The Nepal Stock Exchange(NEPSE) Index gained 9.24 points or 0.47% and closed at 1967.97 points on the fourth trading day of the week, Wednesday. The index lost 17.56 points…
The Nepal Stock Exchange(NEPSE) Index gained 9.24 points or 0.47% and closed at 1967.97 points on the fourth trading day of the week, Wednesday. The index lost 17.56 points…
October 4: Total deposits in banks and financial institutions have exceeded Rs 5800…
October 4: The Ministry of Industry, Commerce and Supply published a notice in the N.epal Gazette on Monday informing that Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) up to Rs 500 million will be approved through the automated…
October 4: With the beginning of the peak tourism season in Nepal, the country has seen an increase in arrival of tourists.…
October 4: Members of Parliament have expressed concern over the exorbitant price hike of daily essentials and ethnic and communal clashes erupting in different parts of the…
October 4: Chief Executive Officer of Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC), Alice Albright has said she is confident and optimistic for the timely completion of the MCC…
October 4: A person was killed in an earthquake that occurred in Bajhang on Tuesday afternoon.…
The Nepal Electricity Authority (NEA) has issued a call to promoters of hydropower projects to engage in Power Purchase Agreement…
October 3: The Confederation of Nepalese Industries (CNI) has suggested the International Monetary Fund (IMF) to not exert undue influence on Nepal's policy making…
October 3: At least five persons were reportedly injured in Bajura district of Sudurpaschim Province while two others sustained injuries in Baitadi when an earthquake hit Bajura on Tuesday…
The Nepal Stock Exchange (NEPSE) lost 17.56 points or 0.88% and closed at 1958.72 points on the third trading day of the week, Tuesday. The secondary benchmark index lost 17.58 points against its gain of 5.19 points in yesterday’s…
The World Bank has projected Nepal’s economic growth to be 3.9% in the current fiscal year…
October 3: Short-term interest rates in the market are continuously decreasing due to the inability of banks and financial institutions to provide loans.…
October 3: The Securities Exchange Board of Nepal (SEBON) and the Nepal Private Equity Association (NPEA), a non-profit association of private equity, venture capital, and alternative investors, officially entered into a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to foster collaboration and promote the growth of the private and alternative investment industry in…
October 3: Nepal’s fairytale run in the cricket tournament during the ongoing Asian Games came to an abrupt end on Tuesday when it faced a 23-run defeat to India in the quarter final match of the T20 Cricket Tournament held in Hangzhou,…
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The index lost 17.56 points yesterday.', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">October 4: The Nepal Stock Exchange(NEPSE) Index gained 9.24 points or 0.47% and closed at 1967.97 points on the fourth trading day of the week, Wednesday. The index lost 17.56 points yesterday.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">During today's trading, there were 284 different stocks traded in 58,741 transactions. The volume of shares traded amounted to 4,323,021 units with a total turnover of Rs. 1.18 billion. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">Citizen Life Insurance Company Limited (CLI) had the highest turnover, reaching Rs. 6.93 crores, and closed at a market price of Rs. 447.70.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">Similarly, Madhya Bhotekoshi Jalavidyut Company Limited (MBJC) posted the highest gain of 10%, followed by Buddha Bhumi Nepal Hydropower Company Limited (BNHC) with a gain of 9.98%.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">On the contrary, Samata Gharelu Laghubitta Bittiya Sanstha Limited (SMATA) experienced the loss of 6.61% today.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">In terms of sector indices, all indices except Banking closed in the green territory, with the Hotel and Tourism index gaining the most at 1.52%.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">Sensitive Index experienced a gain of 0.13%, while Float Index and Sensitive Float Index increased by 0.46% and 0.04% respectively. </span></span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-10-04', 'modified' => '2023-10-04', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '18901', 'image' => '20231004042335_collage (11).jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-10-04 16:21:59', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '42' ) ), (int) 1 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '19172', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Bank Deposits Exceed Rs 5800 Billion', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'October 4: Total deposits in banks and financial institutions have exceeded Rs 5800 billion.', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">October 4: Total deposits in banks and financial institutions have exceeded Rs 5800 billion. Bank deposits have increased due to the continuous increase in remittance flow and the arrangement made by the government to allow BFIs to calculate the deposits from the accumulated funds at the local level as bank deposits.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">According to the data published by Nepal Rastra Bank, the total deposits in banks and financial institutions as of last Sunday reached Rs 5806 billion. Compared to the previous day, bank deposit increased by Rs 14 billion on Sunday. On Saturday, the deposit portfolio of banks stood at Rs 5792 billion.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">The total deposits in the banking system were Rs 5767 billion by the end of the last fiscal year (FY). After the government reduced the facility of calculating 80 per cent of the accumulated funds at the local level as bank deposit to 50 per cent, the deposits decreased by Rs 109 billion in the first two days of the current fiscal year.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">However, after a discussion with the bankers in early September, Finance Minister Dr Prakash Sharan Mahat allowed banks to consider 60 per cent of the accumulated funds at the local level as bank deposits. Likewise, as the inflow of remittance is high, bank deposits have been increasing.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">Despite the increase in bank deposits, the credit flow of BFIs is off the mark. As of Sunday, banks and financial institutions had invested a total of Rs 4932 billion. At the end of last year, the total credit flow of banks stood at Rs 4879 billion, which has increased by Rs 53 billion in two and a half months. Banks are competing to invest in government bonds because there is not much demand for loans compared to the increase in deposit collection.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">Along with the increase in bank deposits, the credit-deposit ratio (CD ratio) of banks has also decreased. The CD ratio, which was 82.21 per cent on Saturday, dropped to 82.05 per cent on Sunday. Similarly, as liquidity is high, the average interest rate of interbank transactions has also dropped to 2.52 per cent.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">Banks are allowed to invest by maintaining a CD ratio of up to 90 per cent. According to this provision, the banks can disburse additional loans of up to Rs 461 billion.</span></span></span></p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-10-04', 'modified' => '2023-10-04', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '18900', 'image' => '20231004025113_Banks - Copy.jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-10-04 14:50:27', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 2 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '19170', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Government Preparing to Approve FDI up to Rs 500 Million through Automated System', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'October 4: The Ministry of Industry, Commerce and Supply published a notice in the N.epal Gazette on Monday informing that Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) up to Rs 500 million will be approved through the automated system', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">October 4: The Ministry of Industry, Commerce and Supply published a notice in the Nepal Gazette on Monday informing that Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) up to Rs 500 million will be approved through the automated system. However, the government has not yet developed the necessary infrastructure to implement the automated system.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">The ministry issued a notice specifying the upper limit of foreign investment approval through automated system and the type of industries. The upper limit of foreign investment to be approved through the automated system is set at Rs 500 million. The minimum limit is Rs 200 million. Foreign investors can use automated system to invest in 60 types of industries and businesses in seven different sections within the limit.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">According to the information published in the Nepal Gazette, these seven sectors include energy-based projects, agriculture and forest production-based industries and industries related to infrastructure, tourism, information technology, service-oriented and productive sector.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">Baburam Gautam, director general of the Department of Industries, said, “Only investments within the specified limits will be approved through the automated system. The permission to grant investment approval will be done through this system." </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">He said that the department will now proceed with the purchase of the software for the automated system after the publication of the notification in the Nepal Gazette. Gautam said, “The system is not ready yet. It will take some time until the system is developed after proceeding with the procurement process of the software.”</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">The department held a press conference in mid-April and announced that the automated system will be used to approve foreign investment. The then director general of the department, Ram Chandra Tiwari, had informed that such a system, which is implemented in India, Bangladesh and other countries, would be implemented in Nepal from May 15.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">The department says that despite the announcement, the software was not developed because the government did not release the required budget. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">The government had mentioned in the budget statement for the current financial year (FY) 2080/81 that an arrangement will be made for automated system for approval of FDI.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">After the system is established, foreign investors do not need to visit the Department of Industries to get approval for the investment of the specified limit. They can upload the necessary documents in the system while submitting application for the investment.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">With the announcement of the automated system for investment the government claimed that it has created an investment-friendly environment in the country.</span></span></span></p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-10-04', 'modified' => '2023-10-04', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '18898', 'image' => '20231004022051_Foreign investment.jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-10-04 14:19:59', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 3 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '19169', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Nepal’s Tourism Business Returning back to Pre-Covid Situation', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'October 4: With the beginning of the peak tourism season in Nepal, the country has seen an increase in arrival of tourists. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">October 4: With the beginning of the peak tourism season in Nepal, the country has seen an increase in arrival of tourists. This year, foreigners' arrival in September, also known as the start of the tourist season, has reached the level of pre-Covid-19 in 2019.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">The tourism data for 2023 shows that arrival of tourists is higher in the peak season than during other months of the year. Spring (March, April and May) and autumn (September, October and November) are considered peak tourism seasons in Nepal. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">In September, the month when the tourist season begins, there has been a significant improvement in the arrival of foreign tourists compared to previous years. In September 2023, 91,012 tourists entered Nepal by air. According to the data released by the Nepal Tourism Board on Sunday, the arrival of tourists in this year's peak season is almost equal to that of 2019, the year before the onset of Covid-19.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">In September 2019, a total of 92,604 tourists came to Nepal by air. In 2020 and 21, the number of tourists visiting Nepal in September was low. In those two years, COVID-19 and the ban on cross-border travel and international flights, mandatory quarantine, and the necessity of anti-Covid vaccination affected tourist arrivals. The number of tourists visiting Nepal in September has increased since 2022.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">Similarly, the arrival of tourists in May and June this year is also more compared to the corresponding months of 2019. However, tourism entrepreneurs argue that their business has not yet returned to the state of 2019. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">Khum Bahadur Subedi, outgoing president of Trekking Agencies Association of Nepal (TAAN), shared that tourism is yet to return to the state of 2019. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">He estimates that it will be back to normal in 2024. He said that the current influx of tourists can be considered positive, but he said that during the off-season, tourists could not come due to the effects of the global economic situation.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">Sajan Shakya, general secretary of the Hotel Association Nepal (HAN) believes that the arrival of tourists will increase till November as it is the main season. "We estimate that 300,000 tourists will visit Nepal in September, October and November," Shakya said. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">According to the data published by the board, the highest number of tourists came from India in September. A total of 28,694 Indian tourists visited Nepal in September. In terms of numbers, China is second accounting for 8,174 tourists from China in September followed by the United States, Bangladesh, Australia, Britain, Sri Lanka, Germany, South Korea and Israel.</span></span></span></p> <p><br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> </p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""> </span></span></p> <p> </p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-10-04', 'modified' => '2023-10-04', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '18897', 'image' => '20231004010539_tourism ktm.jpeg', 'article_date' => '2023-10-04 13:04:26', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 4 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '19168', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Lawmakers Express Concernes Over Price Hike, Communal Clashes ', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'October 4: Members of Parliament have expressed concern over the exorbitant price hike of daily essentials and ethnic and communal clashes erupting in different parts of the country.', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">October 4: Members of Parliament have expressed concern over the exorbitant price hike of daily essentials and ethnic and communal clashes erupting in different parts of the country.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Speaking at a meeting of the House of Representatives on Tuesday, the lawmakers demanded strong enforcement of law and order to address the issue of communal and ethnic clashes. They also raised the problems faced by the farmers, and the victims of natural disasters including landslide and floods. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Thakur Prasad Gaire suggested that the government should focus on infrastructure development. Artificial shortage of goods and price hike on the run-up to the festivals is worrying, he said. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Janardan Sharma said time has come to effectively enforce citizen's rights provisioned in the constitution. Peace and order should be maintained in this multi-ethnic, multi-religious and multi-cultural country as per the spirit of the constitution, he said, urging the government to create such atmosphere that the incidents that occurred in eastern Tarai and Nepalgunj would not repeat again. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Hari Dhakal expressed concern saying why none was worried about the declining economy. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Dhruba Bahadur Pradhan said that the country needs to improve good governance. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Pradip Yadav said why some businesspersons were not paying electricity tariff despite repeated prodding by Nepal Electricity Authority. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Abdul Khan demanded government to removed double taxation on NRNs if they invest in Nepal. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Ram Prakash Chaudhary shared that farmers in some eastern Tarai districts were facing hard times due to scant rainfall, so their problems should be addressed. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Similarly, Chitra Bahadur KC questioned why those who failed in exam were recommended for district judges. He further argued it Nepal could not afford federalism. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Dr Amaresh Kumar Singh drew the government's attention towards rising cases of attacks on doctors. -- RSS </span></span></span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-10-04', 'modified' => '2023-10-04', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '18896', 'image' => '20231004122651_20230713052749_parliament building.jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-10-04 12:26:15', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => false, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 5 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '19167', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'CEO Albright Hopeful of Accomplishing MCC Project on Time ', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'October 4: Chief Executive Officer of Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC), Alice Albright has said she is confident and optimistic for the timely completion of the MCC project. