Economy of Bangladesh

Bangladesh has a developing mixed economy. It is the second-largest economy in South Asia and the 34th largest in the world when looking at money value alone. By considering what people can buy with their money, it is the 25th largest.

After the partition of India, Bangladesh began building its industries. In the late 1970s, the country started changing its economy to allow more free markets and investment from other countries. By the 1990s, Bangladesh had a very successful ready-made garments industry. As of March 2024, it has the most green garment factories in the world. The country also has a growing pharmaceutical industry, making almost all the medicines people need.

People from Bangladesh living in other countries send money home, which helps the country have enough money to buy things from overseas. The government helps farmers, so Bangladesh grows enough food for everyone. In 2024–2025, Bangladesh's economy grew by 3.49%, which is slower than before. Bangladesh will become a developing country in November 2026.

Economic history

Precolonial period

Punch-marked coins are the earliest form of currency found in Bangladesh, dating back to the Iron Age. The Wari-Bateshwar ruins are believed to be an old trading center. The eastern part of Bengal had a mild climate, fertile soil, and plenty of water. Trade routes connected the region to nearby areas. Between 400 and 1200, the region had a well-developed economy.

The Bengal Sultanate had a big trading network. Bengali ships were some of the largest in the Bay of Bengal. Merchants from Bengal often traveled as ambassadors for the Sultan. Many wealthy merchants lived in Malacca. A ship from Bengal carried gifts from the Sultan of Bengal to China. Bengal operated a large shell currency network.

Under Mughal rule, Bengal was a center for the worldwide muslin, silk and pearl trades. Domestically, much of India depended on Bengali products such as rice, silks and cotton textiles. Overseas, Europeans depended on Bengali products such as cotton textiles, silks and opium. Bengal shipped saltpeter to Europe, sold opium in Indonesia, exported raw silk to Japan and the Netherlands, and produced cotton and silk textiles for export.

Bengal also had a large shipbuilding industry.

This African giraffe was imported into Bengal region and re-exported to China circa 1415.

Colonial period

The British East India Company chose to develop Calcutta as their main center. The development of East Bengal focused on agriculture. British rule brought railways. The Hardinge Bridge was built to carry trains across the Padma River. In the early 20th century, Eastern Bengal and Assam was created to promote jobs and investment in East Bengal. The Port of Chittagong became a major port. Some of Bangladesh's oldest companies were born in British Bengal.

Pakistan period

The partition of India changed the economic geography of the region. The Pakistani government focused on industries using local materials like jute and cotton. The Korean War increased demand for jute products. Adamjee Jute Mills was built in the Port of Narayanganj. Living standards began to improve.

Pakistan's rulers launched a plan for development. But according to the World Bank, there was economic discrimination against East Pakistan.

Post-independence period

Since independence, the Bangladesh economy has improved.

The major maritime trade routes of the Bengal Sultanate

Socialist era (1972–1975)

After independence, Bangladesh followed a socialist economy for five years. The government put heavy rules on private companies. The state took over many industries. Land ownership was limited. Farmers had to sell their products at government prices.

There were shortages of food and other basic items. The transportation system was damaged from the war.

Military rule and economic reforms (1975–1990)

After 1975, new leaders began to support private industry. They created special areas to attract investors. The government also sold some state-owned industries to private buyers.

In the 1980s, local brands like PRAN emerged. Muhammad Yunus started microcredit experiments. The Grameen Bank was established. Reforms helped the garment industry grow.

Economic growth (1991–2022)

From 1991 to 1993, the government worked with the International Monetary Fund. New private companies entered banking, telecommunications, and education. The pharmaceutical industry in Bangladesh grew. The steel industry in Bangladesh also developed.

The government faced political troubles, which hurt the economy. But from 2001 to 2006, the economy grew by 5-6% each year. Since 2009, the economy has grown by at least 6% each year. Bangladesh became one of the fastest growing economies.

Bangladesh has enjoyed a trade surplus in recent years. Poverty has dropped. The poverty rate went down from 80% in 1971 to 12.9% in 2021. Bangladesh has focused on regional trade. The country became the second largest textile exporter in the world.

