Reserves to slip below $22b after ACU payment next week

The country’s foreign exchange reserves are set to slip below $22 billion after clearing the import bills of $1.2 billion with the Asian Clearing Union (ACU) next week, according to Bangladesh Bank sources.

The reserves stood at $23.06 billion as of 30 August. As such, it will be slightly more than $21.86 billion after the import bill payment.

The ACU payment for the July-August period is expected to be $100 million higher than the previous two months and will be cleared on Monday, according to a senior official at the central bank.

“Although the country’s overall imports decreased during the period, the imports from Asian countries were on an upward trend,” he added.

According to data from the central bank, the country last month cleared $1.1 billion in ACU payments for the May-June period.

Source: The Business Standard