Bangladesh's economy has grown at a faster pace, albeit marginally, in the current fiscal year than the previous one although the production of industrial goods and agricultural commodities recorded reduced growth.

The country registered a 5.82 percent growth in Gross Domestic Product (GDP) in 2023-24, up from 5.78 percent in 2022-23, according to provisional data released by the Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics (BBS).

The service sector, which encompasses trade, transport, hotel, IT, and financial activities, drove the overall growth of the GDP, a measure of the final value of goods and services produced within an economy during a period.

The service sector, which accounts for more than half of the economy, grew 5.8 percent in FY24 compared to 5.37 percent last fiscal year.

In contrast, the industrial sector, which makes up more than a third of the economy, expanded by 6.66 percent in FY24, which ends in June. However, the growth of industrial production was the lowest since FY2019-20 when the Covid-19 pandemic-induced slowdown wreaked havoc on the economy.

In FY24, agricultural production rose 3.21 percent year-on-year from FY23, according to the provisional estimate.

The national statistical agency's estimate of GDP growth is almost close to the projections made by the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) last month.

In April, the IMF revised down GDP growth forecast to 5.7 percent for FY24, which is below the average annual growth rate of 6.6 percent the country recorded in the decade preceding the Covid-19 pandemic.

The WB predicted a 5.6 percent growth for the current financial year.

The government also cut its growth projection to 6.75 percent from 7.5 percent set at the beginning of the fiscal year in July. 

According to the BBS, Bangladesh's GDP size stood at US$459 billion in FY24. As such, per capita gross national income increased slightly to $2,784 this fiscal year from $2,749 a year earlier.