At the India-Bangladesh Chamber of Commerce and Industry (IBCCI) in February where the Indo-Bangla Trade Fair was started, Indian High Commissioner to Bangladesh, H.E. Mr Harsh Vardhan Shringla mentioned that in the last 15 years Bangladesh’s exports to India have grown 10-fold. During the same period, India’s exports to Bangladesh have grown 6 times. Bangladesh is now India’s biggest trade partner in South Asia

The total bilateral trade in 2015-16 was worth USD 6.14 billion. Indian investments registered with Bangladesh Investment Development Authority are more than USD 3 billion. Around USD 11 billion of investments from India in the power, LNG and port sectors in Bangladesh are in the pipeline.

India has also been offered exclusive sites by Bangladesh to establish special economic zones, which may be at Mongla or Chittagong, he added. In November last year, IBCCI had organised a fruitful discussion on enhancing India-Bangladesh Waterways Connectivity, which saw good participation from both the countries, the Daily Star reported.

“In an important development in waterways and sea connectivity between India and Bangladesh, the first container ship will arrive from Kolkata to Pangaon Inland Container Terminal tomorrow (Friday) under the Coastal Shipping Agreement between our two countries,” H.E. Shringla said. Around 60 companies from India and Bangladesh, from diverse sectors like automobiles, pharmaceuticals and chemicals, are participating in the fair.

Bilateral Trade
India-Bangladesh trade has grown steadily over the last few years.  India’s exports to Bangladesh in 2015-16 (July-June) were USD 5,452.90 million and imports from Bangladesh during the same period were USD 689.62 million. In the five years (from FY 2011-12 to FY 2015-16), total trade between the two countries has grown by more than 17%. More details on bilateral trade statistics are on the website of High Commission.