KATHMANDU: Economic Digest, a daily morning email digest, is basically a relatable summation of important business news from Nepal into easy-to-understand summaries.
Govt to form permanent revenue board
The government has stepped up measures to build a Revenue Board envisioned to address issues related to the country’s existing tax system. According to Uttar Kumar Khatri, spokesperson at the Ministry of Finance, the Board will replace the existing Revenue Advisory Committee that the government forms every year during budget preparation to address the issues of taxation in the line of the government’s fiscal plan. The committee led by the joint secretary of the Ministry of Finance consists of tax experts from various sectors along with the representatives from the private sectors and will advise the government with suitable revenue policy and programs in the annual budget and the Financial Act.
Bahuni in Morang awaits petroleum exploration since 1988
It’s been years that the government had decided to conduct an exploration of petroleum products in Bahuni of Belbari, Morang in 1988. The locals are still waiting for the exploration project to begin. The initial study phase was completed three decades ago.
After the initial phase, the work was stopped as the government failed to take any initiatives to resume the exploration work. The Department of Mines and Geology has hired two security guards to secure the area since then.
‘Nepal Customs Clearance’ app launched
The government has launched a mobile app that would pave the way for traders to deposit customs online. Finance Minister Dr Yuba Raj Khatiwada launched the app called ‘Nepal Customs Clearance’ on the occasion of the 68th International Customs Day in Kathmandu.
Director General at the Department of Customs, Suman Dahal, said that the app would take the department towards automation. The app can be available on the Play Store for Android phones.
Govt to focus on collecting taxes from high-income sectors
Finance Minister Dr Yubaraj Khatiwada has said the government’s focus was to escalate tax collections from high income-generating sectors. He said that the government would not unnecessarily focus on meeting the revenue collection targets, but will follow strict measures to enforce the related laws.
Minister Khatiwada said that citizens should pay taxes in accordance with the law, but would never be left suffering. Maintaining that it was the responsibility of a responsible citizen to pay taxes to the State, Minister Khatiwada said that the government was concentrated on collecting inland revenues than customs duties.
He also urged the business community to fight market malpractices and to pay attention to ensuring the quality of goods.
50 charging stations opening soon in all seven states
While the government has been slow to initiate the process of using 300 electric buses in the capital, the Nepal Electricity Authority (NEA) has forwarded the tender process to build 50 charging stations in all seven provinces, including the capital.
NEA has set up 4-5 charging stations in each state and the rest in Kathmandu. Kulman Ghising, Executive Director of the NEA, said that all the state governments have committed to providing land for the charging station. The Authority will send a proposal to the Electricity Regulatory Commission regarding the amount charged for charging at the charging station.
Gold, silver prices jump in the domestic market
Bullion prices increased in the domestic market on the first trading day of the week on Sunday. According to the Federation of Nepal Gold and Silver Dealers Association (FENEGOSIDA), the precious yellow metal was traded at Rs 75,500 per tola (11.664 grams) registering an increase by Rs 300.
The fine gold was priced at Rs 75,200 per tola on Friday. Likewise, tejabi gold has been priced at Rs 75,200 per tola today. Similarly, the silver price also increased by Rs 10 per tola and reached Rs 895.
India is Nepal’s key development partner: PM Oli
Prime Minister K P Oli has said that India is not only a development partner of Nepal but is a friend in true sense in multiple sectors. He added that Nepal believes that the high-level visits from both sides in the last few years have further reinforced the age-old cordial relations between the two countries with the pursuit of bilateral cooperation in the fields of agriculture, railway and waterway connectivity, infrastructure, energy, and others.
China’s ban on outbound tours to affect VN2020
Following the recent spread of the coronavirus epidemic, China has urged travel companies to temporarily stop selling international tour packages. If the travel ban is prolonged, Nepal’s ambitious plans to attract 350,000 tourists from China for this year’s Visit Nepal campaign could be affected, especially with China being Nepal’s second-largest tourism market.
The effect could ripple down into other branches of the economy. On Sunday, China’s Ministry of Culture and Tourism issued an emergency notice to order all travel agencies to temporarily suspend all packages. Nepali travel and tour operators said that all tour packages sold for February have been canceled. The move comes at the start of the Chinese New Year holidays when millions of Chinese travel across the country and abroad.
(Compiled and prepared by Swastik Aryal, Akash Shrestha, Nitish Lal Shrestha, Diana Zulkifli)
Economic Digest is a daily morning email digest, basically relatable summations of the most important business news and happenings from Nepal into easy-to-understand summaries. By realizing that readers are faced with a packed calendar, 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 by creating news summaries in the form of Economic Digest.