Kathmandu: Nepal has exported cooking oil worth about Rs 56 billion in the last eight months. The export of processed edible oil has increased significantly as Nepal imports raw materials from abroad and processes them before selling.
According to National News Agency Nepal, the foreign trade data released by the Department of Customs till Mid-March of the current fiscal year shows that imports have increased by 11.20 percent and exports by 57.20 percent this year compared to the same period of the previous fiscal year. This indicates a larger share of edible oil in Nepal’s exports this year. In the last eight months, Nepal’s exports totaled Rs 158 billion, with soybean oil alone comprising Rs 47.94 billion.
The data further reveals that sunflower oil worth Rs 7.98 billion, cardamom worth Rs 5.83 billion, and carpets worth Rs 4.32 billion have been exported. The Department reported a deficit of Rs 987.39 billion in foreign trade during the second quarter of the current fiscal year. During this period, the total foreign trade of the country was valued at Rs 1 trillion 303 billion and 738 million.
In the past eight months, goods worth Rs 1 trillion 145 billion and 56 million have been imported, while goods worth Rs 158.17 billion have been exported. Nepal has suffered a trade deficit of Rs 563.67 billion with India, with imports amounting to Rs 688.68 billion from July 16, 2024, to Mid-March 2025, while exports to India were worth only Rs 125 billion.
Similarly, Nepal has faced a trade deficit of Rs 21.70 billion with China as imports from its northern neighbor were worth Rs 219.18 billion and exports mere Rs 2.12 billion. The trade deficit with Argentina, Ukraine, United Arab Emirates, and Australia is also high.
The import of petroleum products remains high during this period. Nepal imported diesel worth Rs 78.86 billion, petrol worth Rs 42.80 billion, and LPG worth Rs 41 billion. Additionally, electric vehicles worth Rs 9.69 billion and other vehicles worth Rs 2.11 billion were imported. The Department’s data also shows that one million 407 thousand and 78 smartphones worth Rs 21.91 billion were imported during the period.
Despite these deficits, Nepal has achieved a trade surplus with 34 countries, including Afghanistan, Denmark, Russia, Austria, and Maldives.