KATHMANDU: Welcome to Nepal News’ Evening Economic Brief—your go-to source on key financial updates in Nepal. Stay informed with concise insights on market trends, economic indicators, and policy shifts. Here are today’s top economic news highlights.
NEPSE Gains 25 Points; All Sectors Up: Nepal Stock Exchange (NEPSE) witnessed a bullish trend on Tuesday with all sectoral indices closing in positive territory. The NEPSE index gained 25.07 points compared to the previous trading session, closing at 2,678 points. Market activity also picked up significantly, with the total turnover rising to Rs 10.16 billion from Rs 8.68 billion in the previous session. The finance sector emerged as the top performer, surging by 5.12 percent, followed by non-life insurance (1.26%), hotel and tourism (1.28%), and life insurance (1.08%). Other sectors also posted gains, including banking (0.93%), development banks (0.71%), hydropower (0.46%), investment (0.68%), microfinance (0.61%), manufacturing and processing (0.25%), and trading (1.07%). The “others” category recorded the second-highest growth at 1.51 percent.
Finance Minister Poudel Denies Rift Between Fiscal and Monetary Policies: Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Bishnu Prasad Poudel has dismissed claims of discord between fiscal and monetary policy. Speaking at an event in Kathmandu, he said those looking to find divisions between the Finance Ministry and Nepal Rastra Bank—or between the finance minister and the NRB Governor—will be disappointed. He expressed concern that such speculations had become a topic of public discourse and emphasized that the state system does not envision any misunderstanding between these institutions.
Historic Surge in Remittance Inflows: Rs 165 billion in a Month: Nepal has set a new record in remittance inflows. In Baisakh alone, Rs 165 billion was received in remittances, according to Nepal Rastra Bank. This figure surpasses the previous record set last year. By the end of Chaitra, the cumulative remittance inflow had reached Rs 1.191 trillion, which rose to Rs 1.356 trillion by the end of Baisakh. Compared to the same period last fiscal year, this is a 16.9% increase.
Minister Bhandari Reaffirms Nepal’s Commitment to Decent Work Agenda: Minister for Labor, Employment and Social Security, Sharatsingh Bhandari, reaffirmed Nepal’s full commitment to the Decent Work Agenda. He made these remarks while addressing the plenary session of the International Labor Conference 2025, organized by the International Labour Organization (ILO) in Geneva, Switzerland. In his address, Minister Bhandari said that Nepal is preparing a workforce for both domestic and foreign employment through collaboration with the private sector, civil society, and development partners.
Inflation Rate Continues to Decline, Drops to 2.77% in Baisakh: The inflation rate in Nepal continues to decline, reaching 2.77% in Baisakh 2082 BS. In the previous month (Chaitra), the year-on-year point-to-point consumer inflation stood at 3.39%, while it was 4.40% in the same month last year. This ongoing downward trend in inflation has been sustained for several months. According to Nepal Rastra Bank (NRB), inflation in the food and beverage group was 1.52%, and 3.45% in the non-food and services group during the review period. In the same period last year, these rates were significantly higher at 6.41% and 3.09%, respectively.
Nepal’s Foreign Currency Reserves Cross Rs 2.5 trillion: Nepal’s foreign exchange reserves have surpassed Rs 2.5 trillion. According to NRB data, by the end of Baisakh, the total reserves had reached Rs 2 trillion 512.95 billion, up from Rs 2 trillion 426.84 billion at the end of Chaitra. The surge in remittance inflow has been a key factor in boosting the foreign reserves.
Balance of Payments Surplus Continues to Grow: Nepal’s balance of payments (BoP) continues to show a surplus, with incoming foreign currency exceeding outflows. According to NRB, the BoP surplus for the first 10 months of FY 2081/82 reached Rs 438.52 billion. In the same period last year, the surplus was Rs 392.64 billion. In U.S. dollars, the current year’s BoP surplus stands at USD 3.23 billion, compared to USD 2.94 billion the previous year.
Government Cash Balance Reaches Rs 360.98 billion: As of the first 10 months of FY 2081/82, the government’s cash balance reached Rs 360.98 billion. This includes funds in various accounts held by the Government of Nepal at the Nepal Rastra Bank. At the end of Asar 2081 BS, the total cash reserve in those accounts was Rs 93.96 billion.
Average Base Interest Rate Increases Slightly: With slight improvement in loan demand at banks and financial institutions, average base interest rates have increased. Compared to Chaitra, the base rate for Baisakh has shown a rise. As of Baisakh, the average base interest rate for commercial banks was 2.29%. In Chaitra, it stood at 6.17%. For comparison, in Chaitra 2081 BS, the base rates were 6.29% for Commercial banks, 8.34% for Development banks and 9.17% for Finance companies.
