Double-digit growth in exports in first five months of FY

Nepal’s exports have recorded a double-digit growth in the first five months of the current fiscal year.

According to the trade statistics made public by the Department of Customs on Sunday, goods worth Rs. 73.65 billion were exported during the first five months (mid-November to mid-December) of the current fiscal year 2024/25.

This is 16.54 percent higher than the exports of the same period last fiscal year.

Goods worth Rs. 63.20 billion had been exported during the first five months of the last fiscal year.

The country’s export trade, which had been declining continuously for the first three months of the current fiscal year, has witnessed improvement since mid-October this year.

Goods worth about Rs. 21 billion were exported in a single month (mid-November to mid-December).

Goods worth Rs. 52.67 billion were exported by mid-November of the current fiscal year.

Similarly, import trade increased by 3 percent during the review period. Goods worth Rs. 661.48 billion were imported during the first five months of the current fiscal year.

In the same period of the last fiscal year, the country had imported goods worth Rs. 642.20 billion.

Trade deficit up

Even though exports have risen significantly, the country’s trade deficit has increased due to the higher volume of imports than exports.

According to the statistics, the trade deficit increased by 1.52 percent to Rs. 587.82 billion during the review period.

The country had faced a trade deficit of Rs. 579 billion during the first five months of the last fiscal year.

Similarly, the country’s foreign trade volume has reached Rs. 735.14 billion during the review period, which is 4.21 percent more than the previous year.

Even though exports went up significantly, the ratio of exports to imports is still 1:8.98. The ratio of export to import has decreased by 11.61 percent during the review period as compared to the same period last fiscal year.

The ratio of export to import was 1:10.16 in the same period last fiscal year.

The share of exports in total foreign trade is only 10.02 percent, while that of imports is at a whopping 89.98 percent.

The increment in the export of soybean oil, sunflower, cardamom, carpet, garment, and tea and coffee has contributed to an increase in export trade during the review period.

The country has exported soybean oil worth Rs. 8.37 billion during the first five months of the current fiscal year, while it had exported soybean oil worth Rs. 363 million during the same period last fiscal year.

The country exported soybean oil worth Rs. 4.96 billion in a single month from mid-November to mid-December this year. It exported soybean oil worth Rs. 3.41 billion by mid-November of the current fiscal year.

Similarly, sunflower oil is worth Rs. 2.97 billion, and carpets are worth Rs. 5.5 billion, tea and coffee worth Rs. 2.92 billion, and cardamom worth Rs. 3.45 billion have been exported during the first five months of the current fiscal year.

The country exported sunflower oil worth Rs. 148 million, and carpets worth Rs. 4.9 billion, tea and coffee worth Rs. 1.87 billion, and cardamom worth Rs. 3 billion during the first five months of the last fiscal year.

During the review period, the export of palm oil decreased to Rs. 852 million. The country exported palm oil worth Rs. 2.47 billion during the first five months of the last fiscal year.

According to the Department of Customs, the country imported crude soybean oil worth Rs. 13.45 billion, palm oil worth Rs. 4.82 billion, and crude sunflower oil worth Rs. 11.31 billion during the review period.

Similarly, petroleum products worth Rs. 101.3 billion have been imported during the first five months of the current fiscal year.

Diesel is the most imported commodity in the first five months of the current fiscal year. Diesel worth Rs. 42.17 billion has been imported during the period.

Meanwhile, petrol worth Rs. 26.45 billion, liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) worth Rs. 24.22 billion, aviation fuel worth Rs. 8.14 billion, and kerosene worth Rs. 406 million have been imported.—RSS