{"id":263256,"date":"2025-07-14T03:55:11","date_gmt":"2025-07-14T03:55:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/263256\/"},"modified":"2025-07-14T03:55:11","modified_gmt":"2025-07-14T03:55:11","slug":"from-fuels-to-fruits-imports-slump-on-depressed-demand","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/263256\/","title":{"rendered":"From fuels to fruits, imports slump on depressed demand"},"content":{"rendered":"<p class=\"rtejustify\"><strong>Highlights:<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li class=\"rtejustify\">Imports of fuel, clinker, fruits dropped significantly in FY25<\/li>\n<li class=\"rtejustify\">Decline signals economic distress despite record customs revenue growth<\/li>\n<li class=\"rtejustify\">Dollar crisis, high LC margins stall essential fuel product imports<\/li>\n<li class=\"rtejustify\">Clinker imports down, reflecting slowdown in construction, infrastructure projects<\/li>\n<li class=\"rtejustify\">Fruit imports fell sharply due to tariffs, LC restrictions, inflation<\/li>\n<li class=\"rtejustify\">Iron, steel, capital machinery imports declined, hurting industrial investment prospects<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p class=\"rtejustify\"><strong>Imports of some of Bangladesh&#8217;s highest revenue-generating goods \u2013 from diesel and furnace oil to clinker and fruits \u2013 dropped significantly in the just-concluded fiscal year 2024-25, according to Chattogram Custom House data.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p class=\"rtejustify\">This is more than a statistical blip. It is a symptom of underlying economic distress.<\/p>\n<p>        <a style=\"font-weight: bold; color: #2b4949; border-bottom: 1px solid #ccc; font-size: 18px;\" href=\"https:\/\/news.google.com\/publications\/CAAqBwgKMIivlQsw2ZKrAw?ceid=US:en&amp;oc=3\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><br \/>\n          <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.tbsnews.net\/sites\/all\/themes\/sloth\/images\/google_news.svg\" alt=\"The Business Standard Google News\" style=\"display: inline-block; margin-right: 15px; margin-bottom: 10px; height: 30px;\"\/><br \/>\n            Keep updated, follow The Business Standard&#8217;s Google news channel<br \/>\n          <\/a><\/p>\n<p class=\"rtejustify\">Chattogram port, which handles nearly 90% of the country&#8217;s imports, saw not only a decline in consumables but also in capital machinery, iron, steel, and other base metals \u2013 items essential for production, infrastructure development, and future investments.<\/p>\n<p class=\"rtejustify\">Industry insiders point to depressed demand, soaring letters of credit (LC) margins, elevated duties, and a prolonged dollar crisis that continues to dent business confidence.<\/p>\n<p class=\"rtejustify\">This decline comes even as Chattogram Custom House reported record revenue of Tk75,432 crore in FY25, up from Tk68,755 crore in the previous year.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"rtejustify\">But behind the numbers lies a telling shift: growth is coming less from import volumes and more from higher duties imposed on fewer goods.<\/p>\n<p class=\"rtejustify\">Moinul Islam, former president of the Bangladesh Economic Association and former professor of economics at the University of Chittagong, said the growth rate of the economy has not increased. As a result, imports of fuel oil, clinker and fruit have declined.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"rtejustify\">&#8220;There are several other factors as well. However, if imports are falling because of a slump in investment, that is not a good sign,&#8221; he told The Business Standard.<\/p>\n<p class=\"rtejustify\"><strong>Dollar crisis, policy pressures stall fuel imports<\/strong><\/p>\n<p class=\"rtejustify\">Bangladesh imports several fuel products including high-speed diesel, furnace oil, petroleum oils, and oils from bituminous minerals or crude.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"rtejustify\">These fuels are vital for electricity generation, fertiliser production, transport, and agriculture. Most imports are handled by the Bangladesh Petroleum Corporation (BPC).<\/p>\n<p class=\"rtejustify\">In FY25, diesel imports dropped 21.65%, furnace oil by 10.22%, and petroleum oils by 16.75%, compared to the previous fiscal year.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"rtejustify\">According to BPC sources, the decline stems from several factors: captive power plants shutting down, increased use of liquefied natural gas in transport, falling demand, and the taka&#8217;s depreciation.<\/p>\n<p class=\"rtejustify\">BPC officials, speaking on condition of anonymity, also cited reduced fuel consumption and dollar scarcity. At the beginning of FY25, banks were unable to meet BPC&#8217;s dollar needs, delaying payments to suppliers and straining relations with foreign oil companies.<\/p>\n<p class=\"rtejustify\">High-speed diesel was the single largest source of customs revenue in Chattogram. In FY25, diesel imports fell to 27.94 lakh tonnes from 35.67 lakh tonnes a year earlier \u2013 a drop of 7.72 lakh tonnes or 21.65%.