Increased trend raises suspicion of money laundering
The country’s capital machinery imports registered a 21.29 per cent increase in the first five months of the current financial year 2014-15 compared with the corresponding period of the FY14. The increased trend has raised a suspicion of money laundering as the country has been experiencing a dull business situation since the start of the FY14 centring national elections held in January 5, 2014, said officials of the central bank.
According to the latest Bangladesh Bank data, the import of capital machinery increased to $1.15 billion in July-November of the FY15 from $948.73 million in the same period of the FY14.
A BB official told New Age on Thursday that there was no sufficient reason for the rise in the capital machinery import in the first five months of the FY15 due to a dull business situation amid political uncertainty.
But, the huge import payments for capital machinery raised a suspicion that money might have been laundered abroad, he said.
He feared that some businesspeople were laundering money through over-invoicing in their invoice paper of the letters of credit.
The central bank has recently taken an initiative to issue a master circular to prevent money laundering through the under-invoicing and over-invoicing.
The central bank will issue the circular in the quickest possible of time which may play role in preventing the money laundering, he said.
The BB data showed that the overall settlement of letters of credit, or generally known as actual imports, registered a 11.36 per cent growth in the first five months of the FY15 compared with that of 9.01 per cent during the corresponding period of the FY14.
The businesspeople imported goods and products worth $16.20 billion between July and November of the FY15 from $14.54 billion in the same period a financial year ago.
LC opening, or generally known as import orders, in July-November of the FY15 also posted a growth of 14.77 per cent compared with that of a 8.84 per cent growth in the same period of the FY14.
LCs worth $17.73 billion were opened in July-November of the FY15 against LCs worth $15.45 billion opened in the same period of the FY14.
The BB data showed that the import of industrial raw materials had registered a lower growth of 3.32 per cent in the first five months of the FY15 compared with that of 11.54 per cent during the same months of the FY14 due to lower production in the industrial sector amid dull business.
The import of industrial raw materials stood at $6.16 billion in July-November of the FY15 from $5.96 billion in the same period of the FY14, the BB data showed.
The import of food grains (rice and wheat), however registered a 6.54-per cent negative growth in the first five months of the FY15 compared with that of the same period of the FY14.
Settlement of LCs in the first five months of the FY15 for rice and wheat was worth $565.74 million against $605.33 million during the same period of the FY14.
The BB official said that the import of wheat had decreased in the last few months while the import of rice had increased significantly in the period resulting that the import of two products showed a negative growth collectively.
The import of petroleum products also registered a 28.30 per cent growth in July-November of the FY15 compared with that of a negative growth of 24.85 per cent in the same period of the FY14.
Settlement of LCs in the first five months of the current financial year for petroleum products was worth $1.87 billion against $1.46 million during the same period of the FY14.
-With New Age input
