Bangladesh on track to hit growth target-cbank chief
Rising business confidence from greater political stability and good a crop forecast have put Bangladesh back on track for 6,5 percent economic growth this fiscal year.
– The country is now poised to achieve 6,5 percent annual growth as envisaged in the current years budget announced in June 2008, central bank governor Salehuddin Ahmed said Wednesday.
Exports have grown more than 26 percent in the first five months of the fiscal year, about the same level as in the corresponding period.
Remittances from Bangladeshis working abroad, who serve as a major driver of growth, grew by more than 30 percent in the first six months, in line with the year-earlier period.
Bangladesh was largely unaffected by the global financial turmoil “thanks to its insulated banking sector and strong macroeconomic fundamentals,” said the bank governor.
– Unlike economies facing heavy capital outflows and credit crunches in the current global turmoil, credit and liquidity conditions remain easy here with no need for any blanket economy-wide monetary or fiscal stimulus, he noted.
The South Asian nations inflation as measured by the consumer price index (CPI) fell to 9,37 per cent on annual average in November 2008 from 9,80 per cent in October 2008 while on a point-to-point basis, the inflation dropped to 6,12 per cent from 7,24 per cent due to seasonal impact.
The inflationary pressure on the economy may decline further as prices of commodities have been falling in the global market.
– Even in a more downbeat scenario of significant slowdown in export, FY09 real GDP growth can be around six percent, Salehuddin Ahmed said, adding that the overall growth outlook would be clearer in the third quarter with information on post-Christmas export trends.
Kilde: www.worldbank.org
