Trade deficit and price rise challenges of economy: economic survey

KATHMANDU: The government has accepted that the low economic growth rate and high rate of inflation and increasing trade deficit were the main challenges of the country’s economy.

At a program organized at the Ministry of Finance while making public the economic survey of the current fiscal year today, Minister for Finance, Shankar Prasad Koirala said the total trade deficit had reached Rs. 438 .67 billion.

As against the set target of 5.5 percent growth in current fiscal year, it will be only 3.6 percent, he said, adding it is projected 1.3 in agro sector and 5 percent in non agro sector.

The targeted growth could not be maintained for the deterioration of growth in agro sector, he said. The minister, however, said the industrial environment was improvement-oriented.

He said import was boosted from the increase in spendable income of the people and import increased by 21.2 percent, but export only increased by 4 percent.

Koirala also said the current three year plan just brought poverty to 23.8 percent as against the target of 21 from 25.2 percent, and added it is urgent to decrease the poverty.

The inflation has reached 8 percent as against the target to limit it to 7.5 percent, he said.