According to the Financial Times, the United States plans to hold economic talks with Bangladesh's interim government, led by Dr Muhammad Yunus, this week in order to help the country's economy recover.

These high-level economic meetings, scheduled on September 14-15 in Dhaka, will be the first between the two countries since student protests ousted long-serving Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, who fled to India on August 5.

Yunus, a Nobel laureate, microfinance pioneer and founder of Grameen Bank, assumed leadership of the interim government as chief adviser last month. He will likely join other senior Bangladeshi officials in the discussions, the Financial Times reported on Tuesday.

The US delegation, led by the Treasury Department, will include representatives from the State Department, USAID and the US Trade Representative's office.

Brent Neiman, assistant treasury secretary for international finance, told the Financial Times that the US was "optimistic" that Bangladesh would be able to address its economic challenges by implementing reforms.

He said Washington planned to “underscore US support for Bangladesh’s continued engagement with the IMF and other international financial institutions” as Bangladesh “seeks to strengthen economic growth by deepening financial sector reforms, improving fiscal sustainability and reducing corruption.”

Bangladesh sought a $4.5 billion IMF loan in 2022, following global market disruptions due by the Covid-19 outbreak and later the war in Ukraine, which raised import costs.

The discussions are expected to revolve around fiscal and monetary policies, as well as the state of Bangladesh's banking sector. US officials will also meet with private-sector representatives.