Wednesday, December 18, 2019

Trade deficit narrows by 8.9 per cent

The exports surged by 23.9 per cent to narrow the trade deficit gap by 8.9 per cent to Rs 414.02 billion in the first four months of the current fiscal year 2019-20, while imports fell by 6.9 per cent.
According to ‘Current Macroeconomic and Financial Situation of Nepal’ published by the central bank, Nepal exported merchandise goods worth Rs 36.28 billion, the first four months of the current fiscal year, compared to an increase of 11 per cent a year ago, whereas merchandise imports decreased to Rs 450.3 billion against an increase of 35.8 per cent in the same period of the previous year.
As usual exports of palm oil, cardamom, yarn (polyester and other), jute goods, medicine (ayurvedic), among others, has increased but imports of MS billet, petroleum products, gold, aircraft spare parts, cement, among others, decreased.
The central bank report revealed that balance of payments (BoP) remained at a surplus of Rs 27.29 billion in the four months of the current fiscal year against a deficit of Rs 57.33 billion in the same period of last fiscal year. But the current account registered a deficit of Rs 37.3 billion against a deficit of Rs 88.43 billion in the same period of previous year, according to the report.
The number of Nepali workers – both institutional and individual, and also new and legalised, who migrated for foreign employment – increased by 5.6 per cent in the first four months of the current fiscal year. “The number had plunged by 39.4 per cent in the same period of the last fiscal year.”
However, despite the rise in outflow of Nepali migrant workers, remittance inflow dropped by 2.3 per cent to Rs 304.96 billion against an increase of 36.4 per cent in the same period of the last fiscal year.
Likewise, the year-on-year consumer price inflation (CPI) also stood at 5.76 per cent in mid-November compared to 4.15 per cent a year ago. “Food and beverage inflation stood at 7.96 per cent whereas non-food and service inflation stood at 4.07 per cent,” the report revealed, adding that within the food and beverage group, prices of vegetables, fruits, meat and fish and spices sub-groups rose significantly, while prices of housing and utilities, clothes and footwear and education subgroups within the non-food and service group rose moderately in the review month.

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