Although the Asian Development Bank has projected a moderate 5.1% GDP growth Bangladesh for 2025-26 fiscal, the forecast may need to be revised downwards due to the recent imposition of higher tariffs on Bangladeshi exports to the US, Hoe Yun Jeong, country director of the ADB’s Resident Mission in Bangladesh, said today (9 April).
“Our projection was done before the US sweeping tariff. So our projection was 5.1% for the fiscal year 2026. Obviously it will adversary affect the overall Bangladesh export to the US and also on the overall economic progress. That 5.1% needed to be downgraded little bit,” he said.
He made the remarks while responding to questions from the reporters after releasing the ADB’s flagship publication, Asian Development Outlook (ADO), April 2025, held at the ADB office in Dhaka.
In its latest report, the ADB also projected Bangladesh’s GDP to grow by 3.9% in the current fiscal year (FY2024-25), reflecting weaker domestic demand amid ongoing political and economic challenges.
This outlook was part of the ADB’s Asian Development Outlook (ADO) for April 2025.
Bangladesh must diversify its products and markets for export for the medium and long-term perspective, he said.
“Of course, engaging and negotiating the US government is important, but it is a short-term measure. More importantly, Bangladesh must diversify its products and markets for export,” he said.
He also suggested that Bangladesh should take this opportunity to rationalise its import tariff structure and reform its non-tariff barriers as well, considering its tariff regime is overprotective.
“So, this tariff reform should apply not only to the US but also to other countries,” he said.