KATHMANDU: Welcome to Nepal News’ Evening Economic Brief—your go-to source on key financial updates in Nepal. Stay informed with concise insights on market trends, economic indicators, and policy shifts. Here are today’s top economic news highlights.

NEPSE Surges by Double Digits, Index Closes at 2673.69: Nepal’s stock market witnessed a significant surge on Wednesday, with the NEPSE index climbing by 62.25 points, closing at 2673.69. This marks a 2.38% increase for the day. A total of 308 securities were traded through 99,305 transactions, resulting in the exchange of 27.24 million shares. The total transaction amount reached a staggering NPR 10.51 billion. All subgroups saw gains, with investors in finance and hydropower sectors making the most profit. Among the top performers, Nepal Micro Insurance Company and Crest Micro Life Insurance saw the highest growth, each surging by 10%. Additionally, companies like Butwal Power Company, Om Megashree Pharmaceuticals, and Peoples Hydropower also posted strong gains, contributing to a highly profitable trading day for investors.

NRB Submits Pre-Budget Review Report for Fiscal Year 2082/83: Nepal Rastra Bank (NRB) has submitted its pre-budget review report for the fiscal year 2082/83 to the Ministry of Finance. Acting Governor Dr. Neelam Dhungana Timilsina handed over the report to Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Bishnu Prasad Paudel. Acting Governor Timilsina stated that the report was prepared after conducting studies and discussions across various regions of the country. Finance Minister Paudel expressed that the report would play a significant role in shaping the upcoming budget.

NRB to Withdraw NPR 35 billion from Market: To manage excessive liquidity, Nepal Rastra Bank has announced plans to withdraw NPR 35 billion from the market on Wednesday. This will be done through a deposit collection mechanism for a period of 21 days. The central bank has regularly withdrawn excess liquidity from the market twice a week for the past year and a half. This action is part of its effort to manage the excess liquidity and ensure stability in the financial system.

Government Announces Mandatory Registration of All Businesses with Social Security Fund: In the newly presented policy and program for the fiscal year 2082/83, the government has announced that all industries and institutions will be required to register with the Social Security Fund. The new program requires all employees engaged in any form of employment to be mandatorily registered for contributions to the Social Security Fund. The policy also stipulates that businesses must provide proof of regular contributions to the Social Security Fund when renewing their business licenses. Though the Social Security Fund was established nearly eight years ago, it was initially voluntary. The policy now mandates registration for all employment types, including companies, institutions, cooperatives, and other cooperative entities.

Protest at Gautam Buddha International Airport: Businesses in Rupandehi, dissatisfied with the lack of regular international flights from the Gautam Buddha International Airport, gathered in front of the airport gate to protest. On Wednesday morning, more than a dozen associations, led by the Chamber of Commerce Rupandehi, held a sit-in protest at the main gate of the airport for an hour. The business leaders warned that if international flights were not resumed regularly, they would escalate the protest, including halting domestic flights, boycotting relevant ministers, and staging a sit-in at the Ministry in Kathmandu. Darpan Shrestha, the President of the Nepal Chamber of Commerce in Rupandehi, stated, “Today’s sit-in is only a signal; if our demands are not met, we will escalate our protest significantly.”

Securities Board Calls Meeting on New Stock Exchange License: The Securities Board of Nepal has called a meeting of its board of directors on Wednesday to discuss the licensing of a new stock exchange. The board has formed a committee to review the study report submitted by Chintamani Shiwakoti, former deputy governor of Nepal Rastra Bank, which includes recommendations for the implementation of the report.

Securities Board Delays IPO Approvals for Hydro Companies: The Securities Board of Nepal (SEBON) has been accused of unnecessarily delaying the approval of IPOs and rights shares for hydroelectric companies. Currently, 43 hydro companies with IPOs valued at NPR 19.44 billion and nine hydro companies with rights shares worth NPR 4.99 billion are awaiting approval. Industry insiders have alleged that middlemen are demanding commissions in exchange for getting final approval for IPOs and rights offerings. SEBON is currently processing IPO applications for 89 companies, who have sought approval to issue over 40.47 million shares worth NPR 56.07 billion. Despite this, the board has not granted approval without providing any concrete reasons.

