India reemerges as No 1 import source for Bangladesh: report

Dhaka, June 28 (PTI) - India has reemerged as the number
one import source for Bangladesh in 2007-08, beating China to
the position after two years, official estimates suggest.

According to central Bangladesh Bank estimates, the
country imported Chinese goods worth USD 2.29 billion, while
imports from India was worth USD 2.45 billion during July-
March of the current fiscal.

Until the 2004-05 fiscal, India had traditionally been
the biggest source of Bangladeshi imports, mainly foods and
raw materials for many industries including apparels, but
China continued to be the number one import source for
Bangladesh during the last two fiscal years, 2005-06 and
2006-07, according to the NewAge newspaper.

Bangladesh imported USD 14.64 billion in merchandises in
the last fiscal year ending June 30.

India is set to dominate Bangladesh market as importers
here are preferring it to China, as they find find imports of
essentials from the next-door neighbour convenient in many
ways, said a top commerce ministry official.

Business sources said due to record rise in Indian and
Chinese inflation rates, the costs of import from the two
Asian giants are surging for Bangladeshi traders since more
than 30 percent of Bangladeshi imports are sourced from these
two nations.

India's annual wholesale price inflation is hovering at a
13-year peak of 11.42 percent, while China's annual price
inflation is at a 12-year high of 8.7 percent. PTI