Bangladesh's exports grew by 20 percent to about 9 billion U.S. dollars in the first nine months of fiscal year 2006-07, thanks to good performance by apparels, frozen food and footwear, The Daily Star reported Monday.

The export earnings fetched about 9 billion dollars in July- March period of fiscal 2006-07 (July 2006-June 2007) against 7.5 billion dollars in the corresponding period of 2005-06, according to Export Promotion Bureau (EPB) figures released Sunday.

Despite growth, knitwear missed the export target by 4.3 percent. Knitwear fetched 3.34 billion dollars against the target of 3.49 billion dollars.

"The failure is due to the adverse effect of labor unrest in the garment sector in May 2006," said Fazlul Haq, president of Bangladesh Knitwear Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BKMEA) .

However, Haq is very optimistic to achieve the export target of 4.8 billion dollars set for knitwear for fiscal 2006-07.

During the July-March period, woven garments fetched 3.51 billion dollars against 2.97 billion dollars in the corresponding period of the last financial year, showing 18.24 percent export growth.

Anwar-ul-Alam Chowdhury Parvez, president of Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA), said if the present congenial business environment continues, the overall export performance must be improved significantly.

Frozen foods, ceramic products, handicrafts, footwear, cut flowers, agro processed goods and engineering products also registered significant increases, contributing to the overall export growth.

Exports of jute goods, pharmaceuticals, chemical fertilizer, raw jute, vegetables, tobacco, bicycle, tea and electronic goods declined. The products also failed to reach export targets during the period.