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">October 4: Chief Executive Officer of Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC), Alice Albright has said she is confident and optimistic for the timely completion of the MCC project. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Speaking at a press conference organized in the capital on Tuesday, visiting CEO Albright mentioned that she found the Government of Nepal and other stakeholders effortful and dedicated for its implementation as the project has to be completed within five years since its commencement. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">"MCA Nepal is responsible for implementing MCC. This is a structure under the Nepal government," she added. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">CEO Albright shared that projects under MCC have been executed in different parts of the world and stressed the need of cooperation from all sides to overcome challenges in course of its implementation. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Sharing that the high-level meetings and discussions during her Nepal visit were fruitful, she said matters related to the successful implementation of the project were discussed on the occasion. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">During her stay, CEO Albright-led delegation had called on Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal, former Prime Minister and Nepali Congress President Sher Bahadur Deuba, former Prime Minister and CPN-UML Chairperson KP Sharma Oli, Minister for Foreign Affairs NP Saud, Minister for Finance Dr Prakash Sharan Mahat, Minister for Energy, Water Resource and Irrigation Shakti Bahadur Basnet and Minister for Physical Infrastructure and Transport Prakash Jwala among others. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Noting that the MCC has already entered into implementation phase, Albright expressed her confidence that the project would be completed in the designated period. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The MCC CEO further mentioned they had agreed and accepted the interpretive declaration attached to MCC while endorsing the MCC-related proposal by the parliament. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">She further said MCC was a crucial part of the US foreign grants assistance and its execution would further deepen the Nepal-US relations. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">CEO Albright expressed her hope that the project would help develop reliable electricity service and road network as well as open up new avenues for electricity export through the construction of transmission lines. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">She went on saying that the projects under such grants would contribute to the economic growth of Nepal. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Also on the occasion, US Ambassador Dean Thompson and MCA Nepal's Executive Director Khadga Bahadur Bisht also responded to the queries of journalists on the project affairs. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The MCC compact has already entered into execution phase since August 30. The MCC compact was signed between the Government of Nepal and MCC under the US government on September 14, 2017. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">After a long debate, the parliament had endorsed the compact last year. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">There is a provision in the compact that the power transmission lines and roads construction project should be completed within five years since the commencement of the project. -- RSS </span></span></span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-10-04', 'modified' => '2023-10-04', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '18895', 'image' => '20231004110852_20230830105937_1693279080.1692757131.1691983136.1690248678.1681795913[1].jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-10-04 11:08:16', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 6 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '19166', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Bajhang Earthquake Update: One Dead, 135 Houses Damaged ', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'October 4: A person was killed in an earthquake that occurred in Bajhang on Tuesday afternoon. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">October 4: A person was killed in an earthquake that occurred in Bajhang on Tuesday afternoon. The deceased has been identified as Gunamati Dhami, 40, of Jayaprithvi Municipality-11, Okhal. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">According to Information Officer of the District Police Office, Inspector Dipesh Chaudhary, Dhami died in a landslide triggered by the earthquake. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">A police team has been mobilized in the incident site, said Chaudhary. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Some 11 people were injured in the earthquake in Bajhang. Two of them returned home after treatment while nine are being treated at the district hospital. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Police informed that the earthquake caused damage to 135 structures in the district. Chaudhay further shared at least 60 houses were damaged in Thalara and 41 houses in Jayaprithvi municipality. -- RSS </span></span></span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-10-04', 'modified' => '2023-10-04', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '18894', 'image' => '20231004105318_20230620111902_earth.jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-10-04 10:52:31', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 7 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '19165', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'NEA Calls Promotors of Hydropower Projects for PPA', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'The Nepal Electricity Authority (NEA) has issued a call to promoters of hydropower projects to engage in Power Purchase Agreement (PPA).', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">October 4: The Nepal Electricity Authority (NEA) has issued a call to promoters of hydropower projects to engage in Power Purchase Agreement (PPA). </span></span><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">The NEA has set specific upper limits for run-of-river (ROR) and semi-reservoir (PROR) hydropower projects, namely 6,750 MW and 4,500 MW, respectively.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">Furthermore, the NEA has outlined that the progression of the PPA process will be determined by the roll order, contingent on the completion date of the grid connection agreement with the NEA.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">In an official notice published on Tuesday, the NEA has summoned promoter companies involved in the PPA process and the Electricity Regulatory Commission to review and finalize the draft PPA. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">Additionally, they are required to submit the necessary authorizations, performance bank guarantees, and the PPA fee for the purpose of executing the agreement.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">The notice specifies that failure to submit the application within the stipulated timeframe or to provide the requisite documents will result in the NEA removing the projects from the roll order. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">Subsequently, the NEA will proceed with the PPA process for subsequent projects that have completed the grid connection agreement, following the established roll order.</span></span></p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-10-04', 'modified' => '2023-10-04', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '18893', 'image' => '20231004060012_collage (15).jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-10-04 05:58:29', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '42' ) ), (int) 8 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '19164', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'CNI Suggests IMF not to Influence Nepal's Policy Making ', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'October 3: The Confederation of Nepalese Industries (CNI) has suggested the International Monetary Fund (IMF) to not exert undue influence on Nepal's policy making process. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">October 3: The Confederation of Nepalese Industries (CNI) has suggested the International Monetary Fund (IMF) to not exert undue influence on Nepal's policy making process. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">CNI made such suggestion to the IMF during a discussion held on Nepal's economy and measures to adopt for its reform. The discussion was held at CNI secretariat. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">On the occasion, CNI President Rajesh Kumar Agrawal urged IMF not to impose unnecessary rulings on government's policy and direction. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">“Nepal’s economy has its own features,” he said, reminding that all principles or any practices abroad cannot be replicated identically in Nepal. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">According to him, increase in interest rate to control price hike is not a proper measure. He was of the view that the import of petroleum products and other goods resulted in price hike. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Agrawal said that the interest rate doesn’t matter when the demand for goods is normal but it affects business when the industries are operating down at 30 percent of their capacity.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Moreover, CNI President Agrawal claimed that the country's economy was facing problems due to the policy the government adopted to increase the interest rate to contain inflation. Although loans were misused to some extent for lack of oversight following the COVID-19 pandemic, the regulatory body adopted the policy in haste rather than in a gradual manner, he blamed. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Moreover, Agrawal further said Nepal Rastra Bank's policy and direction were only favourable towards banks.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">“It was agreed between NRB and IMF on restructuring of loans for addressing the liquidity problem, but the NRB's recent policy is against it.” </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">IMF's mission chief Tidiane Kinda, Country Representative in Nepal, Teresa Daban Sanchez and others held the discussion with CNI. -- RSS </span></span></span><br /> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-10-03', 'modified' => '2023-10-03', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '18892', 'image' => '20231003095424_20230828114446_CNIIII.jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-10-03 21:53:56', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 9 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '19163', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Seven Injured in Earthquake in Sudurpaschim Province ', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'October 3: At least five persons were reportedly injured in Bajura district of Sudurpaschim Province while two others sustained injuries in Baitadi when an earthquake hit Bajura on Tuesday afternoon. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">October 3: At least five persons were reportedly injured in Bajura district of Sudurpaschim Province while two others sustained injuries in Baitadi when an earthquake hit Bajura on Tuesday afternoon. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The quake measuring 5.3 on the Richter scale with its epicentre at Talkot of the district damaged some houses and other physical infrastructures in the district. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The injured were immediately rushed to the hospital for treatment, said Narayan Pandey, Chief District Officer (CDO) of Bajhang. However, no human casualty has been reported so far in the quake, informed CDO Pandey. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The injured ones' condition is normal while more details on the extent of damages by the quake are yet to be obtained, according to the CDO. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">He shared that there were reports that some houses in the district headquarters and its surrounding areas were damaged while some were rendered uninhabitable. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Public office buildings including that of Masta Rural Municipality's ward no-1 were reduced to rubbles by the quake. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Patients at the District Hospital in Bajhang were provided services outdoor due to the dear of aftershock. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Sudurpaschim Province Police Office Chief DIG Bharat Bahadur Bohora said that a person returning home from school in Baitadi district was injured by a boulder that fell off a cliff and another one collecting grass also received injury due to quake-triggered landslide. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">He added that no human fatalities were reported so far while the condition of the injured is said to be normal. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Meanwhile, a huge tremor was experienced in Doti district at 3:07 pm on Tuesday and subsequent aftershocks continue to jolt Doti. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">A tremor measuring 6.3 on the Richter Scale with an epicentre in Chainpur was measured by the Earthquake Measurement Centre in Surkhet with its epicentre in Chainpur, Bajhang while another one with 5.3 on Richter scale occurred at Talkot in the district. -- RSS</span></span></span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-10-03', 'modified' => '2023-10-03', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '18891', 'image' => '20231003093745_20230329121710_earth.jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-10-03 21:37:16', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 10 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '19162', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'NEPSE Index Sheds Double Digits to Close at 1958.72 Points', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'The Nepal Stock Exchange (NEPSE) lost 17.56 points or 0.88% and closed at 1958.72 points on the third trading day of the week, Tuesday. The secondary benchmark index lost 17.58 points against its gain of 5.19 points in yesterday’s trading.', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">October 3: The Nepal Stock Exchange (NEPSE) lost 17.56 points or 0.88% and closed at 1958.72 points on the third trading day of the week, Tuesday. </span></span><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">The secondary benchmark index lost 17.58 points against its gain of 5.19 points in yesterday’s trading. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif">Experienced investors and stock market analysts attributed to the influence of the festive season as the cause of the consistent decline in the stock market. </span>They believe that the market could see further corrections during the Dashain festival, a major festival in Nepal.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif">Experts in the stock market suggest that a bullish trend is unlikely to start unless the Nepal Rastra Bank (NRB) eases its policies related to the stock market.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif">One investor said, “Market could see some corrections due to the Dashain festival. But, it could pick up the upward momentum if the NRB changes the cap of 120 million cap on the margin loan,” the investor said.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">During today’s trading session, a total of 281 scrips were traded through the total of 55,096 transactions. As many as 3,965,917 shares exchanged their hands, amounting to Rs 1.19 billion.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">Citizen Life Insurance had the highest turnover of Rs 5.59 crores, closing at a price of Rs 446 per share. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">Samata Gharelu Laghubitta Bittiya Sanstha gained the highest percent of Rs 7.91, closing at a price of Rs 696 per share, while Samudayik Laghubitta Bittiya Sanstha lost the highest percent of 7.54%, closing at a price of Rs 779. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">Sensitive Index lost 0.97%, while Float Index and Sensitive Float Index shrunk by 0.87% and 1.06% respectively. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">All sector indices closed in the red territory. Trading SubIndex lost the highest 1.47% while the Banking SubIndex lost the least of 0.61%. </span></span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-10-03', 'modified' => '2023-10-03', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '18890', 'image' => '20231003035723_collage (10).jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-10-03 15:55:13', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '42' ) ), (int) 11 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '19161', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'World Bank Forecasts 3.9% Economic Growth for Nepal in 2023/2024', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'The World Bank has projected Nepal’s economic growth to be 3.9% in the current fiscal year 2023/2024.', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">October 3: The World Bank has projected Nepal’s economic growth to be 3.9% in the current fiscal year 2023/2024.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">This projection hinges on the removal of import restrictions, a revival of the tourism sector, and an expansion of the monetary policy aimed at stimulating the economy.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">In contrast, the budget for the fiscal year 2023/2024 has set the target of achieving 6% economic growth. In the last fiscal year, Nepal's economic growth was only 1.9 percent.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">While the agriculture and industrial sectors may see some growth in the current fiscal year, it is the service sector that is poised to make a significant contribution to Nepal's economic upswing. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">The agriculture sector is projected to grow at 2.1 percent, and the industrial growth rate is estimated at 3.2 percent. Likewise, the service sector is expected to grow at a satisfactory rate of 5.1 percent.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">Nayan Krishna Joshi, an economist affiliated with the World Bank, said that the institution's growth projection considered the lingering impact of the lumpy skin epidemic in Nepal. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">However, the World Bank has also issued cautionary notes regarding potential risks. These include the specter of decreased agricultural production due to fluctuations in the monsoon, inflationary pressures, and the consequences of import restrictions imposed by India.