Bangladesh's foreign exchange reserves rise but may fall again

Bangladesh's foreign exchange reserves rose to $9.63 billion at the end of December from the lowest since August 2009 in November, although they were down from $11.17 billion a year earlier, the central bank said on Sunday.
Reserves are likely to fall again this month because of scheduled bimonthly import payments to the Asian Clearing Union, a senior central bank official said.
Bangladesh's foreign exchange reserves came under pressure from soaring imports, mainly of oil, while exports and remittances grew more slowly amid a faltering global economy.