The World Bank notes the economic progress of the country. As of 2022, Bangladesh had the second largest foreign-exchange reserves in South Asia. In 2021, Bangladesh surpassed both India and Pakistan in terms of per capita income. The country achieved 100% electricity coverage for households in 2022. Megaprojects like the Padma Bridge have been planned.

Economic depression (2022–present)

Following the Russian invasion of Ukraine, Bangladesh faced pressure on its foreign exchange reserves. Inflation rose. Due to protests in 2024, the economy suffered losses. Inflation continued to rise. In 2025, the Bangladeshi taka lost value against the US dollar. The International Crisis Group said that long-term economic reform would take time.

In April 2025, the Trump administration imposed tariffs on Bangladesh, which hurt the garments industry.

Tannery owners with members of the Directorate of Industries, Government of East Bengal in 1949

Macro-economic trend

This chart shows how Bangladesh's economy has grown over time. It measures the value of all goods and services made in the country. The numbers come from the International Monetary Fund and are in Bangladeshi Taka, the money used in Bangladesh. It only includes the official part of the economy.

In 2009, workers in Bangladesh earned about $0.58 for each hour they worked.

GDP per capita (nominal)

GDP per capita development since 1950

Source: International Monetary Fund (IMF)

GDP per capita (PPP)

Source: International Monetary Fund (IMF)

The table below shows important economic numbers from 1980 to 2021, with some predictions up to 2027. When inflation (how much prices go up) is below 5%, it is shown in green. The unemployment rate comes from the World Bank, but the International Monetary Fund thinks these numbers might not be very reliable.

Year	Gross Domestic Product (Million Taka)	US Dollar Exchange	Inflation index (2000=100)	Per capita income (as % of USA)
1980	250,300	16.10 Taka	20	1.79
1985	597,318	31.00 Taka	36	1.19
1990	1,054,234	35.79 Taka	58	1.16
1995	1,594,210	40.27 Taka	78	1.12
2000	2,453,160	52.14 Taka	100	0.97
2005	3,913,334	63.92 Taka	126	0.95
2008	5,003,438	68.65 Taka	147
2015	17,295,665	78.15 Taka	196	2.48
2019	26,604,164	84.55 Taka		2.91