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">According to the World Bank's semi-annual report, which was unveiled on Tuesday, Nepal is poised to achieve a 5 percent economic growth rate in the upcoming fiscal year 2024/2025.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">World Bank has set a higher target for inflation in the current fiscal year than the central bank. The central bank has set a target of 6.5 percent, while the World Bank's projection is 7.5 percent. In the previous fiscal year, inflation stood at 7.8 percent.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">In the last fiscal year, both production and construction sectors contracted. Similarly, wholesale and retail sectors within the service sector also faced shrink. </span></span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-10-03', 'modified' => '2023-10-03', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '18889', 'image' => '20231003023435_collage (8).jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-10-03 14:31:06', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '42' ) ), (int) 12 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '19160', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Interest Rates of Treasury Bills below 3 Percent', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'October 3: Short-term interest rates in the market are continuously decreasing due to the inability of banks and financial institutions to provide loans. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">October 3: Short-term interest rates in the market are continuously decreasing due to the inability of banks and financial institutions to provide loans. Despite the increase in liquidity in the banking system, the short-term interest rates fell to a low point because Nepal Rastra Bank did not use monetary instruments as per the announcement made in the monetary policy.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">On Monday, the interest rate of treasury bills fell below 3 percent. The interest rate of treasury bills had exceeded 12 percent in the previous fiscal year. Similarly, the interbank interest rate has been maintained at around 2 percent for the last 2 weeks. As the short-term interest rates fell, the government is raising domestic debt at a low rate.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">On Monday, the government renewed treasury bills worth Rs 18.5 billion. Among them, the interest on 28-day treasury bills worth Rs 5 billion has been maintained at 2.90 percent, while that of 91-day treasury bills worth 7.75 billion is 5.05 percent and 5.34 percent for 182-day treasury bills worth Rs 5.30 billion.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">The interest rates of all treasury bills have decreased compared to last week. Last week, the average interest rate of 28-day treasury bills was 3.44 percent, while it was 5.35 percent for 91-day treasury bills and 5.39 percent for 182-day treasury bills.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">In order to increase the credit flow of the banks, the government has given the facility to the banks to count the amount of accumulated funds of the local level as deposits. However, as the demand for loans in banks is not encouraging, there is competition among banks to bid for government bonds.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">In the current fiscal year's monetary policy, NRB announced that the upper limit of the interest rate corridor will be 7.5 percent and the lower limit of the deposit collection rate will be 4.5 percent, keeping the average interbank interest rate within the limit. In order to maintain the interest rate corridor, there is a provision for NRB to use various monetary instruments. However, even though the interbank interest rate has dropped below the required limit, NRB has not mopped excess liquidity from the market.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">NRB has been using the excess liquidity of banks to raise government bonds. Due to this, the cost of internal debt of the government has decreased.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">The average interest rate of development bonds, which was 8.64 percent last year, has dropped to 6.96 percent in the current year. </span></span></span></p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-10-03', 'modified' => '2023-10-03', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '18888', 'image' => '20231003022219_Nepal_Rastra_Bank2 2.jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-10-03 14:21:03', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 13 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '19159', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'SEBON signs MoU with NEPA to Promote Private and Alternative Investment', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'October 3: The Securities Exchange Board of Nepal (SEBON) and the Nepal Private Equity Association (NPEA), a non-profit association of private equity, venture capital, and alternative investors, officially entered into a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to foster collaboration and promote the growth of the private and alternative investment industry in Nepal.', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">October 3: The Securities Exchange Board of Nepal (SEBON) and the Nepal Private Equity Association (NPEA), a non-profit association of private equity, venture capital, and alternative investors, officially entered into a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to foster collaboration and promote the growth of the private and alternative investment industry in Nepal. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Issuing a statement on Monday, NEPA said its Chairman Siddhant Raj Pandey and the Executive Chairman of SEBON, Ramesh Kumar Hamal, signed the MOU on behalf of their respective organizations.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">The statement further says that the MOU was signed after the second annual general meeting of NPEA held at Thamel-based Aloft Kathmandu on October 2. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">The statement further said that the MoU solidifies the commitment of both parties to advance innovation, entrepreneurship, and job creation in Nepal by facilitating greater access to finance for businesses in the region. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">As per the agreement, SEBON will provide regulatory support, while both will work towards industry advocacy and promotion of alternative/specialized investment industry including training and information sharing.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">NPEA is an umbrella organization that represents all alternative investment players in the domestic market of Nepal.</span></span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-10-03', 'modified' => '2023-10-03', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '18887', 'image' => '20231003020701_IMG-20231003-WA0009.jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-10-03 14:06:19', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 14 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '19158', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Nepal’s Fairytale Run in Asiad Cricket comes to an End', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'October 3: Nepal’s fairytale run in the cricket tournament during the ongoing Asian Games came to an abrupt end on Tuesday when it faced a 23-run defeat to India in the quarter final match of the T20 Cricket Tournament held in Hangzhou, China. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">October 3: Nepal’s fairytale run in the cricket tournament during the ongoing Asian Games came to an abrupt end on Tuesday when it faced a 23-run defeat to India in the quarter final match of the T20 Cricket Tournament held in Hangzhou, China. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Chasing a massive 203-run target presented by the second-rung team of India, Nepal could only make 179 runs losing nine wickets in the allotted 20 overs. However, Nepal's performance was worth appreciating, reported the state-owned RSS. Nepal made a perfect start to the Asian Games in cricket breaking several world records last week during its impressive win against Mongolia.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">But Nepal was not match to India despite the cricket superpower fielding second-choice teams while the top-not players prepare for the cricket world cup.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">According to RSS, the national news agency of Nepal, Dipendra Singh Airee hit the highest 32 runs for Nepal. Similarly, Kushal Bhurtel made 28 runs, Aasif Shekh 10, Kushal Malla 29, captain Rohit Poudel 3, Sundip Jora 29, Sompal Kami 7, Gulshan Jha 6, Karan KC 18 not out and Sandip Lamichhane 5 runs. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Ravi Bishnoi and Abhesh Khan took three wickets each for India. Likewise, Arshadeep Singh took 2 wickets and Sai Kishor one wicket. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Earlier, India elected to bat first after winning the toss and posted a mammoth 202 runs in 20 overs. Yashashwi Jaiswal hit a century. He made 100 runs off 49 balls, putting Nepal under pressure. Ruturaj Gaikwad collected 25 runs, Shivam Dube 25 and Rinku Singh made an aggressive 37 runs. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Nepali bowlers Dipendra Singh Airee took 2 wickets and Sandip Lamichhane and Sompal Kami one wicket each. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">With this defeat, Nepal has been eliminated from this tournament while India have entered the semi-final round. </span></span></span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-10-03', 'modified' => '2023-10-03', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '18886', 'image' => '20231003014504_F7fVir6XwAAzi92 - Copy.jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-10-03 13:44:00', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ) ) $current_user = null $logged_in = falseinclude - APP/View/Elements/side_bar.ctp, line 60 View::_evaluate() - CORE/Cake/View/View.php, line 971 View::_render() - CORE/Cake/View/View.php, line 933 View::_renderElement() - CORE/Cake/View/View.php, line 1224 View::element() - CORE/Cake/View/View.php, line 418 include - APP/View/Articles/index.ctp, line 157 View::_evaluate() - CORE/Cake/View/View.php, line 971 View::_render() - CORE/Cake/View/View.php, line 933 View::render() - CORE/Cake/View/View.php, line 473 Controller::render() - CORE/Cake/Controller/Controller.php, line 968 Dispatcher::_invoke() - CORE/Cake/Routing/Dispatcher.php, line 200 Dispatcher::dispatch() - CORE/Cake/Routing/Dispatcher.php, line 167 [main] - APP/webroot/index.php, line 117
Warning (2): simplexml_load_file() [<a href='http://php.net/function.simplexml-load-file'>function.simplexml-load-file</a>]: I/O warning : failed to load external entity "" [APP/View/Elements/side_bar.ctp, line 60]file not found!Code Context// $file = 'http://aabhiyan:QUVLg8Wzs2F7G9N7@nepalstock.com.np/api/indexdata.xml';if(!$xml = simplexml_load_file($file)){$viewFile = '/var/www/html/newbusinessage.com/app/View/Elements/side_bar.ctp' $dataForView = array( 'articles' => array( (int) 0 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ), (int) 1 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ), (int) 2 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ), (int) 3 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ), (int) 4 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ), (int) 5 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ), (int) 6 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ), (int) 7 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ), (int) 8 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ), (int) 9 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ), (int) 10 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ), (int) 11 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ), (int) 12 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ), (int) 13 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ), (int) 14 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ) ), 'current_user' => null, 'logged_in' => false ) $articles = array( (int) 0 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '19174', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'NEPSE Index Gains 9.24 Points to Close at 1967.97 Points', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'The Nepal Stock Exchange(NEPSE) Index gained 9.24 points or 0.47% and closed at 1967.97 points on the fourth trading day of the week, Wednesday. The index lost 17.56 points yesterday.', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">October 4: The Nepal Stock Exchange(NEPSE) Index gained 9.24 points or 0.47% and closed at 1967.97 points on the fourth trading day of the week, Wednesday. The index lost 17.56 points yesterday.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">During today's trading, there were 284 different stocks traded in 58,741 transactions. The volume of shares traded amounted to 4,323,021 units with a total turnover of Rs. 1.18 billion. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">Citizen Life Insurance Company Limited (CLI) had the highest turnover, reaching Rs. 6.93 crores, and closed at a market price of Rs. 447.70.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">Similarly, Madhya Bhotekoshi Jalavidyut Company Limited (MBJC) posted the highest gain of 10%, followed by Buddha Bhumi Nepal Hydropower Company Limited (BNHC) with a gain of 9.98%.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">On the contrary, Samata Gharelu Laghubitta Bittiya Sanstha Limited (SMATA) experienced the loss of 6.61% today.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">In terms of sector indices, all indices except Banking closed in the green territory, with the Hotel and Tourism index gaining the most at 1.52%.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">Sensitive Index experienced a gain of 0.13%, while Float Index and Sensitive Float Index increased by 0.46% and 0.04% respectively. </span></span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-10-04', 'modified' => '2023-10-04', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '18901', 'image' => '20231004042335_collage (11).jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-10-04 16:21:59', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '42' ) ), (int) 1 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '19172', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Bank Deposits Exceed Rs 5800 Billion', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'October 4: Total deposits in banks and financial institutions have exceeded Rs 5800 billion.', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">October 4: Total deposits in banks and financial institutions have exceeded Rs 5800 billion. Bank deposits have increased due to the continuous increase in remittance flow and the arrangement made by the government to allow BFIs to calculate the deposits from the accumulated funds at the local level as bank deposits.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">According to the data published by Nepal Rastra Bank, the total deposits in banks and financial institutions as of last Sunday reached Rs 5806 billion. Compared to the previous day, bank deposit increased by Rs 14 billion on Sunday. On Saturday, the deposit portfolio of banks stood at Rs 5792 billion.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">The total deposits in the banking system were Rs 5767 billion by the end of the last fiscal year (FY). After the government reduced the facility of calculating 80 per cent of the accumulated funds at the local level as bank deposit to 50 per cent, the deposits decreased by Rs 109 billion in the first two days of the current fiscal year.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">However, after a discussion with the bankers in early September, Finance Minister Dr Prakash Sharan Mahat allowed banks to consider 60 per cent of the accumulated funds at the local level as bank deposits. Likewise, as the inflow of remittance is high, bank deposits have been increasing.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">Despite the increase in bank deposits, the credit flow of BFIs is off the mark. As of Sunday, banks and financial institutions had invested a total of Rs 4932 billion. At the end of last year, the total credit flow of banks stood at Rs 4879 billion, which has increased by Rs 53 billion in two and a half months. Banks are competing to invest in government bonds because there is not much demand for loans compared to the increase in deposit collection.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">Along with the increase in bank deposits, the credit-deposit ratio (CD ratio) of banks has also decreased. The CD ratio, which was 82.21 per cent on Saturday, dropped to 82.05 per cent on Sunday. Similarly, as liquidity is high, the average interest rate of interbank transactions has also dropped to 2.52 per cent.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">Banks are allowed to invest by maintaining a CD ratio of up to 90 per cent. According to this provision, the banks can disburse additional loans of up to Rs 461 billion.</span></span></span></p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-10-04', 'modified' => '2023-10-04', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '18900', 'image' => '20231004025113_Banks - Copy.jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-10-04 14:50:27', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 2 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '19170', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Government Preparing to Approve FDI up to Rs 500 Million through Automated System', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'October 4: The Ministry of Industry, Commerce and Supply published a notice in the N.epal Gazette on Monday informing that Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) up to Rs 500 million will be approved through the automated system', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">October 4: The Ministry of Industry, Commerce and Supply published a notice in the Nepal Gazette on Monday informing that Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) up to Rs 500 million will be approved through the automated system. However, the government has not yet developed the necessary infrastructure to implement the automated system.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">The ministry issued a notice specifying the upper limit of foreign investment approval through automated system and the type of industries. The upper limit of foreign investment to be approved through the automated system is set at Rs 500 million. The minimum limit is Rs 200 million. Foreign investors can use automated system to invest in 60 types of industries and businesses in seven different sections within the limit.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">According to the information published in the Nepal Gazette, these seven sectors include energy-based projects, agriculture and forest production-based industries and industries related to infrastructure, tourism, information technology, service-oriented and productive sector.