Imports fall, yet Chattogram Port revenue rises

Imports have declined in the country, while container handling has also slowed. As a result, revenue at Chattogram Customs House, the National Board of Revenue’s (NBR) largest revenue contributor, has suffered a significant shortfall. However, Chattogram Port has presented a completely different picture despite the broader economic downturn.

The country’s principal seaport earned an average of Tk 561 crore per month in the previous fiscal year. In the current fiscal year, its average monthly revenue has risen to Tk 592 crore. The revenue figures for the first three months reveal a striking contradiction. While customs revenue and imports are declining, how has the port managed to increase its income? The question has become increasingly prominent.

There are two main reasons behind this contradiction. The first is an increase of more than 41 percent in port service charges. The second is the collection of demurrage charges for keeping imported goods at the port for longer periods.

Chattogram Chamber President Mohammad Amirul Haque said, “It is said that port charges have increased by 41 percent. In reality, charges for some products have increased by as much as four times. But I am not the one ultimately paying these additional charges. The money is coming out of consumers’ pockets. Our cost of doing business has increased. Consumers are the ones suffering as a result.”

Raising another question, the business leader said, “The export sector is suffering even more. Exporters are already facing challenges. These additional charges are putting them under even greater pressure in the global market. They are falling behind in competition. So why were these charges increased?”

Container handling at Chattogram Port has been declining steadily since the beginning of the current 2026-27 fiscal year. During the first three months of the fiscal year, the port handled 863,000 twenty-foot equivalent units (TEUs), around 7 percent fewer than in the same period of the previous 2025-26 fiscal year.

The decline in cargo handling at the port is also reflected in Chattogram Customs data. According to customs figures, imports fell by 17.5 percent during the first three months of the current fiscal year compared with the same period last year.

A decline in imports inevitably affects Chattogram Customs. During the first four months of the current fiscal year, from July to October, the customs revenue collection target was Tk 42,637 crore. However, actual collection stood at only Tk 27,995 crore, leaving a shortfall of around Tk 14,642 crore.