Remittances increased by 35.4% in three months, totaling NPR 5.53 trillion.

Kathmandu: Remittance inflows, one of the strong pillars of the country's economy, have grown significantly during the first three months of the current fiscal year 2082/83 till the month of Ashoj. Remittance inflow increased by 35.4% to NPR 5.53 trillion 31 crore during the period, according to the latest data from Nepal Rastra Bank.

This growth rate is 35.4% higher compared to the same period of the previous fiscal year 2081/82, when remittances totaled NPR 4.07 trillion 31 crore in the first three months. This growth has been contributed by the increased number of Nepali workers going for foreign employment, resulting in increased remittance transfers.

The remittance received in Ashoj alone this year is NPR 2.01 trillion 22 crore, the highest ever monthly inflow. The remittance received in Ashoj last year was NPR 1.44 trillion 17 crore.

Besides the major appreciation in Nepali currency, the remittance inflows in US dollar terms have also grown at an encouraging rate. Remittances in dollars climbed 29.2 percent to reach USD 394 million during the review period compared to a 10.6 percent growth during the same period of last year.

This sharp increase in remittance inflows is largely due to the significant rise in the number of Nepali workers going abroad for employment. In the review period, 123,459 Nepalis obtained final labor approvals (new institutional and individual) against 110,654 in the same period last year.

Equally, the number of workers renewing their labor approvals also surged sharply. During this period, 77,257 individuals renewed their labor approvals, compared to 59,939 last year.