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">Baburam Gautam, director general of the Department of Industries, said, “Only investments within the specified limits will be approved through the automated system. The permission to grant investment approval will be done through this system." </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">He said that the department will now proceed with the purchase of the software for the automated system after the publication of the notification in the Nepal Gazette. Gautam said, “The system is not ready yet. It will take some time until the system is developed after proceeding with the procurement process of the software.”</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">The department held a press conference in mid-April and announced that the automated system will be used to approve foreign investment. The then director general of the department, Ram Chandra Tiwari, had informed that such a system, which is implemented in India, Bangladesh and other countries, would be implemented in Nepal from May 15.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">The department says that despite the announcement, the software was not developed because the government did not release the required budget. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">The government had mentioned in the budget statement for the current financial year (FY) 2080/81 that an arrangement will be made for automated system for approval of FDI.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">After the system is established, foreign investors do not need to visit the Department of Industries to get approval for the investment of the specified limit. They can upload the necessary documents in the system while submitting application for the investment.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">With the announcement of the automated system for investment the government claimed that it has created an investment-friendly environment in the country.</span></span></span></p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-10-04', 'modified' => '2023-10-04', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '18898', 'image' => '20231004022051_Foreign investment.jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-10-04 14:19:59', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 3 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '19169', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Nepal’s Tourism Business Returning back to Pre-Covid Situation', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'October 4: With the beginning of the peak tourism season in Nepal, the country has seen an increase in arrival of tourists. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">October 4: With the beginning of the peak tourism season in Nepal, the country has seen an increase in arrival of tourists. This year, foreigners' arrival in September, also known as the start of the tourist season, has reached the level of pre-Covid-19 in 2019.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">The tourism data for 2023 shows that arrival of tourists is higher in the peak season than during other months of the year. Spring (March, April and May) and autumn (September, October and November) are considered peak tourism seasons in Nepal. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">In September, the month when the tourist season begins, there has been a significant improvement in the arrival of foreign tourists compared to previous years. In September 2023, 91,012 tourists entered Nepal by air. According to the data released by the Nepal Tourism Board on Sunday, the arrival of tourists in this year's peak season is almost equal to that of 2019, the year before the onset of Covid-19.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">In September 2019, a total of 92,604 tourists came to Nepal by air. In 2020 and 21, the number of tourists visiting Nepal in September was low. In those two years, COVID-19 and the ban on cross-border travel and international flights, mandatory quarantine, and the necessity of anti-Covid vaccination affected tourist arrivals. The number of tourists visiting Nepal in September has increased since 2022.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">Similarly, the arrival of tourists in May and June this year is also more compared to the corresponding months of 2019. However, tourism entrepreneurs argue that their business has not yet returned to the state of 2019. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">Khum Bahadur Subedi, outgoing president of Trekking Agencies Association of Nepal (TAAN), shared that tourism is yet to return to the state of 2019. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">He estimates that it will be back to normal in 2024. He said that the current influx of tourists can be considered positive, but he said that during the off-season, tourists could not come due to the effects of the global economic situation.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">Sajan Shakya, general secretary of the Hotel Association Nepal (HAN) believes that the arrival of tourists will increase till November as it is the main season. "We estimate that 300,000 tourists will visit Nepal in September, October and November," Shakya said. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">According to the data published by the board, the highest number of tourists came from India in September. A total of 28,694 Indian tourists visited Nepal in September. In terms of numbers, China is second accounting for 8,174 tourists from China in September followed by the United States, Bangladesh, Australia, Britain, Sri Lanka, Germany, South Korea and Israel.</span></span></span></p> <p><br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> </p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""> </span></span></p> <p> </p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-10-04', 'modified' => '2023-10-04', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '18897', 'image' => '20231004010539_tourism ktm.jpeg', 'article_date' => '2023-10-04 13:04:26', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 4 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '19168', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Lawmakers Express Concernes Over Price Hike, Communal Clashes ', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'October 4: Members of Parliament have expressed concern over the exorbitant price hike of daily essentials and ethnic and communal clashes erupting in different parts of the country.', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">October 4: Members of Parliament have expressed concern over the exorbitant price hike of daily essentials and ethnic and communal clashes erupting in different parts of the country.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Speaking at a meeting of the House of Representatives on Tuesday, the lawmakers demanded strong enforcement of law and order to address the issue of communal and ethnic clashes. They also raised the problems faced by the farmers, and the victims of natural disasters including landslide and floods. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Thakur Prasad Gaire suggested that the government should focus on infrastructure development. Artificial shortage of goods and price hike on the run-up to the festivals is worrying, he said. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Janardan Sharma said time has come to effectively enforce citizen's rights provisioned in the constitution. Peace and order should be maintained in this multi-ethnic, multi-religious and multi-cultural country as per the spirit of the constitution, he said, urging the government to create such atmosphere that the incidents that occurred in eastern Tarai and Nepalgunj would not repeat again. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Hari Dhakal expressed concern saying why none was worried about the declining economy. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Dhruba Bahadur Pradhan said that the country needs to improve good governance. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Pradip Yadav said why some businesspersons were not paying electricity tariff despite repeated prodding by Nepal Electricity Authority. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Abdul Khan demanded government to removed double taxation on NRNs if they invest in Nepal. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Ram Prakash Chaudhary shared that farmers in some eastern Tarai districts were facing hard times due to scant rainfall, so their problems should be addressed. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Similarly, Chitra Bahadur KC questioned why those who failed in exam were recommended for district judges. He further argued it Nepal could not afford federalism. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Dr Amaresh Kumar Singh drew the government's attention towards rising cases of attacks on doctors. -- RSS </span></span></span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-10-04', 'modified' => '2023-10-04', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '18896', 'image' => '20231004122651_20230713052749_parliament building.jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-10-04 12:26:15', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => false, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 5 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '19167', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'CEO Albright Hopeful of Accomplishing MCC Project on Time ', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'October 4: Chief Executive Officer of Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC), Alice Albright has said she is confident and optimistic for the timely completion of the MCC project. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">October 4: Chief Executive Officer of Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC), Alice Albright has said she is confident and optimistic for the timely completion of the MCC project. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Speaking at a press conference organized in the capital on Tuesday, visiting CEO Albright mentioned that she found the Government of Nepal and other stakeholders effortful and dedicated for its implementation as the project has to be completed within five years since its commencement. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">"MCA Nepal is responsible for implementing MCC. This is a structure under the Nepal government," she added. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">CEO Albright shared that projects under MCC have been executed in different parts of the world and stressed the need of cooperation from all sides to overcome challenges in course of its implementation. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Sharing that the high-level meetings and discussions during her Nepal visit were fruitful, she said matters related to the successful implementation of the project were discussed on the occasion. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">During her stay, CEO Albright-led delegation had called on Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal, former Prime Minister and Nepali Congress President Sher Bahadur Deuba, former Prime Minister and CPN-UML Chairperson KP Sharma Oli, Minister for Foreign Affairs NP Saud, Minister for Finance Dr Prakash Sharan Mahat, Minister for Energy, Water Resource and Irrigation Shakti Bahadur Basnet and Minister for Physical Infrastructure and Transport Prakash Jwala among others. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Noting that the MCC has already entered into implementation phase, Albright expressed her confidence that the project would be completed in the designated period. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The MCC CEO further mentioned they had agreed and accepted the interpretive declaration attached to MCC while endorsing the MCC-related proposal by the parliament. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">She further said MCC was a crucial part of the US foreign grants assistance and its execution would further deepen the Nepal-US relations. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">CEO Albright expressed her hope that the project would help develop reliable electricity service and road network as well as open up new avenues for electricity export through the construction of transmission lines. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">She went on saying that the projects under such grants would contribute to the economic growth of Nepal. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Also on the occasion, US Ambassador Dean Thompson and MCA Nepal's Executive Director Khadga Bahadur Bisht also responded to the queries of journalists on the project affairs. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The MCC compact has already entered into execution phase since August 30. The MCC compact was signed between the Government of Nepal and MCC under the US government on September 14, 2017. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">After a long debate, the parliament had endorsed the compact last year. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">There is a provision in the compact that the power transmission lines and roads construction project should be completed within five years since the commencement of the project. -- RSS </span></span></span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-10-04', 'modified' => '2023-10-04', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '18895', 'image' => '20231004110852_20230830105937_1693279080.1692757131.1691983136.1690248678.1681795913[1].jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-10-04 11:08:16', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 6 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '19166', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Bajhang Earthquake Update: One Dead, 135 Houses Damaged ', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'October 4: A person was killed in an earthquake that occurred in Bajhang on Tuesday afternoon. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">October 4: A person was killed in an earthquake that occurred in Bajhang on Tuesday afternoon. The deceased has been identified as Gunamati Dhami, 40, of Jayaprithvi Municipality-11, Okhal. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">According to Information Officer of the District Police Office, Inspector Dipesh Chaudhary, Dhami died in a landslide triggered by the earthquake. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">A police team has been mobilized in the incident site, said Chaudhary. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Some 11 people were injured in the earthquake in Bajhang. Two of them returned home after treatment while nine are being treated at the district hospital. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Police informed that the earthquake caused damage to 135 structures in the district. Chaudhay further shared at least 60 houses were damaged in Thalara and 41 houses in Jayaprithvi municipality. -- RSS </span></span></span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-10-04', 'modified' => '2023-10-04', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '18894', 'image' => '20231004105318_20230620111902_earth.jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-10-04 10:52:31', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 7 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '19165', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'NEA Calls Promotors of Hydropower Projects for PPA', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'The Nepal Electricity Authority (NEA) has issued a call to promoters of hydropower projects to engage in Power Purchase Agreement (PPA).', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">October 4: The Nepal Electricity Authority (NEA) has issued a call to promoters of hydropower projects to engage in Power Purchase Agreement (PPA). </span></span><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">The NEA has set specific upper limits for run-of-river (ROR) and semi-reservoir (PROR) hydropower projects, namely 6,750 MW and 4,500 MW, respectively.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">Furthermore, the NEA has outlined that the progression of the PPA process will be determined by the roll order, contingent on the completion date of the grid connection agreement with the NEA.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">In an official notice published on Tuesday, the NEA has summoned promoter companies involved in the PPA process and the Electricity Regulatory Commission to review and finalize the draft PPA. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">Additionally, they are required to submit the necessary authorizations, performance bank guarantees, and the PPA fee for the purpose of executing the agreement.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">The notice specifies that failure to submit the application within the stipulated timeframe or to provide the requisite documents will result in the NEA removing the projects from the roll order. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">Subsequently, the NEA will proceed with the PPA process for subsequent projects that have completed the grid connection agreement, following the established roll order.</span></span></p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-10-04', 'modified' => '2023-10-04', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '18893', 'image' => '20231004060012_collage (15).jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-10-04 05:58:29', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '42' ) ), (int) 8 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '19164', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'CNI Suggests IMF not to Influence Nepal's Policy Making ', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'October 3: The Confederation of Nepalese Industries (CNI) has suggested the International Monetary Fund (IMF) to not exert undue influence on Nepal's policy making process. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">October 3: The Confederation of Nepalese Industries (CNI) has suggested the International Monetary Fund (IMF) to not exert undue influence on Nepal's policy making process. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">CNI made such suggestion to the IMF during a discussion held on Nepal's economy and measures to adopt for its reform. The discussion was held at CNI secretariat. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">On the occasion, CNI President Rajesh Kumar Agrawal urged IMF not to impose unnecessary rulings on government's policy and direction. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">“Nepal’s economy has its own features,” he said, reminding that all principles or any practices abroad cannot be replicated identically in Nepal. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">According to him, increase in interest rate to control price hike is not a proper measure. He was of the view that the import of petroleum products and other goods resulted in price hike. