Nepal’s economy grew 4.8 pc in third quarter: NSO

KATHMANDU: Nepal’s economy grew by 4.8% in third quarter (mid-January to mid-April) of current fiscal year 2024/25, preliminary data from National Statistics Office (NSO) show, with quarter-on-quarter growth of 0.6%. 

The slight increase came despite contractions in three key service sectors and underlines both the resilience and the ongoing challenges facing the economy.

The NSO’s estimates, released within 90 days of the quarter’s end, measure GDP at constant 2010/11 prices. They include seasonally unadjusted year-on-year figures and seasonally adjusted quarter-on-quarter figures, the latter calculated using the IMF’s X-12-ARIMA model.

On a year-on-year basis, all 18 industrial sectors recorded positive growth. Leading the expansion was electricity, gas, steam and air-conditioning supply at 12.5%, followed by construction (6.9%), mining and quarrying (6.7%), information and communication (6.6%) and manufacturing (6.2%). Agriculture, forestry and fishing grew by 3.6%, supported by higher output of winter crops and vegetables, while wholesale and retail trade rose 5.6%, buoyed by increased domestic production and imports of key goods.

Quarter-on-quarter, 15 sectors showed positive growth. Electricity and gas again topped the list with a 5.5% gain.