KATHMANDU: Economic Digest, a daily morning email digest, is basically a relatable summation of important business news from Nepal into easy-to-understand summaries.
India flexible to import palm oil from Nepal
India has shown flexibility towards Nepal in the trading of palm oil and pledged to allow Indian companies to import it from Nepal by taking a license from their government.
Navaraj Dhakal, joint secretary at the Ministry of Industry, Commerce, and Supplies, said that despite restrictions in the import of palm oil from foreign countries, India had become positive to import the substance from Nepal.
The government of India has taken decision responding to Nepal’s demand to allow the export of palm oil, he said. Sandeep Agrawal, the president of Refined Oil and Vanaspati Ghee Manufacturer Association, said the latest decision of the government of India to allow Nepal to export palm oil was creating a ray of hope among the exporters of palm oil.
“We are still waiting and watch when the export of it to India starts. So, we do not say anything until and unless we begin the export,” he said.
Women growing ‘economically wiser’ than men: NRB data
Challenging the conservative speculations against women of being prodigal and spendthrift, and their male counterparts being thoughtful, practical and visionary, the latest statistics provided by Nepal Rastra Bank (NRB) shows that women, as in many other things, are better at saving than men.
According to NRB, the savings account ownership in Nepal was 25% by women and 48% by men in FY 2018/19. The savings account ownership was 22% by women and 48% by men in FY 2017/18.
This shows a remarkable change in women’s hold as men’s hold remained somehow the same in the last 3 years. Thus women are turning more conscious about saving than men lately.
Poultry business faces loss of Rs 18 billion
The poultry business has come across a staggering loss of Rs 18 billion in the last year. The poultry farmers saw a loss in the transaction of eggs, chicks, and meat.
Nepal Poultry Federation vice-chair Tikaram Pokharel said the farmers have faced loss in poultry products during the year. According to him, a chick which generally costs Rs 55 on average was sold out at Rs 25 last year. Farmers had to experience a loss of Rs 35 in each chick.
He further informed that the farmers have to sustain a loss of Rs 4.72 billion when they were compelled to sell their chicken at lower prices.
Similarly, the farmers had to bear a loss of Rs 3.45 billion in the transaction of eggs in the year. The loss was also noticed in other production areas such as layers, broilers, and chicks.
10 percent VAT rebate on digital payments scheme launched
The Inland Revenue Department (IRD) has launched a new scheme of 10% VAT rebate for consumers who use electronic means of payment. This system is expected to increase the use of electronic payments throughout the country.
Nepal-US potential investment areas discussed in Pokhara
The delegates representing Washington DC-based Nepal Development Consortium (NDC) held an interaction with entrepreneurs and industrialists of Pokhara on Tuesday.
“The chief minister has floated impressive plans. There is a possibility for channelizing investment in different areas including cancer hospital, tourism hotspots, and agriculture”, he said.
“US northernmost large city Seattle has several small mountains. There are many ski resorts. Manang and Mustang of the state also possess such potentials”, he noted.
Another founder of the NDC Murti Kalkora urged entrepreneurs to pay attention to production ratio, planning, selection of competent human resources, management and knowing the local culture to make the enterprises successful.
Myagdi goat farmer earning Rs 2 million annually
Goat farmer, Ananda Rijal of Toripani in Beni Municipality-9 of Myagdi district has been earning Rs 2 million annually after he ventured into commercial goat farming.
Rijal is the proprietor of Dhaulagiri Commercial Model Boer Goat Farm. He has kept Boer breed of goats, which grows comparatively faster than other breeds, on his farm. At present, he has 19 goats.
Bel Bahadur Katwal, the chairperson of Ward 9 of Beni Municipality, said Rijal’s success has encouraged many people in the ward to take up goat farming. “The municipality has taken a policy of providing subsidies to interested farmers,” he added.
Ncell to collaborate with Microsoft to provide cloud services
Ncell has announced to collaborate with Microsoft Corp to provide Microsoft’s productivity and communications solutions, cloud resources and online meeting tools in Nepal.
The CEO of Ncell, Andy Chong said, “Ncell and Microsoft are combining resources and experience to focus on the fast-growing collaboration arena, which is a strategic market for both companies.”
VNY off to a slow start as arrivals fall 2% in Jan
Tourist arrivals into the country fell by 2% in the first month of 2020 which is being celebrated as the Visit Nepal Year 2020 campaign.
According to data released by Nepal Tourism Board (NTB), a total of 79,686 tourists entered the country in January, down from 81,273 in the corresponding period last year. The coronavirus outbreak in the Hubei province of China has directly impacted the tourism industry of Nepal.
To counter the loss, the government has said that it is planning to aggressively promote the campaign in the markets of South Asia and Arabian countries.
Nepal received 16,882 and 13,303 visitors from India and China, respectively, while it welcomed 6,386 visitors from the US, 4,447 from Myanmar and 4,010 from Thailand.
(Compiled and prepared by Swastik Aryal, Akash Shrestha, Nitish Lal Shrestha, Diana Zulkifli)
Nepal Economic Digest is a daily morning email digest, basically relatable summations of the most important business news, happenings from Nepal into easy-to-understand summaries. The Institute for Strategic and Socio-Economic Research (ISSR), Nepal’s independent think tank, and Khabarhub — Nepal popular news portal — have joined hands to disseminate news from Nepal in the form of Economic Digest.
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