Nepal’s Trade Deficit Reaches Rs 1.256 trillion in 10 Months: Nepal’s trade deficit in the first ten months of the current fiscal year has reached Rs 1 trillion 256.28 billion, according to the monthly report published by Nepal Rastra Bank on Tuesday. This amount is approximately 6.7% higher than that of the same period in the previous fiscal year. Total merchandise exports increased by 72.7% in the ten months of FY 2081/82, reaching Rs 217.91 billion. In contrast, exports had decreased by 3.6% during the same period last year.
Rs 1.73 billion Collected in Hydropower Royalties by Jestha: Until the month of Jestha in the current fiscal year, Rs 1.7381 billion in hydropower royalties has been collected, including pending amounts from the previous year, according to the Department of Electricity Development. As per Section 11 of the Electricity Act, 2049, license holders must pay an annual royalty of Rs 100 per installed kilowatt for the first 15 years of commercial hydropower production, along with 2% of the average sales price per kilowatt hour.
Individual Labor Permits for Foreign Employment Surpass Institutional Ones: The number of Nepalis going abroad for foreign employment with individual labor permits has exceeded those going through manpower companies. According to the Department of Foreign Employment’s report for the first 10 months of FY 2081/82, 309,155 individuals obtained labor permits independently, while 282,536 went through recruitment agencies. Although manpower companies have traditionally facilitated employment for more than half of the over 500,000 Nepalis entering the labor market annually, this trend appears to be shifting in recent years.
Karnali Province Passes New Policy and Program for Next Fiscal Year: The Karnali Provincial Government has unveiled and passed its policy and program for the upcoming fiscal year. The document was presented by Province Chief Najir Miya on Wednesday and passed on Sunday. Jivan Bahadur Shahi, parliamentary party leader of the ruling Nepali Congress, criticized the policy and program as a recycled version of past plans in a new format. Speaking in the provincial assembly, he cited the long-repeated program “Hamro Kuda, Hamro Chief Minister” as an example.
Drilling Begins for DPR of Upper Mugu Karnali Hydropower Project: Drilling has begun for the Detailed Project Report (DPR) of the Upper Mugu Karnali Hydropower Project. According to Surendra Timilsina, a geotechnical engineer at the proposed project site of Elevate Energy Pvt. Ltd., the 306 MW project aims to provide employment to locals based on their capacity and also support large-scale irrigation in surrounding areas. The drilling, currently underway at Ganthe in Chhayanath Rara Municipality–12, aims to complete the DPR within three years. The borehole will be 385 meters deep.
270 MW Hydropower Project to Be Built on Bheri River: A semi-reservoir-based hydropower project with a capacity of 270 megawatts will be constructed on the Bheri River, which flows between Nalgad Municipality of Jajarkot and Aathbiskot Municipality of Rukum West. Chinese company Gezhouba Group will undertake the construction of the Bheri-1 semi-reservoir project across wards 10–13 of Nalagad Municipality and wards 4–6 of Aathbiskot Municipality.
Only 253 Local Units Complete Land Classification in 3 Years: Three years after the introduction of the Land Use Regulations, only 253 out of 753 local units in Nepal have completed land classification. The remaining 500 municipalities must complete the classification by the end of Ashar, or land administration activities such as plotting will once again be halted. In Bhadra 2081, due to incomplete classification, land-related services were suspended in 620 municipalities. The Ministry of Land Management, Cooperatives, and Poverty Alleviation confirmed that classification has been completed in only 253 municipalities so far.
Lumbini Entrepreneurs Invite India’s DLF to Invest in Real Estate: Industrialists from Rupandehi have urged Delhi Land & Finance (DLF), a major Indian real estate company, to invest in Lumbini and surrounding areas. Arguing that Nepal’s economy is showing signs of recovery after a prolonged slowdown, they encouraged investment in the real estate sector. On Monday, Officials from Siddhartha Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Bhairahawa, and representatives from DLF held a meeting. Local entrepreneurs emphasized that Lumbini would be an ideal investment destination for one of India’s biggest real estate companies.
Dang’s Local Governments to Receive Over Rs 5 billion in Grants: Ten local governments in Dang district will receive over Rs 5 billion in grants from the federal government in the upcoming fiscal year 2082/83. Compared to the Rs 4.9583 billion received in the current fiscal year, this is a slight increase. Under the inter-governmental fiscal transfer system, the federal government provides four types of grants: equalization, conditional, special, and complementary. Of the total, Rs 4.4358 billion will be allocated for recurrent expenses, while Rs 575.2 million is earmarked for capital expenditures.
Gold Prices Fall Slightly While Silver Rises: The price of gold in the Nepali market decreased slightly on Tuesday. According to the Federation of Nepal Gold and Silver Dealers’ Association, hallmark gold was priced at Rs 190,600 per tola on Monday but dropped to Rs 190,000 on Tuesday. In contrast, silver prices increased. Silver, which was Rs 2,150 per tola on Monday, rose to Rs 2,165 per tola on Tuesday.
