A file photo shows farmers separating jute from stalks after rotting at a pond on the outskirts of Dhaka. Cultivation of jute, the main cash crop of the country, is likely to cross acreage target this year, according to Department of Agricultural Extension.
The country’s earnings from Jute export to India in the July-April period of the fiscal year 2015-16 grew by 133.80 per cent to US$ 149.24 million from US$ 63.83 million in the same period of the FY 2014-15, according to the Export Promotion Bureau data.
Data showed that the export earnings from India in the first 10 months of FY16 increased by 27.46 per cent to US$ 551.31 million from US$ 432.51 in the same period of the FY15.
Readymade garment export to India in the July-April period grew by 30.77 per cent to US$ 114.18 million from US$ 87.31 million in the same period of last financial year, EPB data showed.
Considering the export growth, exporters hoped that earnings from India is likely to be highest
ever in the current financial year reading on the performance of jute and apparel sectors.
According to the EPB data, export earnings from jute and jute goods fetched US$ 729.87 million in the first 10 months of the FY16 while the figure for raw jute, jute yarns and twin stood US$ 575.52 million in the same period.
‘The lion’s share of our raw jute goes to India as the country needs huge quantity of the fiber to meet its domestic demand,’ Md Rezaul Karim, former president of Bangladesh Jute Association, told New Age on Monday.
He hoped that the production of raw jute would increase more in coming harvesting season as farmers received satisfactory price of the product due to growing demand in home and abroad.
‘We are not against implementing mandatory jute packaging act but the government should not impose sudden ban on raw jute export without consulting the exporters,’ Rezaul said.
According to the statistics of Jute Directorate, a total of 7 lakh 382 bales of raw jute have been exported in the July-April period of the FY16 while the quantity was 7,36,817 bales in the same period of FY15.
Jute Directorate data showed that out of 7 lakh 382 bales of raw jute, highest 4,29,802 bales were shipped to India followed by Pakistan 1,66,041 bales.
Mahmud Hassan Khan, vice president of Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association, said that in terms of percentage the growth of RMG exports to India was satisfactory though the amount was insignificant.
‘We have scope to do better in the market especially in exporting high value-added products as the buying capacity of the middle class in India has been increasing gradually,’ he said.
Mahmud requested government to take initiative to remove the non-tariff barriers so that exporters can enjoy the benefit of duty-free market access.
Source: New Age
