Weekly Economic Update (20 March 2024–26 March 2024)
3 min readMar 28, 2024
- Nepal ranked 93rd in World Happiness Report — Nepal has been positioned at 93rd place among 143 nations in The World Happiness Report 2024 achieving a score of 5.518, marking a notable improvement of 0.554 since 2010. Nordic countries lead the ranking with Finland as the happiest country whereas Afghanistan ranked as the least happy country. (Source: https://thehimalayantimes.com/nepal/world-happiness-report-places-nepal-in-93rd-ranking and https://worldhappiness.report/ed/2024/)
- Chovar Dry Port commenced after two years — The Chovar Dry Port, nation’s latest and modern facility, has started operations for the first time since its establishment two years ago after the custom clearance for vehicles agreement with NADA Automobiles Association. (Source: https://thehimalayantimes.com/kathmandu/services-at-chovar-dry-port-after-two-years-of-completion)
- South Korea increases Nepali worker quota — South Korea has announced an increase in quota of Nepali workers by 1400 under the new Employment Permit System (EPS) for year 2024 marking a positive shift from previously allotted quota of 15000 workers established in 2003. (Source: https://english.pardafas.com/south-korea-increases-quota-for-nepali-workers-under-eps-for-2024/)
- Majority of commercial banks drop base rate — 17 out of 20 commercial banks have decreased their loan interest rates to below 10% per annum after Nepal Rastra Bank’s initial review of the 2023/24 monetary policy, where the bank rate dropped to 7%. (Source: https://myrepublica.nagariknetwork.com/news/majority-of-commercial-banks-lower-their-base-lending-rates-to-single-digit/)
- Nepal to endorse BRI projects — Amid confusion regarding investment modalities, Government of Nepal is preparing to sign implementation agreement for on China’s Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) projects after four years of intense negotiations during Foreign Minister Narayankaji Shrestha’s visit to China. (Source: https://english.khabarhub.com/2024/20/347061/)
- UNDP starts Insurance and Risk Finance Initiative — UNDP initiated the Insurance and Risk Finance Initiative in Nepal while mirroring its implementation across thirty nations. It aims to bolster financial resilience and curb substantial losses during disaster response and recovery by leveraging insurance and risk Financing advantages. (Source: https://risingnepaldaily.com/news/40480)
- PM requests concessional loans from AIIB — During a courtesy meeting with director of Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB), Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal has urged considering concessions on AIIB financing to Nepal citing huge potential in tourism, energy, information technology and other infrastructure projects. (Source: https://myrepublica.nagariknetwork.com/news/pm-urges-aiib-for-concessional-loans-to-nepal/)
- India reluctant to extend power export deal — India’s hesitation to renew contract expiring on March 31 which allows Nepal to purchase electricity from Indian Energy Exchange under the pretext of upcoming Lok Sabha Elections in India has heightened the risk of loadshedding in Nepal. (Source: https://www.newbusinessage.com/Articles/view/20576)
- Chinese traders order huge quantity of Ilam tea — Chinese Tea Entrepreneurs who visited Nepal for monitoring visits through the efforts of Ilam Municipality and Ilam Chamber of Commerce and Industry have demanded over 100 tons of tea from various industries in Ilam. (Source: https://myrepublica.nagariknetwork.com/news/chinese-tea-entrepreneurs-demand-over-100-000-kg-of-ilam-tea-after-monitoring-visits/)
- Sub-national fiscal equalization grants — The National Natural Resources and Fiscal Commission(NNRFC) suggests allocating a fiscal equalization grant of Rs. 60 billion to provinces and Rs. 88 billion to local levels in the next fiscal year, following criteria including minimum grants, formula-based grants, and performance-based grants. (Source: https://www.newbusinessage.com/Articles/view/20567)