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Agrawal said that the interest rate doesn’t matter when the demand for goods is normal but it affects business when the industries are operating down at 30 percent of their capacity.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Moreover, CNI President Agrawal claimed that the country's economy was facing problems due to the policy the government adopted to increase the interest rate to contain inflation. Although loans were misused to some extent for lack of oversight following the COVID-19 pandemic, the regulatory body adopted the policy in haste rather than in a gradual manner, he blamed. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Moreover, Agrawal further said Nepal Rastra Bank's policy and direction were only favourable towards banks.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">“It was agreed between NRB and IMF on restructuring of loans for addressing the liquidity problem, but the NRB's recent policy is against it.” </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">IMF's mission chief Tidiane Kinda, Country Representative in Nepal, Teresa Daban Sanchez and others held the discussion with CNI. -- RSS </span></span></span><br /> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-10-03', 'modified' => '2023-10-03', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '18892', 'image' => '20231003095424_20230828114446_CNIIII.jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-10-03 21:53:56', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 9 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '19163', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Seven Injured in Earthquake in Sudurpaschim Province ', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'October 3: At least five persons were reportedly injured in Bajura district of Sudurpaschim Province while two others sustained injuries in Baitadi when an earthquake hit Bajura on Tuesday afternoon. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">October 3: At least five persons were reportedly injured in Bajura district of Sudurpaschim Province while two others sustained injuries in Baitadi when an earthquake hit Bajura on Tuesday afternoon. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The quake measuring 5.3 on the Richter scale with its epicentre at Talkot of the district damaged some houses and other physical infrastructures in the district. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The injured were immediately rushed to the hospital for treatment, said Narayan Pandey, Chief District Officer (CDO) of Bajhang. However, no human casualty has been reported so far in the quake, informed CDO Pandey. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The injured ones' condition is normal while more details on the extent of damages by the quake are yet to be obtained, according to the CDO. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">He shared that there were reports that some houses in the district headquarters and its surrounding areas were damaged while some were rendered uninhabitable. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Public office buildings including that of Masta Rural Municipality's ward no-1 were reduced to rubbles by the quake. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Patients at the District Hospital in Bajhang were provided services outdoor due to the dear of aftershock. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Sudurpaschim Province Police Office Chief DIG Bharat Bahadur Bohora said that a person returning home from school in Baitadi district was injured by a boulder that fell off a cliff and another one collecting grass also received injury due to quake-triggered landslide. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">He added that no human fatalities were reported so far while the condition of the injured is said to be normal. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Meanwhile, a huge tremor was experienced in Doti district at 3:07 pm on Tuesday and subsequent aftershocks continue to jolt Doti. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">A tremor measuring 6.3 on the Richter Scale with an epicentre in Chainpur was measured by the Earthquake Measurement Centre in Surkhet with its epicentre in Chainpur, Bajhang while another one with 5.3 on Richter scale occurred at Talkot in the district. -- RSS</span></span></span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-10-03', 'modified' => '2023-10-03', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '18891', 'image' => '20231003093745_20230329121710_earth.jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-10-03 21:37:16', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 10 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '19162', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'NEPSE Index Sheds Double Digits to Close at 1958.72 Points', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'The Nepal Stock Exchange (NEPSE) lost 17.56 points or 0.88% and closed at 1958.72 points on the third trading day of the week, Tuesday. The secondary benchmark index lost 17.58 points against its gain of 5.19 points in yesterday’s trading.', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">October 3: The Nepal Stock Exchange (NEPSE) lost 17.56 points or 0.88% and closed at 1958.72 points on the third trading day of the week, Tuesday. </span></span><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">The secondary benchmark index lost 17.58 points against its gain of 5.19 points in yesterday’s trading. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif">Experienced investors and stock market analysts attributed to the influence of the festive season as the cause of the consistent decline in the stock market. </span>They believe that the market could see further corrections during the Dashain festival, a major festival in Nepal.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif">Experts in the stock market suggest that a bullish trend is unlikely to start unless the Nepal Rastra Bank (NRB) eases its policies related to the stock market.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif">One investor said, “Market could see some corrections due to the Dashain festival. But, it could pick up the upward momentum if the NRB changes the cap of 120 million cap on the margin loan,” the investor said.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">During today’s trading session, a total of 281 scrips were traded through the total of 55,096 transactions. As many as 3,965,917 shares exchanged their hands, amounting to Rs 1.19 billion.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">Citizen Life Insurance had the highest turnover of Rs 5.59 crores, closing at a price of Rs 446 per share. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">Samata Gharelu Laghubitta Bittiya Sanstha gained the highest percent of Rs 7.91, closing at a price of Rs 696 per share, while Samudayik Laghubitta Bittiya Sanstha lost the highest percent of 7.54%, closing at a price of Rs 779. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">Sensitive Index lost 0.97%, while Float Index and Sensitive Float Index shrunk by 0.87% and 1.06% respectively. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">All sector indices closed in the red territory. Trading SubIndex lost the highest 1.47% while the Banking SubIndex lost the least of 0.61%. </span></span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-10-03', 'modified' => '2023-10-03', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '18890', 'image' => '20231003035723_collage (10).jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-10-03 15:55:13', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '42' ) ), (int) 11 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '19161', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'World Bank Forecasts 3.9% Economic Growth for Nepal in 2023/2024', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'The World Bank has projected Nepal’s economic growth to be 3.9% in the current fiscal year 2023/2024.', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">October 3: The World Bank has projected Nepal’s economic growth to be 3.9% in the current fiscal year 2023/2024.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">This projection hinges on the removal of import restrictions, a revival of the tourism sector, and an expansion of the monetary policy aimed at stimulating the economy.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">In contrast, the budget for the fiscal year 2023/2024 has set the target of achieving 6% economic growth. In the last fiscal year, Nepal's economic growth was only 1.9 percent.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">While the agriculture and industrial sectors may see some growth in the current fiscal year, it is the service sector that is poised to make a significant contribution to Nepal's economic upswing. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">The agriculture sector is projected to grow at 2.1 percent, and the industrial growth rate is estimated at 3.2 percent. Likewise, the service sector is expected to grow at a satisfactory rate of 5.1 percent.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">Nayan Krishna Joshi, an economist affiliated with the World Bank, said that the institution's growth projection considered the lingering impact of the lumpy skin epidemic in Nepal. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">However, the World Bank has also issued cautionary notes regarding potential risks. These include the specter of decreased agricultural production due to fluctuations in the monsoon, inflationary pressures, and the consequences of import restrictions imposed by India.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">According to the World Bank's semi-annual report, which was unveiled on Tuesday, Nepal is poised to achieve a 5 percent economic growth rate in the upcoming fiscal year 2024/2025.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">World Bank has set a higher target for inflation in the current fiscal year than the central bank. The central bank has set a target of 6.5 percent, while the World Bank's projection is 7.5 percent. In the previous fiscal year, inflation stood at 7.8 percent.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">In the last fiscal year, both production and construction sectors contracted. Similarly, wholesale and retail sectors within the service sector also faced shrink. </span></span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-10-03', 'modified' => '2023-10-03', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '18889', 'image' => '20231003023435_collage (8).jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-10-03 14:31:06', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '42' ) ), (int) 12 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '19160', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Interest Rates of Treasury Bills below 3 Percent', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'October 3: Short-term interest rates in the market are continuously decreasing due to the inability of banks and financial institutions to provide loans. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">October 3: Short-term interest rates in the market are continuously decreasing due to the inability of banks and financial institutions to provide loans. Despite the increase in liquidity in the banking system, the short-term interest rates fell to a low point because Nepal Rastra Bank did not use monetary instruments as per the announcement made in the monetary policy.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">On Monday, the interest rate of treasury bills fell below 3 percent. The interest rate of treasury bills had exceeded 12 percent in the previous fiscal year. Similarly, the interbank interest rate has been maintained at around 2 percent for the last 2 weeks. As the short-term interest rates fell, the government is raising domestic debt at a low rate.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">On Monday, the government renewed treasury bills worth Rs 18.5 billion. Among them, the interest on 28-day treasury bills worth Rs 5 billion has been maintained at 2.90 percent, while that of 91-day treasury bills worth 7.75 billion is 5.05 percent and 5.34 percent for 182-day treasury bills worth Rs 5.30 billion.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">The interest rates of all treasury bills have decreased compared to last week. Last week, the average interest rate of 28-day treasury bills was 3.44 percent, while it was 5.35 percent for 91-day treasury bills and 5.39 percent for 182-day treasury bills.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">In order to increase the credit flow of the banks, the government has given the facility to the banks to count the amount of accumulated funds of the local level as deposits. However, as the demand for loans in banks is not encouraging, there is competition among banks to bid for government bonds.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">In the current fiscal year's monetary policy, NRB announced that the upper limit of the interest rate corridor will be 7.5 percent and the lower limit of the deposit collection rate will be 4.5 percent, keeping the average interbank interest rate within the limit. In order to maintain the interest rate corridor, there is a provision for NRB to use various monetary instruments. However, even though the interbank interest rate has dropped below the required limit, NRB has not mopped excess liquidity from the market.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">NRB has been using the excess liquidity of banks to raise government bonds. Due to this, the cost of internal debt of the government has decreased.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">The average interest rate of development bonds, which was 8.64 percent last year, has dropped to 6.96 percent in the current year. </span></span></span></p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-10-03', 'modified' => '2023-10-03', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '18888', 'image' => '20231003022219_Nepal_Rastra_Bank2 2.jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-10-03 14:21:03', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 13 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '19159', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'SEBON signs MoU with NEPA to Promote Private and Alternative Investment', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'October 3: The Securities Exchange Board of Nepal (SEBON) and the Nepal Private Equity Association (NPEA), a non-profit association of private equity, venture capital, and alternative investors, officially entered into a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to foster collaboration and promote the growth of the private and alternative investment industry in Nepal.', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">October 3: The Securities Exchange Board of Nepal (SEBON) and the Nepal Private Equity Association (NPEA), a non-profit association of private equity, venture capital, and alternative investors, officially entered into a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to foster collaboration and promote the growth of the private and alternative investment industry in Nepal. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Issuing a statement on Monday, NEPA said its Chairman Siddhant Raj Pandey and the Executive Chairman of SEBON, Ramesh Kumar Hamal, signed the MOU on behalf of their respective organizations.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">The statement further says that the MOU was signed after the second annual general meeting of NPEA held at Thamel-based Aloft Kathmandu on October 2. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">The statement further said that the MoU solidifies the commitment of both parties to advance innovation, entrepreneurship, and job creation in Nepal by facilitating greater access to finance for businesses in the region. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">As per the agreement, SEBON will provide regulatory support, while both will work towards industry advocacy and promotion of alternative/specialized investment industry including training and information sharing.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">NPEA is an umbrella organization that represents all alternative investment players in the domestic market of Nepal.</span></span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-10-03', 'modified' => '2023-10-03', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '18887', 'image' => '20231003020701_IMG-20231003-WA0009.jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-10-03 14:06:19', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 14 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '19158', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Nepal’s Fairytale Run in Asiad Cricket comes to an End', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'October 3: Nepal’s fairytale run in the cricket tournament during the ongoing Asian Games came to an abrupt end on Tuesday when it faced a 23-run defeat to India in the quarter final match of the T20 Cricket Tournament held in Hangzhou, China. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">October 3: Nepal’s fairytale run in the cricket tournament during the ongoing Asian Games came to an abrupt end on Tuesday when it faced a 23-run defeat to India in the quarter final match of the T20 Cricket Tournament held in Hangzhou, China. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Chasing a massive 203-run target presented by the second-rung team of India, Nepal could only make 179 runs losing nine wickets in the allotted 20 overs. However, Nepal's performance was worth appreciating, reported the state-owned RSS. Nepal made a perfect start to the Asian Games in cricket breaking several world records last week during its impressive win against Mongolia.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">But Nepal was not match to India despite the cricket superpower fielding second-choice teams while the top-not players prepare for the cricket world cup.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">According to RSS, the national news agency of Nepal, Dipendra Singh Airee hit the highest 32 runs for Nepal. Similarly, Kushal Bhurtel made 28 runs, Aasif Shekh 10, Kushal Malla 29, captain Rohit Poudel 3, Sundip Jora 29, Sompal Kami 7, Gulshan Jha 6, Karan KC 18 not out and Sandip Lamichhane 5 runs. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Ravi Bishnoi and Abhesh Khan took three wickets each for India. Likewise, Arshadeep Singh took 2 wickets and Sai Kishor one wicket. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Earlier, India elected to bat first after winning the toss and posted a mammoth 202 runs in 20 overs. Yashashwi Jaiswal hit a century. He made 100 runs off 49 balls, putting Nepal under pressure. Ruturaj Gaikwad collected 25 runs, Shivam Dube 25 and Rinku Singh made an aggressive 37 runs. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Nepali bowlers Dipendra Singh Airee took 2 wickets and Sandip Lamichhane and Sompal Kami one wicket each. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">With this defeat, Nepal has been eliminated from this tournament while India have entered the semi-final round. </span></span></span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-10-03', 'modified' => '2023-10-03', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '18886', 'image' => '20231003014504_F7fVir6XwAAzi92 - Copy.jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-10-03 13:44:00', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ) ) $current_user = null $logged_in = falsesimplexml_load_file - [internal], line ?? include - APP/View/Elements/side_bar.ctp, line 60 View::_evaluate() - CORE/Cake/View/View.php, line 971 View::_render() - CORE/Cake/View/View.php, line 933 View::_renderElement() - CORE/Cake/View/View.php, line 1224 View::element() - CORE/Cake/View/View.php, line 418 include - APP/View/Articles/index.ctp, line 157 View::_evaluate() - CORE/Cake/View/View.php, line 971 View::_render() - CORE/Cake/View/View.php, line 933 View::render() - CORE/Cake/View/View.php, line 473 Controller::render() - CORE/Cake/Controller/Controller.php, line 968 Dispatcher::_invoke() - CORE/Cake/Routing/Dispatcher.php, line 200 Dispatcher::dispatch() - CORE/Cake/Routing/Dispatcher.php, line 167 [main] - APP/webroot/index.php, line 117
