Trade direction and trade pattern of the industry (please use the world map to show the

trade direction.)- 2 and ½ p

Trade direction and trade pattern of the industry:

Trade is the exchange of goods and services between countries.

Goods bought into a country are called imports, and those sold to another country are
called exports. Direction of trade means a study of the countries to whom the exports are
made and from whom the imports are made.

Trade pattern refers to a general way in which trade is carried on. For example,

the company's trading pattern shows high export sales in the first quarter and high home
sales in the third quarter.

Export promotion and market access to the global market is of crucial importance to
agricultural exporters of Bangladesh. Middle East and the European Union (EU) represent
the most important export market for them. Presently, among LDCs (Least Developed
Countries) Bangladesh is the most prominent exporter to the major global market. The
principal exports to the EU are textile products. Agricultural products, however, are only a
small fraction of overall trade and exports to the global market. The main agricultural
export products are jute and jute products, tea, tobacco, vegetables, fruits, potato, frozen
vegetables, frozen fruits, food stuff and food items, handicrafts, bamboo basket, aromatic
and fine rice, spices etc. The main export plant and plant products in year 2012-13 were
1,017,718.56 mt and in year 2016-17 was 884,422.88 mt. The potato exporting is increasing
day by day. Market access facilities for Bangladeshi Exportable are admirable. Bangladesh
as a Least Developed Country (LDC) is enjoying duty free market access or reduced tariff
rate facilities to export to various developed and developing countries in the world. This
facility is enhanced and privileged by the membership of World Trade Organization
(WTO). Besides, Bangladesh is the member of different regional trade blocks. Thus the
country enjoys duty free or reduced tariff rate access to other member countries. WTO
members always recognize the necessity of providing Duty free Quota free (DFQF) market
access to LDCs. Bangladesh is getting GSP (Generalized System of Preference) from 38
countries viz 28 from European Union countries and others 10 countries like Australia,
Belarus, Canada, Japan, New Zealand, Norway, Russian Federation, Switzerland, Turkey
and Liechtenstein. Bangladesh is the member of South Asian Free Trade Agreement
(SAFTA) and Asia Pacific Trade Agreement (APTA), Bangladesh enjoys DQFQ access in
South Korea market (at 4,802 products), china (at 4,788 products), Chile and Duty free tariff
preference of India (4,430 products). PRAN is Bangladeshis largest grower and processor of
fruits and vegetables.

The export policy 2015-18 is followed for exporting the products the conditions stipulated
in this policy or any then related laws and the rules and regulation related foreign currency
exchange used from time to time by Bangladesh Bank have to be followed in case of export
of goods from Bangladesh and relevant documents as stipulated in the above mentioned
policy, laws, rules and regulation have to be submitted. Bangladesh should have an active
promotion strategy to the perception of the country in global market. Bangladesh should
also require trade assistance on market access beyond the fulfillment of technical and
official requirements. Market penetration in EU, USA, Middle East requires trading links,
attendance to trade fairs, promotion of products etc. Infrastructure development which is
an important ingredient to attract investors and also to assist the development of local
export industries, Bangladesh should seek and assistance from EU's development and
facility. Improve quality of products, utilize preferential market access effectively, focus on
bilateral free-trade agreement, identify potential preferential market access, improve
institutional testing capacity base, monitor technical standards, make rules of origin flexible
and strengthen regional connectivity.
Bangladeshi exports to Asian countries are still low due to absence of proper preferential
trade agreements and quality products even though there are huge trade opportunities in
the region. Exporters and trade analysts say that removing tariff barriers, signing trade
friendly bilateral agreements and proper usage of preferential trade deals can boost
Bangladeshi exports to the region. They also said that high dependency on developed
countries in North America and Europe could risk export earnings. According to export
promotion Bureau data, Bangladeshi exports to Asian countries
were USD 41.6 billion in FY 2016-2017 which is 12 percent of total exports. At the same
time, European Union (EU) imported 55.83 percent (USD 9.35 billion) of Bangladeshi total
exports and the United States 21.19 percent (USD 7.3 billion). In the last FY, against a target
of USD 37 billion, Bangladesh overall export earnings stood at USD 34.83 billion which is
1.68 percent higher than the previous USD 34.25 billion of the amount, the RMG sector
alone earned USD 28.15 billion. Bangladesh has set an export target of USD 37.5 billion for
the current FY 2017-18, which is a 1.35 percent rise from last year. More over non-tariff
barriers, location issues countervailing duty and antidumping duty on jute and jute goods
by Indian Government are also major obstacles for Bangladesh exporters. Exports in BD
decreased to BDT 185.79 billion in June from BDT 216.22 billion in May of 2017. Exports in
Bangladesh averaged BDT 40.03 billion from 1972 until 2017 reaching an all-time high of
BDT 218.38 billion in August of 2017 and a record low of BDT 0.05 billion in February of
2017.
Table: Main imports and exports of agricultural commodities of Bangladesh

Table 2: Potential export destinations

 Table: Export scenario of agricultural products from Bangladesh (in mt)
Bangladesh has started reaping some benefits from the EBA in the agricultural sector. But
the benefits have been slow to materialize and the markets are not guaranteed. Agricultural
exports concentrate heavily on a few primary products and the analysis indicates that these
are subject to fierce competition from neighboring countries. There is a lack of value added,
making the proportional relationship between value and quantity of exports less favorable
for Bangladesh. The reforms of the Common Agricultural Policy of the European Union
will improve some market access for Bangladesh in particular for its rice production. In the
longer term, however, some of the benefits will be reduced, lost or be at risk following
sugar reforms and the developments at the Doha WTO round of trade liberalization. A
WTO reform, however, can open new opportunities. If export subsidies are abolished, the
EU will lose its competitive edge in various markets. Bangladesh should study possibilities
to take over these markets in particular for rice in the Mediterranean region or Switzerland
as an example. The trade liberalization process is accompanied by an increasingly
restrictive set of SPS and rules of origin requirements which can severely damage the
export market to the EU. To comply with the international rules and regulations,
Bangladesh Government has taken steps to strengthen plant quarantine services for safe
importation and expedite exportation of plants and plants products.