DHAKA: Bangladesh's foreign exchange reserves stood at over 21 billion U.S. dollars at the end of July, first month of current fiscal, said country's central bank.

A reliable source of Bangladesh Bank said that "the country's foreign exchange reserves stood at 21,383.48 million U.S. dollars at the end of the July after reaching 21.66 million dollars at the end of June."

Bangladesh's foreign exchange reserve hit 21 billion U.S. dollars in the middle of June.

The country's foreign exchange reserves on April 10 reached the 20-billion-dollar mark for the first time, reflecting the country’s strength from the economic and financial point of view.

Earlier in February this year, Bangladesh's foreign exchange reserve crossed the 19-billion-dollar mark.

Bangladesh, with a population of about 153 million, needs a reserve of about 10 billion U.S. dollars to meet its import bills for three months in light of an internationally accepted standard.

Source: globalpost.com

BDST: 1048 HRS, AUG 04, 2014