Reserves fall to $36.39b after ACU payment

Country's foreign exchange reserves fell to $36.39 billion after Bangladesh Bank paid $1.39 billion to the Asian Clearing Union (ACU) to settle import bills for July and August.

The central bank made the payment on Monday (September 7), with ACU data putting the settlement at $1.392 billion, according to Bangladesh Bank officials.

As of September 6, gross reserves stood at $36.39 billion, down from $37.45 billion at the end of last Thursday. Reserves calculated under the International Monetary Fund’s BPM6 methodology fell to $31.47 billion from $32.56 billion over the same period.

The ACU is a regional payment mechanism that facilitates cross-border trade settlements among participating Asian countries. Member central banks settle import liabilities through the system every two months.

Country's reserves also fell after the previous ACU settlement in July, when the central bank paid $1.48 billion for May-June import bills. Gross reserves stood at $36.17 billion and BPM6 reserves at $31.72 billion at that time.

Despite the latest decline, the reserve position remains above the level generally considered sufficient to cover at least three months of imports. Recent estimates show that BPM6 reserves are equivalent to around 4.8 months of import payments.