And why not, say economists, Nepalis now possess much more money to spend than they ever had. To justify their statements, they quote figures like rise in disposable income, increase in private consumption and soaring remittance transfer. [break]
For instance, statistics of Ministry of Finance shows that gross disposable income of Nepalis together (at current price) has soared to a total of Rs 1193.40 billion -- a figure which is almost two-fold of what was recorded five years ago. This means, people at present hold double disposable income than what they possessed in Dashain of 2004/05.
Likewise, the national income data further shows that Nepalis are spending Rs 883 billion of that disposable income for consumption. Of that, spending of general people´s private spending alone stands at Rs 760 billion (86 percent of total consumption). If one compares this private consumption figure with that of 2004/05, which was Rs 459.53 billion then, s/he would understand why the Dashain market have boomed like never before this year, despite gloom in the political sphere and galloping inflation.
Apart from regular figures, Dashain is also marked by the injection of extra money into circulation. Nepal Rastra Bank (NRB) has estimated that people are receiving extra money of some Rs 20 billion. That includes Rs 8 billion in the form of special Dashain advances and Rs 12 billion in the form of additional remittance inflow. The purpose of all this transfers is to enable people enjoy the festive season. And the regular salary income worth some Rs 8 billion and overseas workers and pension transfer worth Rs 20 billion is also there for consumption.
If past trend is any benchmark, people will spend about 60 percent of that money on food items, 30 percent on non-food items and 10 percent on services including travel.
That is why managers of shopping malls like Rajendra Aryal of City Center believe that more than one million people will visit malls aspiring to buy items of their taste this season. To add colors and charm the shoppers, they have unveiled various schemes with attractive gift hampers. Suppliers of electronics goods, which used to remain out of Dashain shopping list in the past, are announcing schemes in a big way to lure consumers.
Transportation entrepreneurs said more people are leaving Kathmandu to their parental homes for celebrations this season than the last few years. Because of the attractive travel packages various agencies offered, a portion of high-end middle income groups are even going out for overseas tours this Dashain.
milan@myrepublica.com
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