KATHMANDU: Finance Minister Yuba Raj Khatiwada said the economic growth would not meet the target set for the ongoing Fiscal Year 2019/20 due to the coronavirus.

Talking to Khabarhub on Wednesday, Finance Minister Khatiwada said the economic growth would drop to 2 percent due to the measures taken by the government to combat coronavirus.

“If the novel virus is contained immediately, the economic growth will go down to 2 percent. If the situation lingers longer, it will plummet to 1 percent,” said Khatiwada.

“This is a rough estimation, though. It cannot be exactly said right now as the graphics of the novel virus infection is going up almost every day across the world,” added Khatiwada.

The government is unlikely to meet the fiscal target as the period between February 13 to June 14, which is the prime time for the development works, is likely to go down the drain due to the lockdown, said Khatiwada .

Likewise, the income sources including tourist season (February and March) and the foreign employment have been already hit.

The government has set an economic target of 8.5 percent for the Fiscal Year 2019/20.

Earlier, World Bank, Asian Development Bank and International Monetary Fund had projected 5 percent of Nepal’s economic growth rate for this fiscal year.