Thursday, July 26, 2012

Petroleum products, gold top import list


Petroleum products and gold top the list of the country's import bill.
The top five imports also include MS billet, vehicles and spare parts, and crude soya bean oil, according to the central bank's data.
The country has imported Rs 419.57 billion worth merchandise till mid-June and of the top five imports, three are from India and two from third countries.
"Of the total imports of Rs 272.26 billion from India, petroleum products is the largest import followed by MS billet — that is used for TMT bars — and vehicles and spare parts," the central bank's data revealed, adding that the country imported Rs 84.45 billion worth petroleum products in 11 months, followed by Rs 17.08 billion worth MS billet and Rs 15.75 billion worth vehicles and spare parts from India.
Similarly, of the total Rs 147.31 billion imports from third countries, gold is the largest import followed by crude soya bean oil. "The country paid Rs 22.82 billion for the second largest import, the precious yellow metal," it stated, adding that it paid Rs 9.42 billion to import crude soya bean oil from third countries.
However, the import bill of petroleum products has doubled in the last two years due to increasing consumption in the domestic market and also due to the increase in prices in the international market. But the import of gold has slowed down in the last two years.
In the 11 months of fiscal year 2009-10, the country had imported Rs 46 billion worth petroleum products, whereas it has almost doubled in the same period of last fiscal year 2011-12 to Rs 84.45 billion. But the country had witnessed an import of Rs 39.40 billion worth gold in the 11 months of fiscal year 2009-10, which has come down to Rs 22.82 billion in the same period of the last fiscal year, the data revealed.
Similarly, the import of vehicles and spare parts has also come down in the last two years to Rs 15.75 billion from 2009-10's mid-June import of Rs 21.56 billion, whereas MS billet has seen a gradual growth in imports in the last two years. But the import of crude soya bean oil has increased almost by three times to Rs 9.42 billion from 2009-10's mid-June of Rs 3.55 billion.
The combined import bill of the top five merchandise totals Rs 149.52 billion but the total export bill — by the 11 months of the last fiscal year 2011-12 — of the country is Rs 67.21 billion that is not enough to pay the import bill of a single product — petroleum products — from India.


Top five imports
Petroleum products — Rs 84.45 billion
Gold — Rs 22.82 billion
MS billet — Rs 17.08 billion
Vehicles and spare parts — Rs 15.75 billion
Crude soyabean oil — Rs 9.42 billion
(Source:
Nepal Rastra Bank)

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