Remittances rise 13.2% to Rs 1,356.61 billion in 10 months

KATHMANDU: Remittance inflows rose by 13.2% year-on-year, reaching Rs 1,356.61 billion in mid-May 2025.

According to the Current Macroeconomic Situation Report released by the Nepal Rastra Bank (NRB) on Tuesday, remittances stood at Rs 165.30 billion in the 10th month, mid-April to mid-May, alone, a significant jump from Rs 115.99 billion in the same period last year. In US dollar terms, remittance inflows over the first 10 months of the current fiscal year increased by 10.5% to $9.96 billion. 

According to the report, Nepal’s current account remained in a surplus of Rs 255.93 billion in the review period, compared to a surplus of Rs 193.31 billion in the same period a year ago. In dollar terms, the surplus stood at $1.89 billion, up from $1.45 billion. The Balance of Payments (BOP) surplus also grew to Rs 438.52 billion, up from Rs 392.64 billion over the first 10 months of the previous fiscal year.

Foreign exchange reserves at record high

Foreign exchange reserves expanded by 23.1%, reaching Rs 2,512.95 billion in mid-May, a significant growth from Rs 2041.10 billion in mid-July 2024.

In US dollar terms, the gross foreign exchange reserves increased 20.5 percent to 18.40 billion in mid-May 2025 from 15.27 billion in mid-July 2024. Reserves held by the NRB stood at Rs 2,211.11 billion, while those held by banks and financial institutions grew by 56.8% to Rs 301.83 billion.

The current level of reserves is sufficient to cover 17.4 months of merchandise imports, and 14.6 months of merchandise and services imports.