Nepal Rastra Bank data shows exports of hand-knotted woolen carpet that has consistently been sliding since about a decade due to workers problems and low competitiveness have jumped to value Rs 1.23 billion during the period. [break]
The figure is a 65 percent rise over total woolen carpets exported during the same period last year and when compared with annual data, exports recorded in the first two months are already a quarter of total carpet exports in 2010/11.
Exporters like former president of Nepal Carpet Exporters Association (NCEA) Kabindra Nath Thakur attributed the growth to a rebound in housing business in the United States and the substantial impact it made on the demand of hand-knotted woolen carpet. "European market is still soggy. If we managed to win substantial orders from US in 2012, carpet exports will definitely bounce back this year," he told Republica.
Similar is the picture of readymade garments. After years of downturn, exports of readymade garment to third-countries have jumped to over Rs 1 billion in the two months of 2011/12, shows NRB data.
The figure represents a growth of just around 20 percent when compared with same period last year. This is a good sign in itself, said garment exporters. And the prospect this picture reflects is rosy. If exports in two months have already valued over one-third of total garments exports in 2010/11, we can easily predict the total exports to grow substantially over this fiscal year, said an exporter.
Likewise, exports of Pashmina too jumped by almost three-fold to Rs 618 million during the period.
Thanks to similar growth in silverware, jewelries and tanned skin, Nepal´s exports to third-countries that had dropped by 24 percent during the first two months of 2010/11 has bounced back by 15.5 percent and totaled Rs 4.44 billion, reads an NRB report.
A growth in the export of top three products that have been faltering to draw buyers´ attention in the international market for years indicates to fresh business opportunities. Traders attributed this to the rise in labor cost in China, India and Bangladesh - the three major players in global readymade garment market.
But how the country will perform on export front in months ahead will depend a lot on political environment and its impact on industrial climate, said Udaya Raj Pandey, president of Garment Association of Nepal.
Exporters said they are mainly afraid of labor problems, particularly as sudden labor stir and rigid labor laws have been hurting industries badly. They also argued that the government and the central bank should effectively ensure flow of soft loans to export oriented industries, something which has been promised but not delivered, so far.
Except for zinc sheet, which grew by more than 100 percent to value at Rs 1.03 billion, top exportable commodities to India - the largest trading partner in the south - however failed to mark similar impressive growth during the period.
As a result, export to India, with which Nepali traders enjoy duty-free market access, grew by about 18 percent and is valued at Rs 8 billion for the period.
Imports, on the other hand, jumped sharply by around Rs 9 billion to Rs 69.91 billion during the period, as imports of gold, crude soyabean oil, electrical goods and petroleum products jumped sharply.
This gap between export and import growth caused the country´s trade deficit to widen by 14 percent to Rs 57.43 billion in the first two months of the current fiscal year.
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