Year	GDP (in Bil. US$PPP)	GDP per capita (in US$ PPP)	GDP (in Bil. US$nominal)	GDP per capita (in US$ nominal)	GDP growth (real)	Inflation rate (in Percent)	Unemployment (in Percent)	Government debt (in % of GDP)
1980	40.7	511.2	22.6	283.3	3.1%	7.7%	n/a	n/a
1981	47.1	575.4	22.4	273.4	4.3%	14.9%	n/a	n/a
1982	51.6	614.3	20.9	249.4	2.4%	13.7%	n/a	n/a
1983	56.1	650.7	20.3	235.4	4.0%	11.1%	n/a	n/a
1984	60.5	684.3	22.7	257.2	5.2%	10.0%	n/a	n/a
1985	64.8	713.4	24.4	269.3	3.2%	10.4%	n/a	n/a
1986	68.7	737.1	25.1	269.8	4.2%	10.3%	n/a	n/a
1987	72.4	757.3	27.5	287.7	3.7%	10.5%	n/a	n/a
1988	76.8	782.1	29.6	301.6	2.2%	10.2%	n/a	n/a
1989	83.2	826.6	32.3	320.7	2.6%	9.2%	n/a	n/a
1990	90.3	875.5	34.8	337.6	5.9%	9.7%	n/a	n/a
1991	97.3	921.5	36.0	341.3	3.3%	9.3%	2.2%	n/a
1992	104.3	965.9	36.7	340.0	5.0%	5.9%	2.3%	n/a
1993	111.4	1,009.4	37.1	335.8	4.6%	3.3%	2.4%	n/a
1994	118.9	1,054.7	39.4	349.4	4.1%	4.6%	2.4%	n/a
1995	127.2	1,104.3	44.0	381.8	4.9%	8.2%	2.5%	n/a
1996	136.0	1,156.0	47.0	399.7	4.6%	6.1%	2.5%	n/a
1997	145.7	1,212.5	48.9	407.2	5.4%	3.7%	2.7%	n/a
1998	154.8	1,261.5	51.2	417.0	5.2%	6.8%	2.9%	n/a
1999	165.5	1,321.6	53.1	424.2	4.9%	7.4%	3.1%	n/a
2000	178.7	1,399.6	54.3	425.7	5.9%	4.3%	3.3%	n/a
2001	191.5	1,472.3	54.5	419.0	5.3%	2.2%	3.6%	n/a
2002	203.9	1,539.4	55.8	420.9	4.4%	2.8%	3.9%	n/a
2003	220.0	1,632.0	60.1	445.9	5.3%	4.6%	4.3%	44.3%
2004	239.7	1,749.7	65.7	479.4	6.3%	5.7%	4.3%	43.5%
2005	262.8	1,890.0	69.5	499.6	6.0%	10.2%	4.3%	42.3%
2006	289.4	2,053.9	71.8	509.6	6.6%	6.8%	3.6%	42.3%
2007	316.6	2,219.5	79.6	558.1	7.1%	9.1%	4.1%	41.9%
2008	340.5	2,359.7	91.6	635.0	6.0%	8.9%	4.6%	40.6%
2009	360.9	2,473.2	102.5	702.3	5.0%	7.6%	5.0%	39.5%
2010	387.3	2,624.2	115.3	781.2	5.6%	6.8%	3.4%	35.5%
2011	421.0	2,820.2	128.6	861.8	6.5%	10.9%	3.8%	36.6%
2012	473.8	3,137.6	133.4	883.1	6.5%	8.9%	4.1%	36.2%
2013	509.2	3,333.3	150.0	981.8	6.0%	6.8%	4.4%	35.8%
2014	553.8	3,583.7	172.9	1,118.9	6.1%	7.3%	4.4%	35.3%
2015	595.3	3,810.1	195.1	1,248.5	6.6%	6.4%	4.4%	33.7%
2016	650.7	4,118.9	265.4	1,466.6	7.1%	5.9%	4.3%	33.3%
2017	710.6	4,450.3	293.7	1,610.9	7.3%	5.4%	4.4%	33.4%
2018	835.9	5,370.4	321.0	1,858.4	7.9%	5.8%	4.4%	34.6%
2019	989.0	6,429.6	353.6	1,955.7	8.2%	5.5%	4.4%	36.1%
2020	1,050.8	6,950.5	373.1	2,227.5	3.5%	5.6%	5.4%	39.5%
2021	1,170.1	7,509.6	416.1	2,500.7	5.0%	5.6%	5.2%	41.4%
2022	1,348.6	7,923.1	460.7	2,782.0	6.4%	6.0%	n/a	42.6%
2023	1,496.2	8,636.9	510.4	2,987.7	6.7%	6.2%	n/a	42.8%
2024	1,647.1	9,450.4	565.0	3,213.9	7.2%	5.7%	n/a	42.7%
2025	1,872.9	10,143.7	625.8	3,455.9	7.2%	5.5%	n/a	42.3%
2026	1,947.0	10,845.5	685.1	3,714.7	7.1%	5.5%	n/a	42.1%
2027	2,102.0	11,851.0	750.4	4,287.2	6.9%	5.5%	n/a	41.9%

Economic sectors

Bangladesh's economy has many parts. The Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics sorts them into 19 groups. These groups help us understand how the country makes and spends money.

Agriculture, fishing, animal husbandry and forestry

Main articles: Agriculture in Bangladesh, Fishing industry in Bangladesh, and Forestry in Bangladesh

Manufacturing and industry

"Made in Bangladesh" redirects here. For other uses, see Made in Bangladesh (disambiguation).

