The pandemic has also devastated Bangladesh’s economy with record drops in export and other sectors with the people across the globe hunkering down to avoid infection. Asked about import, central bank officials said they could not even remember when was the last time imports dropped to as low as $1.6 billion. No one opened LCs other than importers of drugs and some essential commodities ahead of the Ramadan,” its Executive Director Kazi Saidur Rahman said, terming the situation “distressing”. “Plummeting import means plummeting investment, which will lead to a shrink in jobs,” researcher Ahsan H Mansur said. According to central bank data, LCs worth $1.95 billion were cleared in April.

Source: bd News24 May 17, 2020 21:45 UTC