Nepal spent Rs 609.45 billion on import of goods in the first four months of the current fiscal year (FY), which was Rs 96.07 billion more compared to the import expenses during the same period of the last FY.

The records with the Department of Customs (DoC) show that the import amount increased 18.71 percent from Rs 513.38 billion as of mid-November of FY 2024/25. The surge in import of petroleum products and crude edible oils was among the causes behind the whopping rise in the import figure during the review period.

The country imported a total of 347,412 kiloliters of diesel worth Rs 31.89 billion, while petrol import stood at 258,363 kiloliters amounting to Rs 22.37 billion. Similarly, the import of cooking gas stood at Rs 18.08 billion.

On the other hand, Nepal imported 200 million liters of crude soybean oil worth Rs 30.87 billion. Similarly, import of gold was also of a notable amount with the country spending Rs 15.72 billion to purchase 902 kg of gold from abroad.

In the review period, the total volume of trade increased 24.18 percent to Rs 702.94 billion. The country’s trade deficit also widened to Rs 515.95 billion from Rs 460.71 billion compared to the same period last year.

The country’s export earnings stood at Rs 93.49 billion. It was an increase of 77.51 percent from Rs 52.67 billion during mid-July and mid-November last year.

Processed soybean oil held the largest share in the export volume. In the review period, Nepal exported more than 185.25 million kg of soybean oil worth Rs 38.43 billion to India. Similarly, export of sunflower oil was recorded at Rs 2.73 billion, while that of palm oil stood at Rs 2.06 billion.

Large cardamom also gave the country notable export earnings of Rs 3.97 billion. Exports of textile and woolen carpet were more than Rs 2 billion each.

Due to a notable rise in exports, the share of the country's earnings from export rose to 13 percent out of the total trade volume. In the review period of the last FY, the share of export earnings was nine percent.

The growth rates of export and import pacified in the fourth month of the current FY. The growth rate of import stood at 20 percent, while that of export was 90 percent based on the DoC’s statistics for the first three months.