Taka rises, 1 USD now Tk 91.5

The local currency today appreciated Tk 0.50 to Tk 91.5 against the US dollar at the interbank platform after facing a consistent slide in the last couple of months.

This might be a temporary phenomenon as the country's foreign exchange market is still under pressure due to the shortage of US dollar, a Bangladesh Bank official said.

The central bank today injected $124 million into the market to offset the greenback shortage in the market.

A record $6.59 billion has been injected into the market between July 1 and June 8 this fiscal year, according to data from the Bangladesh Bank.

Despite that, the foreign exchange market is still facing a shortage of US dollars due to soaring import payments and declining remittance.

The country's import payments have shot up since the end of last year because of the rising price of commodities in the global market.

The pent-up demand after the height of the Covid-19 pandemic initially played a pivotal role in pushing up commodity prices.

The pandemic had disrupted the global supply chain, deepening the crisis.

Besides, the Russia-Ukraine war has worsened the situation further.

Against this backdrop, the country's import payments escalated in recent months, creating an immense pressure on the taka against the dollar.