Dhaka, April 10 -- Bangladesh saw its overall external debt rise by 3.0 per cent to US$103.64 billion up to last December and this increase was primarily driven by public sector's growing appetite for foreign funds.

Though the unpaid volume of debts remained below the International Monetary Fund (IMF)-recommended ceiling by then, there were some concerns in the current macroeconomic context marked by a rapid depletion of the country's foreign-exchange reserves.

According to the latest Bangladesh Bank data, the country's overall external debt buildup reached $103.64 billion by December 2024, which was $3.0-billion higher from the corresponding period a year ago when the volume was $100.64 billion.

While the latest outstanding figure of ...