New Requirement for Company Registration and Share Transfers: From now on, when registering a new company or transferring shares of an existing company, the details of the actual shareholders and beneficiaries must be submitted. The Office of the Company Registrar announced this requirement in a notice issued on Tuesday. According to the notice, companies must update the information about their real owners and beneficiaries. Furthermore, any changes in the ownership of shares in a registered company, such as the transfer of shares, must be updated as well. The Office of the Company Registrar specifically directed holding companies to update their shareholders’ details in the administrative management information system.

MP Nisha Dangi Criticizes Government’s Delay in Governor Appointment: MP Nisha Dangi of the Rastriya Swatantra Party criticized the government for the prolonged delay in appointing a governor. During Wednesday’s session of the House of Representatives, she accused the government of focusing on the governor appointment while citizens suffer from poor road conditions during the rainy season. Dangi stated, “The government should focus on addressing real issues like the safety of travelers instead of wasting time on trivial matters like the governor’s appointment.”

Maoist Center Expresses Concern Over Commission Scams in Securities Board: The Communist Party of Nepal (Maoist Center) has expressed serious concern over recent reports regarding commission scams within the Securities Board. During a meeting of the House of Representatives on Wednesday, Maoist Center MP Madhav Sapkota informed that due to these commission activities, the approval of Initial Public Offerings (IPOs) for 89 companies of 43 projects with a combined capacity of 1,000.52 MW, valued at NPR 56.07 billion, has been delayed for the past 22 months. Sapkota highlighted those reports had emerged indicating that the Securities Board had engaged in bargaining of up to 5% for small projects and 7% for larger ones. He called on the government to conduct a thorough investigation into these claims through reliable mechanisms.

UML Discusses the Budget for the Upcoming Fiscal Year 2082/83: The top leaders of the CPN (UML) held a meeting to discuss the upcoming budget for the fiscal year 2082/83. According to Dr. Bhishma Adhikari, the Secretary of the party’s central office, the discussion focused on making the budget more people-centric. He mentioned that the party leadership suggested that the budget should primarily address production and the people’s issues. The meeting was attended by all members of the party’s secretariat except for the party president and prime minister. Dr. Adhikari also informed that due to time constraints, suggestions were not provided in the previous secretariat meeting on 21st Baishakh, but the budget discussion was carried out on Wednesday.

Reliance Spinning Mills Reports Financial Improvement: Reliance Spinning Mills has reported an improvement in its financial performance during the third quarter of the current fiscal year. According to the financial report released on Wednesday for the fiscal year 2081/82, the company made a net profit of NPR 324.29 million by the end of the fiscal year 2081. In the previous fiscal year, the company made a profit of NPR 50.3 million, indicating that the profit for the first nine months of the current fiscal year was 6.5 times higher than the entire profit of the previous year. The total profit for the first nine months of the current fiscal year stands at NPR 1.02 billion. In the previous year, by the end of the fiscal month of Ashar, the company’s total profit was NPR 865.1 million.

Road Department to Focus on Ongoing Programs in Upcoming Fiscal Year: The Department of Roads will not introduce any new road construction programs in the upcoming fiscal year 2082/83. According to Umesh Bindu Shrestha, Chief of the Plan Section at the Ministry of Physical Infrastructure and Transport, a consensus has been reached among senior officials of the Ministry of Finance, National Planning Commission, and Ministry of Physical Infrastructure not to include new road programs in the upcoming budget. Shrestha confirmed that only ongoing and existing programs will be included in the budget for the next fiscal year. Bhimarjun Adhikari, the ministry’s spokesperson, added that the ministry is currently handling approximately 1,200 ongoing programs.

