Purchase of the US dollar by the central bank from commercial banks increased by nearly 10 per cent in the just-concluded fiscal year (FY) 2015-16.
The Bangladesh Bank (BB) bought $ 4.13 billion directly from the commercial banks in the FY 16 aiming to keep the inter-bank foreign exchange market stable.
It purchased $ 3.76 billion in the previous fiscal year, according to the central bank statistics. In FY14 and FY13, the BB bought $ 5.15 billion and $ 4.54 billion respectively.
The central bank, however, did not sell any single dollar on the market in the last fiscal year, the BB data showed.
"We're buying the US currency continuously from the banks to protect the interests of exporters and migrant workers by keeping the exchange rate of the Bangladesh Taka (BDT) against the US dollar stable," a BB senior official told the FE.
The central bank has intensified purchasing of the US dollar further from the banks after the Eid festival to keep the forex market stable, according to the central banker.
As part of the move, the central bank bought $ 85 million at market rate from six commercial banks Monday to minimise mismatch between demand and supply of the foreign exchange in the market.
The BB official also said the supply side of the foreign currency is improving gradually due mainly to higher export earnings along with rising trend in inward remittances particularly in the month of June for Eid-ul-Fitr celebrations.
The US dollar was quoted at Tk 78.40 in the inter-bank forex market which remained unchanged from the previous level, market operators said.On Thursday, the central bank similarly purchased $ 85 million from the banks on the same grounds.
A total of $ 285 million was bought from the commercial banks between July 11 and July 18 of the current fiscal year for offsetting its increased supply to the market, the BB data showed.
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