Nepal’s foreign trade reached Rs 761.07 billion in the first three months of fiscal year 2083/84, from Shrawan to Ashoj, while the trade deficit widened to Rs 532.49 billion, according to Department of Customs data released on Wednesday. Imports stood at Rs 646.78 billion, compared with exports of more than Rs 114 billion. Although exports rose 57 percent year on year, they remained far below the value of imported goods, leaving Nepal with a deficit that increased 34.71 percent over the same period a year earlier.
Imports continue to outweigh exports
The figures show that imports accounted for the larger share of Nepal’s cross-border trade in the quarter. The Rs 646.78 billion in imports was more than five times the value of exports, which crossed Rs 114 billion. The difference between the two values amounted to the Rs 532.49 billion trade deficit reported for the period.
Total foreign trade rose 40.71 percent compared with the first three months of the previous fiscal year. The increase reflects the combined value of imports and exports, but the figures provided do not indicate how much of the growth came from either side individually. The reported import total and export value together made up the Rs 761.07 billion in trade recorded between Shrawan and Ashoj.
The deficit also expanded, rising 34.71 percent year on year. That increase means the gap between the value of goods Nepal bought from abroad and the value it sold abroad was larger than in the corresponding period last year. The customs data puts the current-quarter gap at Rs 532.49 billion.
Exports grow, but the gap remains wide
Exports were the strongest-growing component highlighted in the figures, increasing 57 percent year on year and exceeding Rs 114 billion. The rise marks a substantial increase in export value from the same three-month period a year earlier. However, export growth did not close the difference with imports: the value of imported goods remained much higher, and the deficit continued to widen.
The contrast between the export growth rate and the overall deficit is central to the quarter’s trade picture. A faster rise in exports does not by itself reduce the deficit if imports remain substantially greater in value. In this case, the reported export total was still more than Rs 532 billion below imports, leaving the overall balance heavily tilted toward purchases from abroad.
The available figures provide aggregate totals and year-on-year changes for the period. They do not specify which goods or trading partners accounted for the increase, or what factors drove the movement in imports and exports. The numbers therefore describe the scale and direction of trade, rather than the underlying causes of the changes.
First-quarter figures set the fiscal-year baseline
The Shrawan-to-Ashoj period covers the first three months of Nepal’s fiscal year, making the figures an early measure of trade activity in 2083/84. During that period, the country recorded more than Rs 761 billion in combined imports and exports, but the much larger import bill left a deficit of over Rs 532 billion.
The data released by the Department of Customs points to two developments at once: exports recorded strong year-on-year growth, while the trade gap continued to expand. The quarter ended with imports of Rs 646.78 billion and exports above Rs 114 billion, alongside a 40.71 percent increase in total trade. Whether the deficit narrows or grows in the remaining months will depend on how imports and exports perform in subsequent reporting periods; the first-quarter figures alone do not establish that future trend.
