The country's Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI) score in November saw an increase of 6.5 points from October to reach 62.2 points indicating expansion of key economic sectors, except construction.
The Metropolitan Chamber of Commerce and Industry (MCCI), Dhaka and Policy Exchange Bangladesh (PEB) released Bangladesh PMI November report on Saturday.
The PMI is a pioneering initiative that aims to offer timely and accurate insights into the country's economic health to help businesses, investors and policymakers take informed decision, said an MCCI press release.
It was developed by MCCI and Policy Exchange, with support from the UK government and technical support from Singapore Institute of Purchasing and Materials Management (SIPMM).
As per November reading, Bangladesh's PMI has increased by 6.5 points from the previous month to record a faster expansion rate at 62.2 points.
This latest PMI reading was attributed to a faster rate of expansion posted by agriculture, manufacturing and services sectors but the construction sector reverted to a contraction.
The agriculture sector posted a second month of expansion and at a faster rate for the indexes of new business and business activity. The employment index posted a slower contraction, whereas the order backlogs index posted a faster contraction.
The manufacturing sector posted a third month of expansion and at a faster rate. The sector posted expansion readings for the indexes of new orders, new exports, factory output, input purchases and input prices.
The first-time expansion readings were recorded for the indexes of finished goods, imports, employment and supplier deliveries. The order backlogs index posted a slower contraction rate.
The construction sector reverted to a contraction after posting a marginal expansion in the previous month. The sector posted contraction readings for the indexes of input costs and order backlogs, whereas expansion readings were recorded for the indexes of new business, construction activity and employment.
The services sector posted a second month of expansion and at a faster rate. The sector posted a faster expansion rate for the indexes of new business, business activity and order backlogs. The input costs index posted a slower expansion rate, whereas the employment index reverted to an expansion.
In terms of the future business index, faster expansion rates were recorded for the key sectors of agriculture, construction, and services, whereas the manufacturing sector posted a slower expansion rate.
The latest PMI readings indicate a gradual expansion of Bangladesh economy for the second month after previously posting three months of contractions.
Despite the positive outlook, the economy continues to face challenges arising from various political process-related uncertainties and disruptions from industrial and other protests.
