Kathmandu, May 13: Nepal’s economy saw a strong rise in remittance inflows and foreign exchange reserves in the first nine months of fiscal year 2025/26, according to Nepal Rastra Bank. Because apparently, half the economy still runs on people working abroad and sending money home.
The central bank’s latest macroeconomic report shows remittances climbed by 39.1 percent to Rs 1,659.41 billion during the review period, far above the 10.2 percent growth recorded in the same period last year. In Chaitra alone (mid-March to mid-April), Nepal received Rs 209.75 billion, up sharply from Rs 139.54 billion in the corresponding month of the previous year.
In US dollar terms, remittance inflows reached 11.55 billion dollars, marking a 31.9 percent increase. The rise also pushed net secondary income, which mainly includes transfers such as remittances, to Rs 1,820.42 billion from Rs 1,303.12 billion a year earlier.
During the period, 294,186 Nepalis received first-time approval for foreign employment, while 293,259 obtained approvals for renewed labor permits. The figures show fewer first-time departures than last year, though renewals increased.
Foreign exchange reserves also expanded sharply. Gross reserves rose by 30.5 percent to Rs 3,494.73 billion by mid-April 2026, nearly Rs 3,500 billion, compared to Rs 2,677.68 billion in mid-July 2025. In dollar terms, reserves stood at 23.55 billion dollars. The banking sector’s reserves are enough to cover merchandise imports for 21.8 months and goods and services imports for 18.4 months, which is the sort of cushion policymakers enjoy talking about.
The external sector remained robust as well. The balance of payments posted a surplus of Rs 731.16 billion, more than double last year’s Rs 346.23 billion. The current account surplus also jumped to Rs 618.68 billion, while foreign direct investment reached Rs 14.55 billion during the review period.
People’s News Monitoring Service
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