United News of Bangladesh

Bangladesh’s overall inflation rose slightly in November and rice remained the single largest contributor to food inflation, accounting for 40.28 per cent, according to the Monthly Economic Update and Outlook released by the General Economics Division (GED) of the Planning Ministry. The government report said general inflation increased to 8.29 per cent in November from 8.17 per cent in October. Food inflation rose to 7.36 per cent from 7.08 per cent, while non-food inflation remained broadly stable at around 9 per cent. Overall rice inflation fell to 12.26 per cent in November from 13.77 per cent in October, with medium rice declining to 10.96 per cent, fine rice to 15.43 per cent and coarse rice to 11.04 per cent. Read more: Rice procurement faces disruption due to 0.5% source tax Despite the downward trend, rice prices remained elevated and continued to exert significant pressure on food inflation. Fish and dry fish contributed 40.77 percent to food inflation, slightly higher than the previous month. Contributions from meat, edible oil and fat declined, while milk, cheese and eggs recorded a modest increase and vegetables continued to have a strong disinflationary impact, though the negative contribution eased in November. At a detailed level, inflationary contributions from all major rice varieties declined. Among protein items, beef, hilsa and pangash fish showed higher inflationary pressure, while soybean oil and liquid milk eased. Potato and onion continued to post negative contributions, with potato remaining strongly disinflationary. The report noted that the gap between price inflation and wage inflation narrowed in October but widened slightly in November. Govt approves import of 1 lakh mt rice from India, Pakistan In November, price inflation stood at 8.29 per cent compared to wage inflation of 8.04 per cent, indicating continued pressure on real incomes despite partial adjustment through wage growth. On the monetary front, bank deposits reached Tk 19.24 crore in October, registering a year-on-year growth of 9.62 per cent, reflecting sustained depositor confidence. Credit growth moderated, with public sector credit growth slowing to 21.43 per cent and private sector credit growth easing slightly to 6.23 per cent. Total domestic credit growth decelerated to 9.62 per cent in October. Weighted average interest rate (WAIR) spreads varied across banking groups. Foreign commercial banks recorded the highest spread at 8.88 per cent while specialised and development banks posted the lowest at 3.37 per cent. State-owned and private commercial banks showed similar spreads of around 5.6 per cent, a level the GED said is desirable for improving banking sector efficiency. Revenue collection by the National Board of Revenue (NBR) fell short of the monthly target in November 2025 although it posted double-digit year-on-year growth. Govt to procure 50,000 mt of non-basmati parboiled rice, 80,000 mt fertiliser Against a monthly target of Tk 36,326 crore, collections stood at Tk 29,658 crore, achieving 83.95 per cent of the target. However, revenue increased by Tk 3,688 crore or 14.2 per cent compared to November 2024. The report said Annual Development Programme (ADP) utilisation improved year-on-year during July–November of FY2025-26, but overall implementation remained sluggish. Despite higher spending, utilisation continued to lag behind targets due to administrative bottlenecks, slow approvals and procurement delays. Bangladesh’s external sector showed strong performance in November. Remittance inflows reached a record USD 2.89 billion while export earnings stood at about USD 3.89 billion, driven largely by the ready-made garments (RMG) sector. Foreign exchange reserves peaked for the year, with gross reserves at approximately USD 32.34 billion and BPM6 reserves at USD 27.58 billion, strengthening external stability. RMG exports accounted for over 80 per cent of total export earnings underscoring continued dependence on the sector and the need for diversification. Read more: Rice biggest driver of October’s food inflation in Bangladesh: GED The GED also highlighted a growing divergence between the real effective exchange rate and the bilateral taka–US dollar rate, indicating potential real appreciation pressures and risks to external competitiveness.