The country's trade deficit has surged by nearly $8 billion over the past five years, with the largest deficit recorded with India, Commerce Minister Khandaker Abdul Muktadir has said. He pinned the blame for this deficit squarely on the flawed policies of the previous government.
The minister shared this information in Parliament on Monday (June 8) while responding to a starred question from Jasim Uddin Ahmed, a ruling party lawmaker representing the Chittagong-14 constituency.
Khandaker Abdul Muktadir stated that Bangladesh faces its highest trade deficit with India. Additionally, the country also maintains trade deficits with other SAARC nations, including Afghanistan, Bhutan, and Pakistan.
The minister noted that while the previous administration's misguided policies triggered the widening deficit, other factors played a role. These include the global energy crisis, price hikes driven by the Russia-Ukraine war, the US dollar crunch, and volatile international market conditions.
He added that the high cost of importing energy, food, and industrial raw materials, combined with a sluggish growth in exports relative to imports, serves as a primary driver behind the widening trade gap.
According to data placed before the Parliament, the trade deficit stood at $16.24 billion in the 2020-21 fiscal year (FY), $28.13 billion in FY 2021-22, $27.18 billion in FY 2022-23, $21.50 billion in FY 2023-24, and $24.16 billion in FY 2024-25.
The minister also presented a breakdown of the country’s export earnings and import expenditures over the same period:
| Fiscal Year | Export Earnings | Import Expenditures |
| 2020-21 | $45.36 Billion | $61.60 Billion |
| 2021-22 | $60.97 Billion | $89.10 Billion |
| 2022-23 | $53.92 Billion | $78.29 Billion |
| 2023-24 | $51.11 Billion | $72.61 Billion |
| 2024-25 | $55.19 Billion | $79.35 Billion |
Government Initiatives to Boost Exports
The Commerce Minister assured the House that the current government has already taken various steps to narrow the trade deficit and boost export volume.
He highlighted that Bangladesh exported goods to 202 countries in FY 2024-25. However, since nearly 84% of the total export earnings still come from the Ready-Made Garments (RMG) sector, the government has taken initiatives to increase incentives in other potential sectors to reduce this over-reliance.
Exporters in sectors such as leather, jute, agricultural products, pharmaceuticals, ICT, light engineering, frozen food and fish, and plastics are now being provided with bond facilities against bank guarantees.
To diversify exports, the "One District One Product (ODOP)" program has been launched, identifying 14 specific products across 64 districts.
Furthermore, the Commerce Minister revealed that initiatives are underway to sign Free Trade Agreements (FTAs) with several countries, including Malaysia, Turkey, and New Zealand. Additionally, the third round of FTA negotiations between Bangladesh and Singapore is scheduled to be held in Dhaka in August 2026.
