With a US$350 million growth in just five months, it seems that the export sector is set to see a satisfactory gain in the current fiscal.

Like previous years, export depends on knitwear and woven garments. Besides, textile fabrics, home textile, engineering products emerged as significant contributors to the overall performance.

Export fetched $2974 million during July-November period of FY04, up by 13.2 per cent from last fiscal's same period. The volume rose by 14.6 per cent while the price dipped by 1.4 per cent in the first five months.

In the first five months of FY04, knitwear saw an impressive 22.99 per cent growth, woven garments 10.63 per cent, frozen food 10.35 per cent, tea 23 per cent, engineering products 1208 per cent, ceramic tableware 35.2 per cent, footwear 38.96 per cent and home textile 55.46 per cent from last fiscal's same period.

"Export is gradually peaking up. This is for the first time that we have been able to cross the monthly target in November after many months. Earning in November was $558.19 million, which was $118.61 million higher from the same month of last fiscal," said Towfique Khan Majles, statistics and research director of the Export Promotion Bureau.

Export performed very well in the first five months of FY04 in compared to the same five months of FY03. In all these months,

exports saw month-on-month gradual growth, he mentioned.

"We are doing very well in some markets including Canada which has given us duty and quota free access. Export will increase there in the coming months," said Qazi Moniruzzaman, president of Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA).

"The big exporters are gradually shifting to high value products. I think export will perform better in the months coming," he observed.

Woven and knitwear products contributed more than 75 per cent to the total export income in the first five months of the FY04.

During July-November period of FY04, woven exports fetched $1357.24 million, up by more than $130 8 million from last fiscal's same period.

Knitwear worth $865.84 million was exported in the July-November period, which was round $162 million higher from last fiscal's same period.

"As capital machinery and industrial raw materials imports have gone up in the recent months, rising trend in exports will not suffer at least in the next few months," said a central bank official.

Capital machinery import rose by 49 per cent in the first quarter of FY04 while the growth was only 4.5 per cent in FY03 and industrial raw materials import went up by 27 per cent during July-September of FY04, according to a Bangladesh Bank statistics.