Nepal's economy is telling two very different stories at once.
On the outside, it has never looked stronger. Remittances jumped 38.2% to Rs 2,121 billion, powering a record Rs 926 billion balance-of-payments surplus and lifting foreign exchange reserves to 19.1 months of import cover. Inflation has averaged a benign 2.89%.
But look closer and the engine is stalling. Growth is set to slow to around 3%, well below the 7% target. Private-sector credit grew just 6.2% despite lending rates falling to record lows, capital spending actually shrank 7.5%, and exports still cover only about a seventh of imports.
Our latest NBSM & Associates economic report breaks down the five developments that matter, how Nepal stacks up against its South Asian peers, and what it means for policymakers, banks, businesses, and investors.
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