Export earnings took a hit in February as the country received $4.63 billion in February, down from $5.13 billion in January.
This snapped the country's $5 billion three-month export figures from November last year until January this year.
However, February's figure was 7.81% higher year-on-year, up from $4.29 billion in the same month of last year, according to data from Export Promotion Bureau (EPB).
The receipts stood at $37.08 billion in the first eight months of the current fiscal year FY23, an increase of 9.56% from the identical period a year earlier.
The receipts were $33.84 billion in the July-February period of FY22.
Earnings from apparel exports, which accounted for about 85% of national shipments during the eight months, rose 14.06% year-on-year to $31.36 billion in July-February.
On the other hand, Knitwear exports brought home $17.06 billion, up 13.21% compared to a year earlier.
Woven shipment generated $14.30 billion, an increase of 15.08%, EPB data showed.
In February, the apparel sector earnings increased by 12.30% to $3.94 billion compared to the same month previous FY.
An abnormal trend has taken place in the export earnings of the country for the last few months.
The mentionable trend is that except the RMG sector, the major export earners of the country fetched negative growth which is alarming in sustaining the growth trend in the coming months.
Apart from the apparel sector, among other major earners, only leather and leather goods witnessed a positive growth of 6.04% to $78332.4 million, higher than $684.98 million in the same period of the last FY, making the sector the second earner.
With consecutive growth over a certain period, the earnings from the home textile sector have been declining since last November.
The sector earned $6769.9 million in July-February of FY23, fetching a negative growth of 22.53% from $993.8 million in the same period of the last FY.
The promising agricultural sector also witnessed a negative growth of 256.9% to $623.2 million in July-February period of FY23, lower than $853.2 million in the mentioned period of FY22.
The earnings from jute products also dropped by 23.68% to $610.08 million in the mentioned period, which was $799.42 million in the same period of the last fiscal year.
The engineering sector, another promising sector of the country, also experienced negative growth of 34.63% to $349.32 million in the July-February period of FY23, lower than $534.38 million in the same period FY22, EPB data stated.
Talking to Dhaka Tribune, Shahidullah Azim, vice president of the Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA), said that it is good that the growth of the RMG export is positive.
However, the growth in apparel shipment was based on value as raw materials prices were high, it was not as quantity growth, he added.
He also said that a number of big factories are doing really well but the majority of exporters are running their units at 60%-70% capacity.
Regarding purchase orders, he said that there are inquiries but the number of placing orders is decreasing and about the negative trend of growth of all major sectors, he said that the economy of the major destinations is on a shrink due to the Ukraine-Russia war, inflationary pressure and global economic turmoil.
“For this reason, consumers are on a go-slow policy which impacts their purchasing practices. Moreover, their purchasing capacity also curtailed due to economic turbulence,” he added.
Professor Mustafizur Rahman, a distinguished fellow of the Center for the Policy Dialogue (CPD), told Dhaka Tribune that except for the RMG and leather, major sectors saw negative growth.
The growth of the export earnings was input-driven, meaning due to the hike of the price of the raw materials, the export earnings soared. There was no sufficient value addition for which it won't bring much good news for the reserve, he added.
The growth in export was price-driven, not volume-driven for which it soared as gross but not as net, he added.
Regarding the fall of major earners, he said that the recession-like situation in the destinations impacted the demand which affected the export of other sectors which had been doing very well in the last few years.
“The economic situation in the West is gradually improving which may have a positive impact on our exports. Moreover, depreciation of the currency also improved the competitiveness of our exporters,” he added, noting that shifting orders from China also helped Bangladeshi exporters.
“In order to sustain this growth, we must identify where the problem lies in other sectors - in production, demand, or competitiveness.”
Bangladesh has to diversify its export as well as market and creating a regional market will also help, he added.
Bangladesh bagged $52.08 billion through exports in fiscal year 2021-22, registering a 34.38% year-on-year growth.