Many new jobs, especially for women, have been created by the country's strong ready-made garment industry. This industry grew very fast in the 1990s. By the late 1990s, about 1.5 million people worked in garment factories. Garments made up a big part of all things Bangladesh sold to other countries. Bangladesh began selling more clothes than India in 2009. Clothes made up a large amount of what Bangladesh sold by 2014.

Before British rule, East Bengal was famous for its fine fabrics. But machines from England changed this, and many people who made clothes had to find other work. Only small parts of this old industry remain.

Other industries that are growing fast include medicines, ships, computers, leather, steel, and small machines.

Pharmaceutical

The growing areas of major agricultural products.

Main article: Pharmaceutical industry in Bangladesh

Bangladesh makes almost all the medicines its people need. There are many companies making medicines, and they grow each year. Some of these companies sell medicine to many countries.

Textile and leather

Main articles: Bangladesh textile industry and Leather industry in Bangladesh

Bangladesh's textile industry, which makes clothes and special fabrics, is the biggest thing the country sells. The industry employs many workers. The industry has created jobs for women, helping them earn their own money. These jobs help women support their families.

Ceramics

Main article: Ceramics industry in Bangladesh

Mining

Oil and gas

KAFCO plant in Chittagong

Shipbuilding is growing in Bangladesh and could become very important. Bangladesh also has a large ship breaking industry, which employs many people and provides steel for the country. Chittagong Ship Breaking Yard is one of the largest ship breaking areas.

A Bangladeshi textile fabric plant

Energy

Main article: Energy in Bangladesh

Water supply and sanitation

Main article: Water supply and sanitation in Bangladesh

Services

Finance and banking

Main article: Banking in Bangladesh

Most banks in Bangladesh are owned by private people. Private banks started in the 1980s. Changes happened from 2000 to 2006 to make banking better.

Education

Main article: Education in Bangladesh

Healthcare

Main article: Healthcare in Bangladesh

Information and communication technology

Main article: Information technology in Bangladesh

Bangladesh's computer and technology work has grown a lot in recent years. Bangladesh sold computer programs and help to many countries.

Telecommunications

Main articles: Telecommunications in Bangladesh and Internet in Bangladesh

Real estate and housing

Main articles: Real estate in Bangladesh, Squatting in Bangladesh, and Ministry of Housing and Public Works

See also: List of real estate companies in Bangladesh

Retail

Transport

Main article: Transport in Bangladesh

Tourism

Main article: Tourism in Bangladesh

The World Travel and Tourism Council (WTTC) said that travel and tourism created many jobs in Bangladesh. They think it could create even more jobs in the future. In 2014, not many tourists visited Bangladesh.

Sectoral Shares of gross domestic product (GDP) of Bangladesh
Sector	% of GDP
A) Agriculture	11.55
Agriculture, forestry and fishing	11.55
B) Industry	35.27
Mining and quarrying	1.53
Manufacturing	22.65
Electricity, gas, steam and air conditioning	1.23
Water supply, sewerage, waste management	0.10
Construction	9.77
C) Services	53.18
Wholesale and retail trade; repair	15.10
Transportation and storage	7.43
Accommodation and food service activities	1.23
Information and communication	1.04
Financial and insurance activities	3.32
Real estate activities	8.48
Professional, scientific, and technical activities	0.20
Administrative and support service activities	0.92
Public administration and defence	3.34
Education	3.04
Human health and social works activities	3.85
Arts, entertainment and recreation	0.16
Other service activities	5.07

Investment

Bangladesh's stock market grew quickly between 2007 and 2010. In November 2007, the value of all stocks sold was over $10 billion. By 2009, it was $30 billion, and by August 2010, it was $50 billion. This growth happened even when many other countries had economic troubles.

Many people and companies are investing in Bangladesh. For example, Saudi Arabia wants to invest in oil, gas, power, and transportation. The United Arab Emirates (UAE) is interested in shipbuilding. An Indian company plans to build a car factory, and Samsung wants to create an electronics center. The World Bank is helping improve rural roads, and Japan thinks Bangladesh is a good place to invest.

