Remittances up by 19.25% to Rs 1,198.6 billion

KATHMANDU: Remittance inflows increased by a healthy 19.2% reaching Rs 1,198.6 billion over the first 10 months of the fiscal year 2023/24, compared to a 23.4% increase in the same period of the previous fiscal year.

According to the Current Macroeconomic and Financial Situation Report for the first 10 months of 2023/24, remittances grew by 17.1% to 9.02 billion in US dollar terms.

The current account was in a surplus of Rs 193.25 billion in the review period, compared to a deficit of Rs 63.74 billion in the previous year. Likewise, the balance of payments (BOP) recorded a surplus of Rs 392.64 billion, compared to a surplus of Rs 209.49 in the 10th month of the previous fiscal year. In US dollar terms, the BOP surplus stood at 2.95 billion in mid-May, up from 1.59 billion in mid-May last year.

The foreign exchange reserves also saw a substantial growth of 26.2% to Rs. 1,942.4 billion in mid-May 2024. Foreign exchange reserves in US dollar terms is worth $14.54 billion. According to the report, the current reserves can cover 15.1 months of merchandise imports and 12.6 months of merchandise and services imports.