Kathmandu, March 22

The country's trade deficit has narrowed by 17.86 per cent to Rs 953 billion in the first eight months of the fiscal year compared to last year when the trade gap stood at Rs 1,160 billion.

According to statistics unveiled by the Department of Customs today, Nepal imported goods worth over Rs 1,058 billion in the review period, a decrease by 19.13 per cent compared to the imports over the same period last year. The goods were imported from over 158 countries.

Meanwhile, exports from the country stood at Rs 104 billion, down 29.07 per cent compared to the same review period last year.

In the first eight months of the current fiscal year (mid-July to mid- March), Nepal's total foreign trade stood at over Rs 1,163 billion, a drop by 20.14 per cent than of the previous year. In the review period, the imports to exports ratio increased by 14.02 per cent compared to last year in the first eight months of this fiscal year.

Nepal continues to have the highest trade deficit with its neighbours - India and China.

According to the data, Nepal imported goods worth Rs 656.80 billion from the southern neighbour in the review period, while exports to India amounted to Rs 74 billion. The trade deficit with India stood at Rs 582 billion in the review period. Meanwhile, the trade deficit with China stood at Rs 145.26 billion in the first eight months of the current fiscal year.

Furthermore, the country's exports share to total trade stood at 9.01 per cent, down from 10.14 per cent in the previous year. Similarly, the imports share to total trade was 90.99 per cent, an increase of 1.26 per cent compared to the same period in the last fiscal year.

A version of this article appears in the print on March 23, 2023, of The Himalayan Times.