Staff Correspondent: The United States could collect over $1 billion in tariffs on Bangladeshi goods if additional tariffs are implemented as the US imports 1,208 items from Bangladesh, while Bangladesh imports 2,515 items from the US, according to a study by the Centre for Policy Dialogue (CPD).
CPD presented the analysis during a dialogue titled "Trump's Reciprocal Tariffs: Implications for Bangladesh and Its Response," held on Thursday at a hotel in Dhaka.
In terms of duties, Bangladesh collects from 2,215 items, while the US collects duties on 927 items on its imports. The total value of US imports from Bangladesh in 2024 stood at over $8.45 billion, while Bangladesh's imports from the US amounted to around $2.53 billion, based on 2024 export data.
CPD Distinguished Fellow Prof Mustafizur Rahman explained that Bangladesh imposes an average customs and other duties of 6.2 % on US imports.
After accounting for rebates, he said, the weighted average tariff drops to 2.2 %. In comparison, the weighted average tariff on US imports from Bangladesh is 15.1 %, with duties on apparel imports alone amounting to $1.191 billion, he added.
The CPD suggested that Bangladesh should carefully monitor the impact of US tariffs on its export competitiveness, especially in relation to countries like Vietnam, Cambodia, and Thailand.
It also recommended exploring strategic options, such as engaging the US through the Trade and Investment Cooperation Forum Agreement (TICFA).
Besides, the CPD proposed that Bangladesh request a list of products on which the US would like to see duty-free or reduced-duty access when exporting to Bangladesh.
The CPD also noted that the USTR National Trade Estimates Report (March 2025) highlighted several concerns regarding Bangladesh's trade policies.
These include Bangladesh's failure to submit its trade-related transparency notification under the Trade Facilitation Agreement, which the country has ratified, as well as its lack of notification to the WTO on its customs valuation legislation and its unresponsiveness to the checklist of issues regarding the implementation of the WTO customs valuation agreement.