BoP surplus declines to Rs. 6 b

The overall balance of payment (BoP) recorded a surplus of Rs. 6.1 billion during the first six months of the current fiscal year 2012/13 compared to a surplus of Rs. 66.72 billion during the same period of the previous fiscal year.

According to the latest current macroeconomic situation of Nepal based on the six months data of 2012/13 released by Nepal Rastra Bank, the current account posted a surplus of Rs. 4.41 billion in the review period compared to a surplus of Rs. 31.99 billion in the same period of the previous year.

The decline in surplus in the current account was primarily due to a substantial rise in the imports of merchandise, the deficit in the net services income compared to a surplus in the corresponding period of the previous year and the slower growth of workers' remittances in the review period, said the central bank.

Similarly, the free on board (FoB) based merchandise trade deficit increased by 27.9 percent to Rs. 222.27 billion during six months of fiscal year 2012/13 while the such deficit had grown up by 17.4 percent in the same period of the previous fiscal year.

The net service income posted a deficit of Rs. 1.91 billion in the review period in contrast to a surplus of Rs. 9.93 billion in the same period of the previous year while net transfers registered a growth of 18.2 percent to Rs. 223.74 billion in the review period compared to a growth of 29.1 percent in the same period of the previous year.

Under the transfers, workers’ remittances surged by 21.8 percent to Rs. 197.70 billion compared to an increase of 37.1 percent in the same period of the previous year.

On a monthly basis, remittance inflows increased by 20.9 percent in December/January compared to the value of the previous month of this fiscal year. Nepalnews.com