Bangladesh lifts shipment ban on raw jute export

Dhaka / DPA

Exports of raw jute from Bangladesh will reopen next week as the government on Monday lifted the ban on shipments four months after imposing it. The Ministry of Textiles and Jute issued a notice announcing the withdrawal of the ban to be effective from April 3.
The lifting of the ban came amid pleas from raw jute exporters, as many of them had to delay shipments owing to the bar since December last year.
The government banned exports of all types of raw jute to meet the country’s additional demand for jute in implementing the mandatory jute packaging law. Previously, a similar ban was imposed for a month.
Abdul Quayyum, secretary of Bangladesh Jute Association, said restrictions on exports hurt exporters badly, and many traders could have avoided losses if the government had withdrawn it earlier.
Only a small number of businessmen would benefit from the move now, he said. It may be helpful for those who have stock and have orders pending,” he said.
“However, the good thing is that we were at the risk of losing our markets abroad, which can now be retained,” Quayyum said.
He said nearly seven lakh bales of raw jute have been exported so far, and 200,000-300,000 bales may be exported in the remaining months of the current fiscal year. Some 1 million bales of raw jute were exported last fiscal year.
Bangladesh produces around 5.8 million bales of jute a year, while the country’s internal consumption is 3.8 million bales.