Notice (8): Undefined variable: file [APP/View/Elements/side_bar.ctp, line 133]Code Context// $file = 'http://aabhiyan:QUVLg8Wzs2F7G9N7@nepalstock.com.np/api/subindexdata.xml';if(!$xml = simplexml_load_file($file)){$viewFile = '/var/www/html/newbusinessage.com/app/View/Elements/side_bar.ctp' $dataForView = array( 'articles' => array( (int) 0 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ), (int) 1 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ), (int) 2 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ), (int) 3 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ), (int) 4 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ), (int) 5 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ), (int) 6 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ), (int) 7 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ), (int) 8 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ), (int) 9 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ), (int) 10 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ), (int) 11 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ), (int) 12 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ), (int) 13 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ), (int) 14 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ) ), 'current_user' => null, 'logged_in' => false ) $articles = array( (int) 0 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '19174', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'NEPSE Index Gains 9.24 Points to Close at 1967.97 Points', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'The Nepal Stock Exchange(NEPSE) Index gained 9.24 points or 0.47% and closed at 1967.97 points on the fourth trading day of the week, Wednesday. The index lost 17.56 points yesterday.', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">October 4: The Nepal Stock Exchange(NEPSE) Index gained 9.24 points or 0.47% and closed at 1967.97 points on the fourth trading day of the week, Wednesday. The index lost 17.56 points yesterday.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">During today's trading, there were 284 different stocks traded in 58,741 transactions. The volume of shares traded amounted to 4,323,021 units with a total turnover of Rs. 1.18 billion. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">Citizen Life Insurance Company Limited (CLI) had the highest turnover, reaching Rs. 6.93 crores, and closed at a market price of Rs. 447.70.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">Similarly, Madhya Bhotekoshi Jalavidyut Company Limited (MBJC) posted the highest gain of 10%, followed by Buddha Bhumi Nepal Hydropower Company Limited (BNHC) with a gain of 9.98%.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">On the contrary, Samata Gharelu Laghubitta Bittiya Sanstha Limited (SMATA) experienced the loss of 6.61% today.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">In terms of sector indices, all indices except Banking closed in the green territory, with the Hotel and Tourism index gaining the most at 1.52%.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">Sensitive Index experienced a gain of 0.13%, while Float Index and Sensitive Float Index increased by 0.46% and 0.04% respectively. </span></span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-10-04', 'modified' => '2023-10-04', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '18901', 'image' => '20231004042335_collage (11).jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-10-04 16:21:59', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '42' ) ), (int) 1 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '19172', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Bank Deposits Exceed Rs 5800 Billion', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'October 4: Total deposits in banks and financial institutions have exceeded Rs 5800 billion.', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">October 4: Total deposits in banks and financial institutions have exceeded Rs 5800 billion. Bank deposits have increased due to the continuous increase in remittance flow and the arrangement made by the government to allow BFIs to calculate the deposits from the accumulated funds at the local level as bank deposits.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">According to the data published by Nepal Rastra Bank, the total deposits in banks and financial institutions as of last Sunday reached Rs 5806 billion. Compared to the previous day, bank deposit increased by Rs 14 billion on Sunday. On Saturday, the deposit portfolio of banks stood at Rs 5792 billion.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">The total deposits in the banking system were Rs 5767 billion by the end of the last fiscal year (FY). After the government reduced the facility of calculating 80 per cent of the accumulated funds at the local level as bank deposit to 50 per cent, the deposits decreased by Rs 109 billion in the first two days of the current fiscal year.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">However, after a discussion with the bankers in early September, Finance Minister Dr Prakash Sharan Mahat allowed banks to consider 60 per cent of the accumulated funds at the local level as bank deposits. Likewise, as the inflow of remittance is high, bank deposits have been increasing.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">Despite the increase in bank deposits, the credit flow of BFIs is off the mark. As of Sunday, banks and financial institutions had invested a total of Rs 4932 billion. At the end of last year, the total credit flow of banks stood at Rs 4879 billion, which has increased by Rs 53 billion in two and a half months. Banks are competing to invest in government bonds because there is not much demand for loans compared to the increase in deposit collection.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">Along with the increase in bank deposits, the credit-deposit ratio (CD ratio) of banks has also decreased. The CD ratio, which was 82.21 per cent on Saturday, dropped to 82.05 per cent on Sunday. Similarly, as liquidity is high, the average interest rate of interbank transactions has also dropped to 2.52 per cent.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">Banks are allowed to invest by maintaining a CD ratio of up to 90 per cent. According to this provision, the banks can disburse additional loans of up to Rs 461 billion.</span></span></span></p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-10-04', 'modified' => '2023-10-04', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '18900', 'image' => '20231004025113_Banks - Copy.jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-10-04 14:50:27', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 2 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '19170', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Government Preparing to Approve FDI up to Rs 500 Million through Automated System', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'October 4: The Ministry of Industry, Commerce and Supply published a notice in the N.epal Gazette on Monday informing that Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) up to Rs 500 million will be approved through the automated system', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">October 4: The Ministry of Industry, Commerce and Supply published a notice in the Nepal Gazette on Monday informing that Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) up to Rs 500 million will be approved through the automated system. However, the government has not yet developed the necessary infrastructure to implement the automated system.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">The ministry issued a notice specifying the upper limit of foreign investment approval through automated system and the type of industries. The upper limit of foreign investment to be approved through the automated system is set at Rs 500 million. The minimum limit is Rs 200 million. Foreign investors can use automated system to invest in 60 types of industries and businesses in seven different sections within the limit.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">According to the information published in the Nepal Gazette, these seven sectors include energy-based projects, agriculture and forest production-based industries and industries related to infrastructure, tourism, information technology, service-oriented and productive sector.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">Baburam Gautam, director general of the Department of Industries, said, “Only investments within the specified limits will be approved through the automated system. The permission to grant investment approval will be done through this system." </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">He said that the department will now proceed with the purchase of the software for the automated system after the publication of the notification in the Nepal Gazette. Gautam said, “The system is not ready yet. It will take some time until the system is developed after proceeding with the procurement process of the software.”</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">The department held a press conference in mid-April and announced that the automated system will be used to approve foreign investment. The then director general of the department, Ram Chandra Tiwari, had informed that such a system, which is implemented in India, Bangladesh and other countries, would be implemented in Nepal from May 15.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">The department says that despite the announcement, the software was not developed because the government did not release the required budget. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">The government had mentioned in the budget statement for the current financial year (FY) 2080/81 that an arrangement will be made for automated system for approval of FDI.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">After the system is established, foreign investors do not need to visit the Department of Industries to get approval for the investment of the specified limit. They can upload the necessary documents in the system while submitting application for the investment.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">With the announcement of the automated system for investment the government claimed that it has created an investment-friendly environment in the country.</span></span></span></p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-10-04', 'modified' => '2023-10-04', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '18898', 'image' => '20231004022051_Foreign investment.jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-10-04 14:19:59', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 3 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '19169', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Nepal’s Tourism Business Returning back to Pre-Covid Situation', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'October 4: With the beginning of the peak tourism season in Nepal, the country has seen an increase in arrival of tourists. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">October 4: With the beginning of the peak tourism season in Nepal, the country has seen an increase in arrival of tourists. This year, foreigners' arrival in September, also known as the start of the tourist season, has reached the level of pre-Covid-19 in 2019.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">The tourism data for 2023 shows that arrival of tourists is higher in the peak season than during other months of the year. Spring (March, April and May) and autumn (September, October and November) are considered peak tourism seasons in Nepal. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">In September, the month when the tourist season begins, there has been a significant improvement in the arrival of foreign tourists compared to previous years. In September 2023, 91,012 tourists entered Nepal by air. According to the data released by the Nepal Tourism Board on Sunday, the arrival of tourists in this year's peak season is almost equal to that of 2019, the year before the onset of Covid-19.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">In September 2019, a total of 92,604 tourists came to Nepal by air. In 2020 and 21, the number of tourists visiting Nepal in September was low. In those two years, COVID-19 and the ban on cross-border travel and international flights, mandatory quarantine, and the necessity of anti-Covid vaccination affected tourist arrivals. The number of tourists visiting Nepal in September has increased since 2022.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">Similarly, the arrival of tourists in May and June this year is also more compared to the corresponding months of 2019. However, tourism entrepreneurs argue that their business has not yet returned to the state of 2019. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">Khum Bahadur Subedi, outgoing president of Trekking Agencies Association of Nepal (TAAN), shared that tourism is yet to return to the state of 2019. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">He estimates that it will be back to normal in 2024. He said that the current influx of tourists can be considered positive, but he said that during the off-season, tourists could not come due to the effects of the global economic situation.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">Sajan Shakya, general secretary of the Hotel Association Nepal (HAN) believes that the arrival of tourists will increase till November as it is the main season. "We estimate that 300,000 tourists will visit Nepal in September, October and November," Shakya said. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">According to the data published by the board, the highest number of tourists came from India in September. A total of 28,694 Indian tourists visited Nepal in September. In terms of numbers, China is second accounting for 8,174 tourists from China in September followed by the United States, Bangladesh, Australia, Britain, Sri Lanka, Germany, South Korea and Israel.</span></span></span></p> <p><br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> </p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""> </span></span></p> <p> </p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-10-04', 'modified' => '2023-10-04', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '18897', 'image' => '20231004010539_tourism ktm.jpeg', 'article_date' => '2023-10-04 13:04:26', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 4 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '19168', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Lawmakers Express Concernes Over Price Hike, Communal Clashes ', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'October 4: Members of Parliament have expressed concern over the exorbitant price hike of daily essentials and ethnic and communal clashes erupting in different parts of the country.', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">October 4: Members of Parliament have expressed concern over the exorbitant price hike of daily essentials and ethnic and communal clashes erupting in different parts of the country.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Speaking at a meeting of the House of Representatives on Tuesday, the lawmakers demanded strong enforcement of law and order to address the issue of communal and ethnic clashes. They also raised the problems faced by the farmers, and the victims of natural disasters including landslide and floods. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Thakur Prasad Gaire suggested that the government should focus on infrastructure development. Artificial shortage of goods and price hike on the run-up to the festivals is worrying, he said. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Janardan Sharma said time has come to effectively enforce citizen's rights provisioned in the constitution. Peace and order should be maintained in this multi-ethnic, multi-religious and multi-cultural country as per the spirit of the constitution, he said, urging the government to create such atmosphere that the incidents that occurred in eastern Tarai and Nepalgunj would not repeat again. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Hari Dhakal expressed concern saying why none was worried about the declining economy. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Dhruba Bahadur Pradhan said that the country needs to improve good governance. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Pradip Yadav said why some businesspersons were not paying electricity tariff despite repeated prodding by Nepal Electricity Authority. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Abdul Khan demanded government to removed double taxation on NRNs if they invest in Nepal. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Ram Prakash Chaudhary shared that farmers in some eastern Tarai districts were facing hard times due to scant rainfall, so their problems should be addressed. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Similarly, Chitra Bahadur KC questioned why those who failed in exam were recommended for district judges. He further argued it Nepal could not afford federalism. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Dr Amaresh Kumar Singh drew the government's attention towards rising cases of attacks on doctors. -- RSS </span></span></span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-10-04', 'modified' => '2023-10-04', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '18896', 'image' => '20231004122651_20230713052749_parliament building.jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-10-04 12:26:15', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => false, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 5 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '19167', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'CEO Albright Hopeful of Accomplishing MCC Project on Time ', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'October 4: Chief Executive Officer of Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC), Alice Albright has said she is confident and optimistic for the timely completion of the MCC project. