TDS Desk:

Agriculture and agricultural goods remain key sources of foreign currency for Bangladesh beyond remittances and ready-made garments. However, the sector is now following a similar downturn seen in other export sectors. Between July and December, the first half of FY 2025–26, agricultural exports fell by 10.30 percent.

Export Promotion Bureau (EPB) data show Bangladesh earned $534.1 million from agricultural exports in this period. That compares with $595.5 million in the same months the previous year — a decline of more than $60 million year–on–year. Overall export earnings fell by 2.19 percent, making agriculture’s 10.30 percent drop substantially sharper.

Bangladesh currently exports 172 types of agricultural and processed products to 145 countries; 106 of these destinations receive processed goods. The top five markets are the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, India, the United Kingdom, and the United States.

Key exports include tea, vegetables, tobacco, assorted fruits, animal and vegetable oils and fats, sugar, and spices. Tea, oils, and fats recorded the steepest falls.

Shipments of oils and fats dropped by 66.79 percent in the first half of the fiscal year. Tea exports fell by 25.40 percent. Other notable declines included tobacco (20.29 percent), sugar and confectionery (18.76 percent), and dried foods (13.60 percent).

Fruits and vegetables, however, provided a critical cushion. Fruit exports jumped by nearly 116 percent, while vegetable shipments rose 52.33 percent during the July–December period. Overall agricultural export figures have remained balanced mainly due to the strength of these two product categories.

Industry sources attribute the downturn to Bangladesh’s prolonged economic contraction, which has weighed on total export earnings. Although exports rose in July, the first month of FY 2025–26, the following five months posted negative growth — a trend agriculture could not avoid.

Persistent volatility in international markets adds further pressure. The sector’s negative trajectory is expected to continue through the second half of the fiscal year.