Foreign exchange reserves cross Rs 4 trillion, remittance hits Rs 436 billion in two months

Nepal Rastra Bank on Thursday released its report on the country's current macroeconomic and financial situation for the first two months of fiscal year 2083/84. According to the report, foreign exchange reserves reached Rs 4.07 trillion (Rs 4,065.78 billion) by the end of Bhadau.

The reserves, which stood at Rs 3.90 trillion (Rs 3,897.67 billion) at the end of Asar, grew 4.3 percent over the two months. In US dollar terms, reserves rose 4.6 percent to $26.48 billion. The central bank said this level of reserves is sufficient to cover 17.8 months of imports of goods and services.

Remittance inflows exceeded Rs 436 billion in the two months, a rise of 23.9 percent. In Bhadau alone, remittance inflows stood at Rs 221.31 billion. During the same period, banks and financial institutions extended Rs 93.52 billion in credit to the private sector.

Although the external sector appears strong, consumer inflation and the trade deficit have both risen. Consumer inflation reached 6.34 percent in Bhadau, compared with 1.87 percent in Bhadau of the last fiscal year.