Dhaka, March 8 -- Interest payments on government's domestic and foreign borrowings emerge as the highest actual expenditure as percentage of budget spending in the first half of this fiscal year, coming to Tk 625.6 billion.

Official statistics show the July-December 2024 interest payments by the government, totalling Tk 625.6 billion, account for over 55 per cent of the total allocation for this purpose for the entire fiscal year 2024-25 ending next June 30.

This amount of interest payments represents a 27-percent increase compared to the same period in FY2023-24.

The data show that domestic interest payments accounted for Tk 535.38 billion, nearly 58 per cent of the annual allocation, while foreign interest payments stood at Tk 50.22...