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">October 4: Chief Executive Officer of Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC), Alice Albright has said she is confident and optimistic for the timely completion of the MCC project. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Speaking at a press conference organized in the capital on Tuesday, visiting CEO Albright mentioned that she found the Government of Nepal and other stakeholders effortful and dedicated for its implementation as the project has to be completed within five years since its commencement. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">"MCA Nepal is responsible for implementing MCC. This is a structure under the Nepal government," she added. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">CEO Albright shared that projects under MCC have been executed in different parts of the world and stressed the need of cooperation from all sides to overcome challenges in course of its implementation. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Sharing that the high-level meetings and discussions during her Nepal visit were fruitful, she said matters related to the successful implementation of the project were discussed on the occasion. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">During her stay, CEO Albright-led delegation had called on Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal, former Prime Minister and Nepali Congress President Sher Bahadur Deuba, former Prime Minister and CPN-UML Chairperson KP Sharma Oli, Minister for Foreign Affairs NP Saud, Minister for Finance Dr Prakash Sharan Mahat, Minister for Energy, Water Resource and Irrigation Shakti Bahadur Basnet and Minister for Physical Infrastructure and Transport Prakash Jwala among others. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Noting that the MCC has already entered into implementation phase, Albright expressed her confidence that the project would be completed in the designated period. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The MCC CEO further mentioned they had agreed and accepted the interpretive declaration attached to MCC while endorsing the MCC-related proposal by the parliament. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">She further said MCC was a crucial part of the US foreign grants assistance and its execution would further deepen the Nepal-US relations. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">CEO Albright expressed her hope that the project would help develop reliable electricity service and road network as well as open up new avenues for electricity export through the construction of transmission lines. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">She went on saying that the projects under such grants would contribute to the economic growth of Nepal. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Also on the occasion, US Ambassador Dean Thompson and MCA Nepal's Executive Director Khadga Bahadur Bisht also responded to the queries of journalists on the project affairs. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The MCC compact has already entered into execution phase since August 30. The MCC compact was signed between the Government of Nepal and MCC under the US government on September 14, 2017. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">After a long debate, the parliament had endorsed the compact last year. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">There is a provision in the compact that the power transmission lines and roads construction project should be completed within five years since the commencement of the project. -- RSS </span></span></span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-10-04', 'modified' => '2023-10-04', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '18895', 'image' => '20231004110852_20230830105937_1693279080.1692757131.1691983136.1690248678.1681795913[1].jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-10-04 11:08:16', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 6 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '19166', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Bajhang Earthquake Update: One Dead, 135 Houses Damaged ', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'October 4: A person was killed in an earthquake that occurred in Bajhang on Tuesday afternoon. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">October 4: A person was killed in an earthquake that occurred in Bajhang on Tuesday afternoon. The deceased has been identified as Gunamati Dhami, 40, of Jayaprithvi Municipality-11, Okhal. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">According to Information Officer of the District Police Office, Inspector Dipesh Chaudhary, Dhami died in a landslide triggered by the earthquake. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">A police team has been mobilized in the incident site, said Chaudhary. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Some 11 people were injured in the earthquake in Bajhang. Two of them returned home after treatment while nine are being treated at the district hospital. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Police informed that the earthquake caused damage to 135 structures in the district. Chaudhay further shared at least 60 houses were damaged in Thalara and 41 houses in Jayaprithvi municipality. -- RSS </span></span></span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-10-04', 'modified' => '2023-10-04', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '18894', 'image' => '20231004105318_20230620111902_earth.jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-10-04 10:52:31', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 7 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '19165', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'NEA Calls Promotors of Hydropower Projects for PPA', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'The Nepal Electricity Authority (NEA) has issued a call to promoters of hydropower projects to engage in Power Purchase Agreement (PPA).', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">October 4: The Nepal Electricity Authority (NEA) has issued a call to promoters of hydropower projects to engage in Power Purchase Agreement (PPA). </span></span><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">The NEA has set specific upper limits for run-of-river (ROR) and semi-reservoir (PROR) hydropower projects, namely 6,750 MW and 4,500 MW, respectively.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">Furthermore, the NEA has outlined that the progression of the PPA process will be determined by the roll order, contingent on the completion date of the grid connection agreement with the NEA.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">In an official notice published on Tuesday, the NEA has summoned promoter companies involved in the PPA process and the Electricity Regulatory Commission to review and finalize the draft PPA. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">Additionally, they are required to submit the necessary authorizations, performance bank guarantees, and the PPA fee for the purpose of executing the agreement.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">The notice specifies that failure to submit the application within the stipulated timeframe or to provide the requisite documents will result in the NEA removing the projects from the roll order. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">Subsequently, the NEA will proceed with the PPA process for subsequent projects that have completed the grid connection agreement, following the established roll order.</span></span></p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-10-04', 'modified' => '2023-10-04', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '18893', 'image' => '20231004060012_collage (15).jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-10-04 05:58:29', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '42' ) ), (int) 8 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '19164', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'CNI Suggests IMF not to Influence Nepal's Policy Making ', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'October 3: The Confederation of Nepalese Industries (CNI) has suggested the International Monetary Fund (IMF) to not exert undue influence on Nepal's policy making process. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">October 3: The Confederation of Nepalese Industries (CNI) has suggested the International Monetary Fund (IMF) to not exert undue influence on Nepal's policy making process. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">CNI made such suggestion to the IMF during a discussion held on Nepal's economy and measures to adopt for its reform. The discussion was held at CNI secretariat. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">On the occasion, CNI President Rajesh Kumar Agrawal urged IMF not to impose unnecessary rulings on government's policy and direction. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">“Nepal’s economy has its own features,” he said, reminding that all principles or any practices abroad cannot be replicated identically in Nepal. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">According to him, increase in interest rate to control price hike is not a proper measure. He was of the view that the import of petroleum products and other goods resulted in price hike. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Agrawal said that the interest rate doesn’t matter when the demand for goods is normal but it affects business when the industries are operating down at 30 percent of their capacity.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Moreover, CNI President Agrawal claimed that the country's economy was facing problems due to the policy the government adopted to increase the interest rate to contain inflation. Although loans were misused to some extent for lack of oversight following the COVID-19 pandemic, the regulatory body adopted the policy in haste rather than in a gradual manner, he blamed. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Moreover, Agrawal further said Nepal Rastra Bank's policy and direction were only favourable towards banks.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">“It was agreed between NRB and IMF on restructuring of loans for addressing the liquidity problem, but the NRB's recent policy is against it.” </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">IMF's mission chief Tidiane Kinda, Country Representative in Nepal, Teresa Daban Sanchez and others held the discussion with CNI. -- RSS </span></span></span><br /> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-10-03', 'modified' => '2023-10-03', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '18892', 'image' => '20231003095424_20230828114446_CNIIII.jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-10-03 21:53:56', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 9 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '19163', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Seven Injured in Earthquake in Sudurpaschim Province ', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'October 3: At least five persons were reportedly injured in Bajura district of Sudurpaschim Province while two others sustained injuries in Baitadi when an earthquake hit Bajura on Tuesday afternoon. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">October 3: At least five persons were reportedly injured in Bajura district of Sudurpaschim Province while two others sustained injuries in Baitadi when an earthquake hit Bajura on Tuesday afternoon. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The quake measuring 5.3 on the Richter scale with its epicentre at Talkot of the district damaged some houses and other physical infrastructures in the district. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The injured were immediately rushed to the hospital for treatment, said Narayan Pandey, Chief District Officer (CDO) of Bajhang. However, no human casualty has been reported so far in the quake, informed CDO Pandey. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The injured ones' condition is normal while more details on the extent of damages by the quake are yet to be obtained, according to the CDO. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">He shared that there were reports that some houses in the district headquarters and its surrounding areas were damaged while some were rendered uninhabitable. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Public office buildings including that of Masta Rural Municipality's ward no-1 were reduced to rubbles by the quake. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Patients at the District Hospital in Bajhang were provided services outdoor due to the dear of aftershock. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Sudurpaschim Province Police Office Chief DIG Bharat Bahadur Bohora said that a person returning home from school in Baitadi district was injured by a boulder that fell off a cliff and another one collecting grass also received injury due to quake-triggered landslide. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">He added that no human fatalities were reported so far while the condition of the injured is said to be normal. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Meanwhile, a huge tremor was experienced in Doti district at 3:07 pm on Tuesday and subsequent aftershocks continue to jolt Doti. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">A tremor measuring 6.3 on the Richter Scale with an epicentre in Chainpur was measured by the Earthquake Measurement Centre in Surkhet with its epicentre in Chainpur, Bajhang while another one with 5.3 on Richter scale occurred at Talkot in the district. -- RSS</span></span></span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-10-03', 'modified' => '2023-10-03', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '18891', 'image' => '20231003093745_20230329121710_earth.jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-10-03 21:37:16', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 10 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '19162', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'NEPSE Index Sheds Double Digits to Close at 1958.72 Points', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'The Nepal Stock Exchange (NEPSE) lost 17.56 points or 0.88% and closed at 1958.72 points on the third trading day of the week, Tuesday. The secondary benchmark index lost 17.58 points against its gain of 5.19 points in yesterday’s trading.', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">October 3: The Nepal Stock Exchange (NEPSE) lost 17.56 points or 0.88% and closed at 1958.72 points on the third trading day of the week, Tuesday. </span></span><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">The secondary benchmark index lost 17.58 points against its gain of 5.19 points in yesterday’s trading. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif">Experienced investors and stock market analysts attributed to the influence of the festive season as the cause of the consistent decline in the stock market. </span>They believe that the market could see further corrections during the Dashain festival, a major festival in Nepal.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif">Experts in the stock market suggest that a bullish trend is unlikely to start unless the Nepal Rastra Bank (NRB) eases its policies related to the stock market.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif">One investor said, “Market could see some corrections due to the Dashain festival. But, it could pick up the upward momentum if the NRB changes the cap of 120 million cap on the margin loan,” the investor said.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">During today’s trading session, a total of 281 scrips were traded through the total of 55,096 transactions. As many as 3,965,917 shares exchanged their hands, amounting to Rs 1.19 billion.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">Citizen Life Insurance had the highest turnover of Rs 5.59 crores, closing at a price of Rs 446 per share. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">Samata Gharelu Laghubitta Bittiya Sanstha gained the highest percent of Rs 7.91, closing at a price of Rs 696 per share, while Samudayik Laghubitta Bittiya Sanstha lost the highest percent of 7.54%, closing at a price of Rs 779. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">Sensitive Index lost 0.97%, while Float Index and Sensitive Float Index shrunk by 0.87% and 1.06% respectively. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">All sector indices closed in the red territory. Trading SubIndex lost the highest 1.47% while the Banking SubIndex lost the least of 0.61%. </span></span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-10-03', 'modified' => '2023-10-03', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '18890', 'image' => '20231003035723_collage (10).jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-10-03 15:55:13', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '42' ) ), (int) 11 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '19161', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'World Bank Forecasts 3.9% Economic Growth for Nepal in 2023/2024', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'The World Bank has projected Nepal’s economic growth to be 3.9% in the current fiscal year 2023/2024.', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">October 3: The World Bank has projected Nepal’s economic growth to be 3.9% in the current fiscal year 2023/2024.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">This projection hinges on the removal of import restrictions, a revival of the tourism sector, and an expansion of the monetary policy aimed at stimulating the economy.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">In contrast, the budget for the fiscal year 2023/2024 has set the target of achieving 6% economic growth. In the last fiscal year, Nepal's economic growth was only 1.9 percent.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">While the agriculture and industrial sectors may see some growth in the current fiscal year, it is the service sector that is poised to make a significant contribution to Nepal's economic upswing. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">The agriculture sector is projected to grow at 2.1 percent, and the industrial growth rate is estimated at 3.2 percent. Likewise, the service sector is expected to grow at a satisfactory rate of 5.1 percent.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">Nayan Krishna Joshi, an economist affiliated with the World Bank, said that the institution's growth projection considered the lingering impact of the lumpy skin epidemic in Nepal. