Bogura’s export revenues fell by 81% in 7 months of 2024

According to data from the Chamber of Commerce and Industry in Bogura, export revenues in the first seven months of this year fell by 81% compared to the same period last year.

In 2023, the district’s export revenues have already fallen by more than 40% compared to 2022, reflecting a downward trend that has now accelerated.

Traders cite political and economic instability as the main reason for the decline in exports.

The number of product categories exported from Bogura has also decreased significantly.

While 12 types of products were exported in 2022, the number dropped to seven in 2023 and now stands at just three. These include rice bran oil, jute products and water pumps.

From January to July 2024, Bogura exported products worth $3.31 million, compared to $30.09 million in 2023.

Last year, Bogura’s average monthly export value was $25.08 million, which has now dropped to $551,455 per month.

According to Md Sairul Islam, director of the Bogura Chamber of Commerce and Industry, the quality of products from Bogura has not deteriorated.

“However, the unstable political situation in the country has created an unfavourable business environment. Moreover, many companies are now receiving Dhaka product origin certificates, which has contributed to the decline in exports from Bogura,” he said.

Sairul Islam expressed hope that exports would increase as soon as the political situation stabilizes.

Bogura exporters point to global political instability last year and the ongoing domestic political crisis this year as significant factors affecting their business.

Businessmen also cited the global economic slowdown, the Ukraine-Russia war and the dollar crisis as contributing factors. The overall decline in exports and imports made it difficult for the district to recover export revenues.

In the previous years, Bogura exported a wider range of products including well filters, air filters, vegetables, soya products, Saudi royal garments, garments, net caps, handicrafts, digital scales, tube wells, Nakshi Kantha, butter catfish and barbel fish.

However, the list of export products has shrunk, reflecting the broader challenges facing the region’s export sector.

Hasan Jute Mill has been the largest exporter from Bogura this year, exporting jute products worth $1.22 million till July. In 2023, the company exported jute products worth over $16.69 million, topping the export list. The company also topped the export list in 2022.

However, Managing Director of Hasan Jute Mill, ATM Shafiqul Hasan Jewel, noted that the price of raw jute, the mill’s main product, was very low last year.

He also mentioned that a significant amount of raw jute is exported from the country, leading to shortage of raw materials for their products. This, coupled with political instability, has affected their production and export capacity.

Rice bran oil, exported by Bogura Multi Oil Mills Ltd, is the second most exported product from the region this year, with an export value of $1.04 million.

Majumdar Products Limited, once the leading exporter of rice bran from Bogura in 2020, has not been on the export list since last year.

The company’s managing director, Chitta Majumdar, explained that earlier, rice bran was exported to India on a large scale. However, the export has reduced as the company now supplies crude oil to TCB in the domestic market.

Moreover, the price of rice bran oil in India declined and the economic situation in Sri Lanka discouraged the company from exporting there.

Subhas Prasad Kanu, Managing Director, North Bengal Golden Jute Mill, mentioned that the political crises in 2024 led to loss of foreign orders, which slowed down the pace of exports. He expressed hope that the situation would normalise soon.

Tamim Agro Industries Limited, which was the largest exporter from Bogura in 2021, moved to the third position this year, exporting goods worth $380,000 from January to July.

In previous years, Bogura products have been exported to various countries in the Middle East, the United States, Sri Lanka, Germany, China and Great Britain.

However, since last year, Bogura products have been exported exclusively to India. For example, in 2022, air and well filters worth $11,250 manufactured in Bogura were exported to the UK, but the product is no longer on the Bogura chamber’s export list.

Irrigation pumps, once a sought-after export from Bogura, have also seen a drop in demand. Exporters point out that the district’s journey into foreign markets began around 2000 with the export of irrigation pumps, but that demand has declined over time.

The Bogura Chamber of Commerce and Industry reported that goods worth $57.2 million were exported from Bogura in 2022, down from $58.3 million in 2021.

The decline reflects the broader challenges the region faces in maintaining export earnings in the face of global and local instability.

In 2020, Bogura’s export value amounted to $52.62 million, while in 2019 the district earned $72.33 million from export.

This downward trend has continued since 2018, when the county exported goods worth $34 million. This situation has further worsened due to the current political and economic challenges.