Over 10,000 cars imported into Nepal in last eight months

KATHMANDU: In the first eight months of the current fiscal year, a total of 10,000 cars have been imported into Nepal.

From Shrawan (mid-July) to Falgun (mid-March), 10,024 electric, petrol, and diesel vehicles were imported.

Among these, the majority are private cars and jeeps imported from China. By mid-March, as many as 5,285 vehicles had been imported from China, while 4,200 cars, vans, and jeeps came from India.

Indian companies held the largest share in the car, jeep, and van market in Nepal, with many brands from Japan, Korea, and Germany being manufactured in India and then imported to Nepal.

With the growth of the electric vehicle market in Nepal, the market share of Chinese vehicles has significantly increased.

As of mid-March, a total of 7,089 electric vehicles were imported into Nepal, with 5,278 of them coming from China and 1,775 from India.

A total of 2,945 diesel and petrol cars and jeeps were imported, with only 7 vehicles coming from China, and 2,425 vehicles imported from India, according to the Department of Customs. Vehicles also continue to be imported from Japan, Germany, Korea, and the US.

The government has facilitated credit access for electric vehicles while tightening restrictions on diesel and petrol vehicles.

Through the semi-annual review of the monetary policy, the National Bank has made provisions to allow up to 60% credit for all private vehicles.

During this period, 1,436 vehicles with 50 kW of power and 1,094 vehicles were imported from China, with one vehicle also coming from Indonesia.

Similarly, 3,197 vehicles with power ranging from 51 to 100 kW were imported from China, 681 from India, and one from Korea.

Among the 624 vehicles with power from 101 to 200 kW, 24 came from Germany, 2 from Korea, and 4 from the US.

Customs data shows that 10 vehicles above 201 kW were imported from China, 3 from Germany, and 1 from the US. Additionally, 2 vehicles above 300 kW were imported from China.

A total of 1,381 micros with 11 to 25 seats were imported, all of which came from China.