Dollar crisis in the country has worsened further due to the ongoing unrest over the students’ quota reform movement, leading to a surge in the exchange rate against Taka.
Bankers said they cannot sell dollars at the central bank-fixed rate of Tk 117 as the cost of purchasing dollars has shot up and as a result, settling of Letter of Credit (LC) has become costlier.
Currently, dollar is selling at Tk 122 to Tk 123 against Taka, according to sources of different banks.
The kerb market, or open market, has also become unstable as dollar rate has risen by over Tk 5 to Tk 6 in the past three days, hitting Tk 125 to Tk 126 per dollar.
It is learnt from many exchange houses that they cannot buy or sell dollars due to the supply crunch of the greenback.
Central bank data show remittance inflow dropped by 25.19 percent in July compared to the previous month (June), with the expatriates sending $190 crore in July, the lowest in the past 10 months.
Two weeks ago, each dollar was sold in the kerb market between Tk 118 to Tk 119 and it remained stable for a month. The dollar rate soared to Tk 122 on last Monday (July 29) and is now selling at Tk 125 to Tk 126. In view of this situation, the Moneychangers Association of
Bangladesh (MCAB) has set the dollar rate at Tk 119.
MCAB President MS Zaman told the Bangladesh Post, “We have carried out the instructions of Bangladesh Bank. We had nothing to do with it. There is no supply of dollars.”
Several money exchangers have stopped selling dollars, citing a lack of supply at the fixed rate of Tk 119 as the reason.
According to kerb market traders, dollars brought by expatriates, who visit home are usually sold in the open market, but supply of cash dollars has decreased as the number of expatriates returning home has declined.
Contacted, Director of the Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA) said the unrest has caused a four-day stagnation of our busineess, halting operations and shipments.
“In this situation, we have to pay our workers’ salaries and wages, but the hike in dollar exchange rate is taking heavy toll on us,” he added.
Mohammad Hatem, Executive President of BKMEA, warned that the dollar and reserves crisis will intensify in the coming days due to Bangladesh Bank's policy and it will make dollar market more unstable.
He also said the recent central bank’s decision would reduce the value added in knitwear exports to 40 percent, significantly increasing dollar spending on imports, worsening dollar crisis further and ultimately depleting foreign exchange reserves.
