Bangladesh Government's Bank-Borrowing Debt Surges Past Revised Target

The government of Bangladesh has taken on significantly more debt than initially planned, borrowing Tk 1.68 trillion from domestic banking sources in the past fiscal year.

This amount far exceeds the upwardly revised target of Tk 1.18 trillion and is nearly Tk 500 billion higher than expected.

The government had to increase its bank-borrowing target twice during the fiscal year due to poor revenue collection and rising operational expenses, which widened the budget shortfall.

Central bankers and money-market experts point out that the pressure of bank borrowing was heavily felt in the last quarter of the fiscal year, particularly following the USA-Iran crisis, which disrupted gas-and fuel-oil supplies and led to higher prices.