPM6 reserve to $24.56 billion.
The country's reserves had previously seen an upturn at the end of June, reaching $31.72 billion in gross terms — the highest in 28 months — buoyed by a surge in remittance inflows, strong export performance, and disbursements of external loans from international lenders. Under the BPM6 system, reserves at that point rose to $26.69 billion.
Bangladesh had reached a record high of $48 billion in reserves in August 2021. That spike was attributed to a pandemic-induced surge in remittances and a slowdown in imports, as many expatriates sent increased funds home while others returned to the country amid global disruptions.
However, reserve levels saw a persistent decline thereafter, eventually falling to around $20 billion by mid-2024.
Since assuming office, the current government has tightened controls on illicit financial flows and curbed the illegal hundi system, helping channel more remittances through official channels. These reforms, alongside external loans secured from institutions such as the IMF, ADB, and JICA, have contributed to recent improvements in the reserve position.
The Asian Clearing Union, headquartered in Tehran, facilitates regional trade settlement among member states, allowing them to offset import-export transactions every two months. Bangladesh, whose imports from ACU member countries exceed its exports, typically makes payments of $1.5 to $2 billion during each settlement cycle.
Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Iran, Maldives, Myanmar, Nepal, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka are ACU members.
SMS/
