Foreign Exchange Reserves Increase by 13.5%

According to the Nepal Rastra Bank's report for the first six months of the current fiscal year, the country's foreign exchange reserves have increased significantly. The total foreign currency reserves, which stood at NPR 20.41 trillion at the end of the last fiscal year's Ashar month, have increased by 13.5% to reach NPR 23.16 trillion by the end of Poush. In terms of US dollars, the reserves have grown from USD 15.27 billion to USD 16.84 billion. The reserves held by Nepal Rastra Bank have increased by 12.1% to NPR 20.72 trillion, while the reserves with banks and financial institutions have surged by 27% to reach NPR 2.44 trillion.

The banking sector's reserves are sufficient to cover 17.3 months of goods imports and 14.4 months of goods and services imports. During the review period, the current account remained in surplus by NPR 148.17 billion, though slightly lower than the previous year. Foreign direct investment (FDI) inflows increased compared to last year, reaching NPR 6.50 billion. The balance of payments recorded a surplus of NPR 249.26 billion. The share of Indian currency in total reserves stands at 24.3%.