KATHMANDU, FEBRUARY 22
The country's total foreign trade surged by 46.43 per cent to Rs 1.28 trillion in the first seven months of the current fiscal year, that is, from mid-July 2021 to mid-February 2022. The total foreign trade was recorded at Rs 873.56 billion in the corresponding period of the previous fiscal, 2020-21.
Nepal's exports saw significant improvement in the review period, according to Nepal Foreign Trade Statistics unveiled by the Department of Customs (DoC) today. The country's exports soared by 88.30 per cent to Rs 131.66 billion till mid-February against Rs 69.92 per cent in the same period of previous fiscal.
The import growth, meanwhile, stood at 42.78 per cent to Rs 1.15 billion compared to Rs 803.64 billion in the seven months of the fiscal year 2020-21.
Owing to the mismatch, the country's trade deficit increased by 38.45 per cent to Rs 1.01 trillion by mid-February this year, shows the DoC data. The trade deficit was Rs 733.73 billion in the seven months of last fiscal.
The share of exports in the total trade was 10.29 per cent, which was an increase of 28.60 per cent against its share of only eight per cent in the seven months of the previous fiscal. The share of imports to total trade, on the other hand, actually slipped by 2.49 per cent to 89.71 per cent in the review period. The share of imports to total trade in the seven months of earlier fiscal was a whopping 92 per cent.
Petroleum products continued to be the top import commodity during the review period, followed by crude soyabean oil and crude palm oil.
The top export commodities were refined soyabean oil, refined palm oil and woollen carpets.
Neighbouring countries India and China were the top trade partners during the review period, with whom the country also has the highest deficits. Nepal exported goods worth Rs 106.36 billion to India, while importing merchandise worth a staggering Rs 696.24 billion from the southern neighbour. Similarly, exports to China amounted to Rs 487.91 million, while imports from northern neighbour was Rs 165.24 billion.
A version of this article appears in the print on February 23, 2022, of The Himalayan Times.
