Large trade deficit, imports haunt the business sector

Himalayan News Service

KATHMANDU: In a three-year interval, there has been an increment of 28 per cent in the total import business of Nepal while the export business is petering out. Speaking at a programme organised by Trade and Export Promotion Center (TEPC) to celebrate its 3rd anniversary, Federation of Nepalese Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FNCCI) president Kush Kumar Joshi said Nepal was getting more import-oriented than export-oriented.


Joshi said, “Nepal’s economy has become import-oriented as export now has fallen to -0.2 per cent while import has increased to 28 per cent. We have a revenue-based economy. Therefore, the government should show special concern for the export oriented industries.” He expressed satisfaction at the government efforts to bring Public Private Partnership approach for the development of TEPC.


Nepal Chambers of Commerce (NCC) president Surendra Bir Malakar said that due to the unstable political conditions even the trade treaty was working well for the trade and business sector here. “ There were high expectations of the garment sector getting facilitated from the trade treaty but it failed to address the problems that Nepali readymade garment (RMG) industry is facing,” said Malakar. He also urged the government for strong lobbying for trade facilitation for Nepali RMG.


Informing about the comparative trade statistics for the fiscal years 2008-09 and 2007-08, TEPC executive officer Ramesh Kumar Shrestha said, “Compared to primary trade data, there has been an increase of 17.3 per cent in export trade compared to the fiscal year 2007-08 — in value Rs 68.6 billion.”


The total trade deficit of Nepal in fiscal 2008-09 was Rs 179 billion. According to Shrestha, the trade deficit happened due to fall in production of domestic consumer products and industrial production.


Minister of Commerce and Supplies Rajendra Mahato called for quality products of international standards. He said, “The government is not responsible for the trade deficit as its responsibility is to grant facility for trade. Preserving and promoting trade is the job of the trade and business sector itself.”