Goods worth Rs. 142B exported in first half of 2025/26

By A Staff Reporter

Kathmandu, Jan. 23:   Nepal’s export trade witnessed significant growth in the first half of the current fiscal year 2025/26.

According to trade statistics released by the Department of Customs, goods worth Rs. 142 billion were exported during the first six months (from mid-July 2025 to mid-January 2026) of the current fiscal year. 

This represents a 43.76 per cent increase compared to exports during the corresponding period of the last fiscal year. Goods worth Rs. 98.78 billion were exported during the first six months of FY 2024/25.

While the figures indicate a healthy overall expansion in exports, the pace of growth has begun to slow after a strong start to the fiscal year, signalling a gradual loss of momentum in recent months.

Exports surged by an impressive 95 per cent in the first month of the fiscal year, followed by 88 per cent growth during the first two months. 

Export rate remained robust at 89 per cent in the first three months but moderated to 77.51 per cent during the first four months and further declined to 58.17 per cent over the first five months, reflecting a steady deceleration.

According to the data, of the total exports worth Rs. 142.01 billion during the first six months, goods worth Rs. 23.93 billion were exported in the first month of the fiscal year, while exports in the second month amounted to Rs. 23.38 billion. 

Similarly, goods worth Rs. 25.71 billion were exported in the third month, Rs. 20.71 billion in the fourth month, and Rs. 25.51 billion in the fifth month of the current fiscal year.

Along with exports, imports also increased by 14.18 per cent to Rs. 939 billion during the review period. 

In the same period of the previous fiscal year, the country imported goods worth Rs. 822.37 billion.

Trade deficit up by 10%

According to the statistics, trade deficit increased by 10.15 per cent to Rs. 797.58 billion during the review period. 

The country had faced a trade deficit of Rs. 723.58 billion during the first six months of the last fiscal year.

Similarly, the country’s total foreign trade volume reached Rs. 1,081.04 billion during the review period, which is 17.36 per cent higher than the previous year. Due to significant growth in exports, the export-to-import ratio improved by 20.57 per cent during the review period. 

However, the ratio of exports to imports remains at 1:6.61, compared to 1:8.32 in the same period of the last fiscal year. The share of exports in total foreign trade stands at only 13.14 per cent, while imports account for 86.86 per cent.

The increase in exports of soybean oil, sunflower oil, cardamom, carpets, garments, tea, and coffee contributed to the overall growth in export trade during the review period.

The country has exported soybean oil worth Rs. 56.08 billion during the first six months of the current fiscal year while it had exported soybean oil worth Rs. 18.91 billion during the same period last fiscal year.

The sunflower oil worth Rs. 4.78 billion and palm oil worth Rs. 3.41 billion have been exported during the first six months of the current fiscal year. Likewise, the country exported cardamom worth Rs. 7.19 billion.

On the import side, petroleum products worth Rs. 128 billion were imported during the first six months of the current fiscal year. Diesel was the most imported commodity, with imports amounting to Rs. 58.27 billion.

Similarly, petrol worth Rs. 33.07 billion, aviation fuel worth Rs. 9.93 billion, and cooking gas worth Rs. 27.04 billion were imported during the review period.