Bangladesh forex reserve now $20b

According to the International Monetary Fund (IMF) calculation method, country’s foreign currency reserve has stood at $20.50 billion.

Foreign exchange reserves fell to $25.75 billion after payment of the Asian Clearing Union (ACU) import bill.

ACU is an international transaction settlement system. Through this, transactions between Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Iran, Maldives, Myanmar, Nepal, Pakistan and Sri Lanka are settled.

The headquarters of ACU is in Tehran, the capital of Iran. In this system, the central bank of the respective countries pays the import bills every two months.

Bangladesh Bank Executive Director and Spokesperson Md Mezbaul Haque confirmed the news on Tuesday (January 9).

The amount of forex reserves was $21.7 billion on January 3 as per the calculation method of the International Monetary Fund.

Following the payment, the country's gross foreign exchange reserves declined to $25.65 billion as per the calculation of the BB, from $26.9 billion on January 3, said the central bank official.