Dhaka, Jan. 30 -- Bangladesh's overall imports increased slightly in the first half (H1) of the current fiscal year ahead of the upcoming Ramadan, with officials saying the removal of letter of credit (LC) restrictions by the central bank has played a role in this regard.

Actual imports in terms of LC settlements rose by 2.65 per cent to $34.32 billion during July-December of FY25 from $33.44 billion in the same period of the previous fiscal year, according to the central bank's latest statistics.

On the other hand, the opening of fresh LCs, generally known as import orders, increased by 4.18 per cent to $34.89 billion in the first six months of FY25 from $33.49 billion in the same period of FY24.

Senior officials of the Bangladesh Ban...