Dhaka Chamber of Commerce and Industry (DCCI) today unveiled its Economic Position Index (EPI) for the second quarter of FY2026 (October–December 2025), showing that Dhaka’s economy recorded a moderate overall score of 0.50, reflecting visible economic progress despite persistent structural weaknesses, particularly in the manufacturing sector.
The index was presented at the DCCI auditorium in the capital by Acting Secretary General Dr AKM Asaduzzaman Patwary.
Calculated as the geometric mean of three sectoral scores, the EPI revealed significant divergence across key sectors of the economy.
Agriculture achieved the highest score of 0.80, supported by strong growth in crop and fisheries production, although livestock output declined by 4.8 percent due to seasonal factors.
The services sector recorded a moderate score of 0.47, while manufacturing posted a low score of 0.33, indicating severely weak industrial activity.
“Moderate improvement indicates visible advancement in economic activities in Dhaka with no sign of heavy stagnation,” the report stated, adding that the economy moved toward a positive trend in the final quarter of 2025.
However, DCCI’s strategic assessment cautioned that the economy remains “consumption-led rather than production-led” and appears “stable on the surface but deeply imbalanced underneath.”
The index was prepared based on a survey involving 762 respondents, including 330 from manufacturing and 432 from the services sector, across selected industries in Dhaka district, which contributes approximately 46 percent to Bangladesh’s GDP.
The assessment covered agriculture, manufacturing, and services sub-sectors, including ready-made garments, textiles, pharmaceuticals, leather, wholesale trade, real estate, transport, healthcare, and banking.
According to the report, the manufacturing sector continues to face multiple challenges, including energy shortages, unpredictable tariff structures, severe letter of credit liquidity constraints, high VAT rates, port-related delays, and unofficial payment demands.
The report also highlighted post-harvest losses in agriculture due to inadequate cold-chain infrastructure and insufficient irrigation facilities in northern districts.
Meanwhile, the services sector is struggling with high inflation, rising operational expenses, weakened consumer demand, and limited access to formal financing for small businesses.
To address these challenges, DCCI recommended several policy measures for the manufacturing sector, including MSME loan facilities at interest rates of 9 percent or below, uninterrupted gas and electricity supply to industrial zones, temporary VAT reduction to 5–10 percent, and customs fast-track facilities at ports.
For agriculture, the chamber proposed expanding cold-chain infrastructure, scaling up irrigation facilities, and digitising field-level reporting systems under the Department of Livestock Services and Department of Fisheries.
In the services sector, DCCI recommended establishing a one-stop digital licensing platform, strengthening anti-syndicate market monitoring, and introducing collateral-free low-interest financing for small businesses.
According to DCCI, the Economic Position Index is also intended to support policy formulation by Bangladesh Bank in areas such as monetary policy, fiscal adjustments, and industrial policy revisions.