Bangladesh has worked to stop children from working in factories. In 1995, groups joined together to end child labour in garment factories, and by 1999, it had almost completely stopped. The country also makes things like sugar, tea, leather goods, newsprint, medicines, and fertilizer.

Bangladesh encourages foreign companies to invest. It has special areas called export processing zones where companies can make and sell goods with fewer rules. These zones are in places like Chittagong, Comilla, Dhaka, Mongla, and Uttara, with plans for more. The government wants to make it easier for foreign businesses to start working there.

Company	Trading name at Dhaka Stock Exchange	Headquarters	Industry	Trading Value
Square Pharmaceuticals Limited	SQURPHARMA	Dhaka	Pharmaceuticals	449.8880
Dragon Sweater and Spinning Limited	DSSL	Dhaka	Apparel	129.4030
Ifad Autos Limited	IFADAUTOS	Dhaka	Automotive	117.5370
Grameenphone Private Limited	GP	Dhaka	Telecommunications	106.8660
Bangladesh Thai Aluminium Ltd	BDTHAI	Dhaka	Manufacturing	99.7690
City Bank Limited	CITYBANK	Dhaka	Banking	78.6010
Golden Harvest	GHAIL	Dhaka	Agriculture	76.6710
IPDC Finance Limited	IPDC	Dhaka	Financial Services	67.0430
Olympic industries limited	OLYMPIC	Dhaka	Manufacturing	60.5570
Shahjalal Islami Bank Limited	SHAHJABANK	Dhaka	Banking	53.1710

International trade

The COVID-19 pandemic affected Bangladesh's economy. It lowered exports and imports in the year 2019-20.

In 2015, Bangladesh's main exports were clothes like suits and sweaters. Its main imports were materials like cotton and fuel. The United States, Germany, and the United Kingdom were important places where Bangladesh sold its products. China and India were key places from which Bangladesh bought goods.

Remittances

People from Bangladesh who work in other countries send money home to their families. This money, called remittances, is very important. It helps families pay for food, school, and other needs. It also helps Bangladesh's economy.

Poverty

Bangladesh has made big steps in fighting poverty. Many people used to have very little money, but now more families can meet their basic needs. The government and other groups work together to help people find jobs, get education, and improve their lives. This shows that with support, communities can grow stronger.

Bangladeshi women and the economy

Main article: Women in Bangladesh

In 2014, about 58 percent of women in Bangladesh were working, compared to 82 percent of men. Efforts by the government and groups like CARE International have helped women take on more roles in politics and jobs.

Women in Bangladesh often work in farming, teaching, and healthcare. Many work in jobs that don’t pay well and don’t give the same benefits as men’s jobs. Some groups work to help women save money and make more decisions in their families and communities.

Historical statistics

Bangladesh has grown a lot since it became independent in 1971. Even though there are still challenges, like not enough power, the country has made progress. It has worked to make things better for investors and has improved its markets.

Big floods in 1998 brought more help from other countries. The financial crisis in 2008 did not hurt Bangladesh much. The economy has grown because of more things being sold to other countries and money sent home by people working abroad. Experts think the economy will keep growing.

Bangladesh has needed help from the United Nations since 1975. In 2018, it was ready to be called a developing country. By 2030, its economy is expected to get even bigger.

Gross export and import

Fiscal Year	Total Exports (in bn. US$)	Total Imports (in bn. US$)	Foreign Remittance Earnings (in bn. US$)
2007–2008	$14.11	$25.21	$8.9
2008–2009	$15.56	$22.51	$9.68
2009–2010	$16.7	$23.83	$10.87
2010–2011	$22.93	$32	$11.65
2011–2012	$24.30	$35.92	$12.85
2012–2013	$27.09	$34.09	$14.4
2013–2014	$30.10	$34.08	$14.2
2014–2015	$31.014	$47.260	$14.23
2015-2016	$33.661	$49.436	$13.60
2016-2017	$37.966	$59.561	$12.76
2017-2018	$37.612	$67.133	$15.31
2018-2019	$41.53	$68.103	$14.98