Forex reserves fall by $1.53bn after ACU payment

Bangladesh's foreign exchange reserves dropped by 1.53 billion dollars in a day to 34.86 billion dollars on November 5 following the settlement of 1.64 billion dollars in import bills to the Asian Clearing Union (ACU).

According to Bangladesh Bank data, gross reserves stood at 36.38 billion dollars on November 4, falling to 34.86 billion dollars a day later.

Under the International Monetary Fund's (IMF) BPM6 accounting method, reserves declined to 29.99 billion dollars from 31.52 billion dollars over the same period, falling below the 30 billion dollar mark.

The decline largely reflects the ACU payment, a periodic settlement of import bills among member countries.

Bangladesh makes such payments every two months, covering imports from countries including India, Iran, Nepal, Bhutan, Pakistan, Myanmar, Sri Lanka and the Maldives.

The latest figures show that the payment has reduced the country's reserve buffer, although gross reserves remain higher than the BPM6 figure, which excludes certain foreign currency assets and follows the IMF's standard methodology.

The 1.64 billion dollar ACU payment was equivalent to around 4.7% of the gross reserves recorded on November 5.