<\/p>\n<p class=\"rtejustify\">Moni Lal Das, general manager (trade and operations) at BPC, said private firms are now also importing diesel.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"rtejustify\">&#8220;Some petrochemical companies are supplying fuel oil as a by-product of raw materials. For example, Bashundhara Group&#8217;s bitumen plant provides about 20% diesel as a by-product from crude bitumen.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p class=\"rtejustify\">Furnace oil, another top customs revenue earner in FY25, saw imports fall to 18.80 lakh tonnes from 20.95 lakh tonnes \u2013 a decline of 10.22%.<\/p>\n<p class=\"rtejustify\">Petroleum oil ranked fourth in terms of revenue. In FY25, imports stood at 14.19 lakh tonnes, down from 17.05 lakh tonnes \u2013 a drop of 2.86 lakh tonnes or 16.75%.<\/p>\n<p class=\"rtejustify\"><strong>Clinker imports reflect construction slowdown<\/strong><\/p>\n<p class=\"rtejustify\">Clinker \u2013 the essential raw material for cement production \u2013 also declined by 2.48% year-on-year, from 1,658 lakh tonnes in FY24 to 1,617 lakh tonnes in FY25.<\/p>\n<p class=\"rtejustify\">Though the percentage drop seems modest, it signals a broader slowdown in construction and public works. Clinker ranked third among import items in terms of revenue contribution.<\/p>\n<p class=\"rtejustify\">Amirul Haque, president of the Bangladesh Cement Manufacturers Association and managing director of Premier Cement, said, &#8220;After the recent change in the political landscape, mega infrastructure projects have lost momentum, and many large contractors have gone into hiding. As a result, clinker imports have declined.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"rtejustify\">&#8220;Around 5% of what was imported remains unused.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p class=\"rtejustify\"><strong>Fruit imports suffer as tariffs rise<\/strong><\/p>\n<p class=\"rtejustify\">Fruits such as apples and mandarins \u2013 both key revenue-generating imports \u2013 saw steep declines in FY25 as aggressive tariffs and LC restrictions took hold.<\/p>\n<p class=\"rtejustify\">Apple imports fell 11.27%, while mandarins plunged 22.76%. Importers blame the government&#8217;s decision to categorise fruits as luxury goods, triggering sharp hikes in supplementary duties and pushing LC margins to 100%.<\/p>\n<p class=\"rtejustify\">&#8220;These are essential for nutrition, not luxuries,&#8221; said Sirajul Islam, president of the Bangladesh Fresh Fruits Importers Association.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"rtejustify\">&#8220;We now pay Tk105.80 in duty per kilo of apples, up from Tk90. Duties on mandarins and pears have increased by more than Tk15 per kilo, and for grapes by Tk24,&#8221; he added.<\/p>\n<p class=\"rtejustify\">He mentioned that many small and medium-sized traders have already exited the market, unable to operate under such restrictive conditions.<\/p>\n<p class=\"rtejustify\">Apples ranked fifth among import items by volume at Chattogram, with FY25 imports dropping to 1.39 lakh tonnes from 1.57 lakh tonnes the year before.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"rtejustify\">Mandarins, which ranked 15th in revenue contribution, fell to 53,220 tonnes from 68,907 tonnes \u2013 a year-on-year drop of 22.76%. In terms of assessed value, total apple imports declined by 35.84%.<\/p>\n<p class=\"rtejustify\">These declines also reflect weakening consumer purchasing power, with Bangladesh&#8217;s inflation rate hovering above 9% for more than two years.<\/p>\n<p class=\"rtejustify\"><strong>Iron and steel<\/strong><\/p>\n<p class=\"rtejustify\">According to Bangladesh Bank data, imports of iron, steel, and other base materials \u2013 vital for industrial growth \u2013 stood at $4.75 billion between July 2024 and April 2025, marking a 4.4% decline year-on-year.<\/p>\n<p class=\"rtejustify\">Over the same period, capital machinery imports fell even more sharply, dropping 22% to $2.4 billion.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Highlights: Imports of fuel, clinker, fruits dropped significantly in FY25 Decline signals economic distress despite record customs revenue&hellip;\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":263257,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3090],"tags":[51,1700,16,15],"class_list":{"0":"post-263256","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-economy","8":"tag-business","9":"tag-economy","10":"tag-uk","11":"tag-united-kingdom"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@uk\/114849574103951611","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/263256","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=263256"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/263256\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/263257"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=263256"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=263256"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=263256"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}