Friendly countries are obstructing, further delaying LDC transition in 2026

Bangladesh's transition from LDC is scheduled to take effect on November 24, 2026. However, due to lack of preparation, the business community has demanded a few years of extension, but there is little chance of being optimistic about its implementation, said Commerce Secretary Mahbubur Rahman.

He made these comments as the chief guest at a workshop titled 'US Counter-Tariffs and LDC Transition' organized by private research institute RAPID at the CIRDAP auditorium in the capital on Tuesday.

The Commerce Secretary said, "We are trying to postpone the LDC transition by at least three years. However, this depends on the approval of the UN General Assembly. Many of our friendly countries—India, the US, Japan and Turkey—are opposing this process. When they do not agree, it will be difficult to get approval. However, we are trying to get technical assistance from them."

He added, “The traders are not yet fully prepared. So we are trying to ensure that the trade facilitation continues for a few more days. Although there is little room for optimism, there is no need to be completely disappointed.”

RAPID Chairman MA Razzak presented a research report at the workshop. He said that due to the impact of counter-tariffs, Bangladesh’s exports to the US market could decrease by about 14 percent in the next one year. Not only Bangladesh, but also the exports of countries like China, India, Vietnam and Indonesia could suffer a major blow. Of these, 58 percent of China’s exports, 48 ​​percent of India’s, 28 percent of Vietnam’s and 27 percent of Indonesia’s exports are expected to decrease.

RAPID Executive Director M Abu Yusuf and Economic Reporters Forum (ERF) President Daulat Akhtar also spoke at the event.