Work Begins on Overpass at Lahan Chowk under East-West Highway Expansion: Construction of an overpass has started at Lahan Chowk in Siraha as part of the expansion of the East-West Highway. The ‘China Railway-2 Engineering Group’ has initiated the construction of the overpass. The expansion project covers 86.83 kilometers from Kanchanpur to Kamala, with 62% of the work on the western section (Siraha) already completed. The construction of the overpass follows the removal of the Martyrs Memorial at Lahan Chowk. According to Saroj Koirala, the Information Officer for the Western Section of the Kanchanpur-Kamala Road project, two overpasses will be constructed with a width of 32 meters according to international standards.

Reliable Nepal Life Insurance Announces Dividend Proposal: Reliable Nepal Life Insurance Ltd has made a decision regarding its dividend proposal. The company’s board of directors meeting on 23rd decided to issue 12% bonus shares and a cash dividend of 0.6315% of the paid-up capital to its shareholders. The company’s current paid-up capital stands at NPR 4.64 billion. The total proposed bonus shares amount to NPR 550.68 million, and a cash dividend of NPR 29.31 million will be distributed to the shareholders.

Dispute Over Jagdulla Hydropower Project Tender Process: The tender process for the 106-megawatt Jagdulla Hydropower Project, a subsidiary of the government-owned Bhutan Hydro Power Limited (BHPL), has come under dispute. The High Court of Patan has issued a show-cause order against the company in response to a writ petition regarding the re-tender process for the project. The tender process, which was originally called on 20th Jestha 2081, was canceled on 22nd Poush 2081 after disputes arose in the Engineering, Procurement, and Construction (EPC) contracts. The project was re-tendered on 6th Magh 2081, with the selected bidders being Jiangxi Construction Engineering (Group) Corporation (China) and Sino Hydro Corporation.

Oman Grants Amnesty to Migrant Workers Including Nepalis with Expired Visas: Oman has announced a three-month amnesty for migrant workers who have overstayed their visas and are currently living illegally in the country. According to the Nepali embassy in Oman, the Ministry of Human Resources has allowed these workers to return to their home countries without facing penalties. The embassy has urged Nepali migrant workers to take advantage of this opportunity before the deadline of 31st July 2025.

Lumbini Province to Reduce Budget for Upcoming Fiscal Year: Lumbini Province is planning to reduce its budget for the upcoming fiscal year compared to the current year’s budget. The current budget for fiscal year 2081/82 stands at NPR 3.897 billion, but the province is now working on a new budget that is expected to be reduced by up to 20%. Chief Minister Chet Narayan Acharya has directed the Ministry of Economic Planning and the Provincial Planning Commission to prepare the budget within the range of NPR 3.3 billion to NPR 3.6 billion, taking into account the federal government’s directive to cut the overall budget ceiling.

Postal Highway Contract Terminated in Dang Section for Delays: The contract for the construction of the Hulaki Highway in the Dang section has been terminated after delays in completion. Lila Bhandari, the project chief at the Hulaki Highway Project Office in Nepalgunj, confirmed that the contractor failed to meet deadlines, causing the project to stall. Bhandari stated that despite multiple efforts, including media coverage and written notices, the contractor did not resume work. As a result, Bhandari said the process to cancel the contract has been initiated, and a bank guarantee of NPR 6 million is expected to be returned. The file for contract termination has been forwarded to the concerned department for approval, after which the contract will be officially terminated.

Unilever Nepal Discusses Industrial and Economic Issues with Nepal-India Chamber of Commerce: A delegation led by Amalan Mukherjee, Managing Director of Unilever Nepal, met with Sunil KC, President of the Nepal-India Chamber of Commerce, to discuss current industrial and economic issues. They deliberated on the challenges multinational companies face in Nepal, including problems related to profit repatriation and high customs duties on raw materials. Company representatives highlighted the difficulties in securing fair treatment and voiced concerns about high import duties on raw materials compared to finished goods.

Gold Price Increases by NPR 1,700 per Tola: The price of gold has increased by NPR 1,700 per tola on Wednesday. According to the Federation of Nepal Gold and Silver Dealers’ Association, the price of gold was higher compared to the previous day. The price of hallmark gold on Wednesday was NPR 191,600 per tola, up from NPR 189,900 on Tuesday. Meanwhile, the price of silver remained stable, maintaining a price of NPR 1,965 per tola, the same as Tuesday.