"Nine bodies have been recovered from the second and third floors of the garment factory," fire service director Tajul Islam Chowdhury said, adding that the number of deaths could rise as recovery operations were continuing.
He said the cause of the blaze was not immediately known.
The fire started on the third floor of the seven-storey factory in Dhaka's Mirpur area before spreading to the chemical warehouse that stored bleaching powder, plastic and hydrogen peroxide, another official of the Fire Service and Civil Defence department said, citing witnesses.
Chowdhury said the factory owners had not yet been identified.
"The police and the army are looking for them."
Asked whether the chemical warehouse had a licence to operate, he said: "We don't know about the license yet. However, as far as we have heard, it is illegal. We will be able to confirm once the investigation is completed."
Poor fire and building safety standards lead to dozens of such disasters in Bangladesh each year and past accidents have tarnished the robust textiles sector, which employs four million people and makes up more than 10 per cent of the country's gross domestic product.
Eight firefighting units brought the blaze at the factory under control after nearly three hours, though the fire at the warehouse continued.