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">However, the World Bank has also issued cautionary notes regarding potential risks. These include the specter of decreased agricultural production due to fluctuations in the monsoon, inflationary pressures, and the consequences of import restrictions imposed by India.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">According to the World Bank's semi-annual report, which was unveiled on Tuesday, Nepal is poised to achieve a 5 percent economic growth rate in the upcoming fiscal year 2024/2025.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">World Bank has set a higher target for inflation in the current fiscal year than the central bank. The central bank has set a target of 6.5 percent, while the World Bank's projection is 7.5 percent. In the previous fiscal year, inflation stood at 7.8 percent.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">In the last fiscal year, both production and construction sectors contracted. Similarly, wholesale and retail sectors within the service sector also faced shrink. </span></span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-10-03', 'modified' => '2023-10-03', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '18889', 'image' => '20231003023435_collage (8).jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-10-03 14:31:06', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '42' ) ), (int) 12 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '19160', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Interest Rates of Treasury Bills below 3 Percent', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'October 3: Short-term interest rates in the market are continuously decreasing due to the inability of banks and financial institutions to provide loans. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">October 3: Short-term interest rates in the market are continuously decreasing due to the inability of banks and financial institutions to provide loans. Despite the increase in liquidity in the banking system, the short-term interest rates fell to a low point because Nepal Rastra Bank did not use monetary instruments as per the announcement made in the monetary policy.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">On Monday, the interest rate of treasury bills fell below 3 percent. The interest rate of treasury bills had exceeded 12 percent in the previous fiscal year. Similarly, the interbank interest rate has been maintained at around 2 percent for the last 2 weeks. As the short-term interest rates fell, the government is raising domestic debt at a low rate.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">On Monday, the government renewed treasury bills worth Rs 18.5 billion. Among them, the interest on 28-day treasury bills worth Rs 5 billion has been maintained at 2.90 percent, while that of 91-day treasury bills worth 7.75 billion is 5.05 percent and 5.34 percent for 182-day treasury bills worth Rs 5.30 billion.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">The interest rates of all treasury bills have decreased compared to last week. Last week, the average interest rate of 28-day treasury bills was 3.44 percent, while it was 5.35 percent for 91-day treasury bills and 5.39 percent for 182-day treasury bills.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">In order to increase the credit flow of the banks, the government has given the facility to the banks to count the amount of accumulated funds of the local level as deposits. However, as the demand for loans in banks is not encouraging, there is competition among banks to bid for government bonds.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">In the current fiscal year's monetary policy, NRB announced that the upper limit of the interest rate corridor will be 7.5 percent and the lower limit of the deposit collection rate will be 4.5 percent, keeping the average interbank interest rate within the limit. In order to maintain the interest rate corridor, there is a provision for NRB to use various monetary instruments. However, even though the interbank interest rate has dropped below the required limit, NRB has not mopped excess liquidity from the market.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">NRB has been using the excess liquidity of banks to raise government bonds. Due to this, the cost of internal debt of the government has decreased.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">The average interest rate of development bonds, which was 8.64 percent last year, has dropped to 6.96 percent in the current year. </span></span></span></p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-10-03', 'modified' => '2023-10-03', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '18888', 'image' => '20231003022219_Nepal_Rastra_Bank2 2.jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-10-03 14:21:03', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 13 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '19159', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'SEBON signs MoU with NEPA to Promote Private and Alternative Investment', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'October 3: The Securities Exchange Board of Nepal (SEBON) and the Nepal Private Equity Association (NPEA), a non-profit association of private equity, venture capital, and alternative investors, officially entered into a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to foster collaboration and promote the growth of the private and alternative investment industry in Nepal.', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">October 3: The Securities Exchange Board of Nepal (SEBON) and the Nepal Private Equity Association (NPEA), a non-profit association of private equity, venture capital, and alternative investors, officially entered into a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to foster collaboration and promote the growth of the private and alternative investment industry in Nepal. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Issuing a statement on Monday, NEPA said its Chairman Siddhant Raj Pandey and the Executive Chairman of SEBON, Ramesh Kumar Hamal, signed the MOU on behalf of their respective organizations.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">The statement further says that the MOU was signed after the second annual general meeting of NPEA held at Thamel-based Aloft Kathmandu on October 2. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">The statement further said that the MoU solidifies the commitment of both parties to advance innovation, entrepreneurship, and job creation in Nepal by facilitating greater access to finance for businesses in the region. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">As per the agreement, SEBON will provide regulatory support, while both will work towards industry advocacy and promotion of alternative/specialized investment industry including training and information sharing.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">NPEA is an umbrella organization that represents all alternative investment players in the domestic market of Nepal.</span></span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-10-03', 'modified' => '2023-10-03', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '18887', 'image' => '20231003020701_IMG-20231003-WA0009.jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-10-03 14:06:19', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 14 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '19158', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Nepal’s Fairytale Run in Asiad Cricket comes to an End', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'October 3: Nepal’s fairytale run in the cricket tournament during the ongoing Asian Games came to an abrupt end on Tuesday when it faced a 23-run defeat to India in the quarter final match of the T20 Cricket Tournament held in Hangzhou, China. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">October 3: Nepal’s fairytale run in the cricket tournament during the ongoing Asian Games came to an abrupt end on Tuesday when it faced a 23-run defeat to India in the quarter final match of the T20 Cricket Tournament held in Hangzhou, China. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Chasing a massive 203-run target presented by the second-rung team of India, Nepal could only make 179 runs losing nine wickets in the allotted 20 overs. However, Nepal's performance was worth appreciating, reported the state-owned RSS. Nepal made a perfect start to the Asian Games in cricket breaking several world records last week during its impressive win against Mongolia.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">But Nepal was not match to India despite the cricket superpower fielding second-choice teams while the top-not players prepare for the cricket world cup.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">According to RSS, the national news agency of Nepal, Dipendra Singh Airee hit the highest 32 runs for Nepal. Similarly, Kushal Bhurtel made 28 runs, Aasif Shekh 10, Kushal Malla 29, captain Rohit Poudel 3, Sundip Jora 29, Sompal Kami 7, Gulshan Jha 6, Karan KC 18 not out and Sandip Lamichhane 5 runs. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Ravi Bishnoi and Abhesh Khan took three wickets each for India. Likewise, Arshadeep Singh took 2 wickets and Sai Kishor one wicket. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Earlier, India elected to bat first after winning the toss and posted a mammoth 202 runs in 20 overs. Yashashwi Jaiswal hit a century. He made 100 runs off 49 balls, putting Nepal under pressure. Ruturaj Gaikwad collected 25 runs, Shivam Dube 25 and Rinku Singh made an aggressive 37 runs. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Nepali bowlers Dipendra Singh Airee took 2 wickets and Sandip Lamichhane and Sompal Kami one wicket each. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">With this defeat, Nepal has been eliminated from this tournament while India have entered the semi-final round. </span></span></span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-10-03', 'modified' => '2023-10-03', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '18886', 'image' => '20231003014504_F7fVir6XwAAzi92 - Copy.jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-10-03 13:44:00', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ) ) $current_user = null $logged_in = false $xml = falseinclude - APP/View/Elements/side_bar.ctp, line 133 View::_evaluate() - CORE/Cake/View/View.php, line 971 View::_render() - CORE/Cake/View/View.php, line 933 View::_renderElement() - CORE/Cake/View/View.php, line 1224 View::element() - CORE/Cake/View/View.php, line 418 include - APP/View/Articles/index.ctp, line 157 View::_evaluate() - CORE/Cake/View/View.php, line 971 View::_render() - CORE/Cake/View/View.php, line 933 View::render() - CORE/Cake/View/View.php, line 473 Controller::render() - CORE/Cake/Controller/Controller.php, line 968 Dispatcher::_invoke() - CORE/Cake/Routing/Dispatcher.php, line 200 Dispatcher::dispatch() - CORE/Cake/Routing/Dispatcher.php, line 167 [main] - APP/webroot/index.php, line 117
Warning (2): simplexml_load_file() [<a href='http://php.net/function.simplexml-load-file'>function.simplexml-load-file</a>]: I/O warning : failed to load external entity "" [APP/View/Elements/side_bar.ctp, line 133]file not found!Code Context// $file = 'http://aabhiyan:QUVLg8Wzs2F7G9N7@nepalstock.com.np/api/subindexdata.xml';if(!$xml = simplexml_load_file($file)){$viewFile = '/var/www/html/newbusinessage.com/app/View/Elements/side_bar.ctp' $dataForView = array( 'articles' => array( (int) 0 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ), (int) 1 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ), (int) 2 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ), (int) 3 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ), (int) 4 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ), (int) 5 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ), (int) 6 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ), (int) 7 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ), (int) 8 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ), (int) 9 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ), (int) 10 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ), (int) 11 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ), (int) 12 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ), (int) 13 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ), (int) 14 => array( 'Article' => array( [maximum depth reached] ) ) ), 'current_user' => null, 'logged_in' => false ) $articles = array( (int) 0 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '19174', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'NEPSE Index Gains 9.24 Points to Close at 1967.97 Points', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'The Nepal Stock Exchange(NEPSE) Index gained 9.24 points or 0.47% and closed at 1967.97 points on the fourth trading day of the week, Wednesday. The index lost 17.56 points yesterday.', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">October 4: The Nepal Stock Exchange(NEPSE) Index gained 9.24 points or 0.47% and closed at 1967.97 points on the fourth trading day of the week, Wednesday. The index lost 17.56 points yesterday.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">During today's trading, there were 284 different stocks traded in 58,741 transactions. The volume of shares traded amounted to 4,323,021 units with a total turnover of Rs. 1.18 billion. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">Citizen Life Insurance Company Limited (CLI) had the highest turnover, reaching Rs. 6.93 crores, and closed at a market price of Rs. 447.70.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">Similarly, Madhya Bhotekoshi Jalavidyut Company Limited (MBJC) posted the highest gain of 10%, followed by Buddha Bhumi Nepal Hydropower Company Limited (BNHC) with a gain of 9.98%.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">On the contrary, Samata Gharelu Laghubitta Bittiya Sanstha Limited (SMATA) experienced the loss of 6.61% today.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">In terms of sector indices, all indices except Banking closed in the green territory, with the Hotel and Tourism index gaining the most at 1.52%.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">Sensitive Index experienced a gain of 0.13%, while Float Index and Sensitive Float Index increased by 0.46% and 0.04% respectively. </span></span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-10-04', 'modified' => '2023-10-04', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '18901', 'image' => '20231004042335_collage (11).jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-10-04 16:21:59', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '42' ) ), (int) 1 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '19172', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Bank Deposits Exceed Rs 5800 Billion', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'October 4: Total deposits in banks and financial institutions have exceeded Rs 5800 billion.', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">October 4: Total deposits in banks and financial institutions have exceeded Rs 5800 billion. Bank deposits have increased due to the continuous increase in remittance flow and the arrangement made by the government to allow BFIs to calculate the deposits from the accumulated funds at the local level as bank deposits.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">According to the data published by Nepal Rastra Bank, the total deposits in banks and financial institutions as of last Sunday reached Rs 5806 billion. Compared to the previous day, bank deposit increased by Rs 14 billion on Sunday. On Saturday, the deposit portfolio of banks stood at Rs 5792 billion.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">The total deposits in the banking system were Rs 5767 billion by the end of the last fiscal year (FY). After the government reduced the facility of calculating 80 per cent of the accumulated funds at the local level as bank deposit to 50 per cent, the deposits decreased by Rs 109 billion in the first two days of the current fiscal year.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">However, after a discussion with the bankers in early September, Finance Minister Dr Prakash Sharan Mahat allowed banks to consider 60 per cent of the accumulated funds at the local level as bank deposits. Likewise, as the inflow of remittance is high, bank deposits have been increasing.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">Despite the increase in bank deposits, the credit flow of BFIs is off the mark. As of Sunday, banks and financial institutions had invested a total of Rs 4932 billion. At the end of last year, the total credit flow of banks stood at Rs 4879 billion, which has increased by Rs 53 billion in two and a half months. Banks are competing to invest in government bonds because there is not much demand for loans compared to the increase in deposit collection.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">Along with the increase in bank deposits, the credit-deposit ratio (CD ratio) of banks has also decreased. The CD ratio, which was 82.21 per cent on Saturday, dropped to 82.05 per cent on Sunday. Similarly, as liquidity is high, the average interest rate of interbank transactions has also dropped to 2.52 per cent.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">Banks are allowed to invest by maintaining a CD ratio of up to 90 per cent. According to this provision, the banks can disburse additional loans of up to Rs 461 billion.</span></span></span></p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-10-04', 'modified' => '2023-10-04', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '18900', 'image' => '20231004025113_Banks - Copy.jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-10-04 14:50:27', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 2 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '19170', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Government Preparing to Approve FDI up to Rs 500 Million through Automated System', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'October 4: The Ministry of Industry, Commerce and Supply published a notice in the N.epal Gazette on Monday informing that Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) up to Rs 500 million will be approved through the automated system', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">October 4: The Ministry of Industry, Commerce and Supply published a notice in the Nepal Gazette on Monday informing that Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) up to Rs 500 million will be approved through the automated system. However, the government has not yet developed the necessary infrastructure to implement the automated system.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">The ministry issued a notice specifying the upper limit of foreign investment approval through automated system and the type of industries. The upper limit of foreign investment to be approved through the automated system is set at Rs 500 million. The minimum limit is Rs 200 million. Foreign investors can use automated system to invest in 60 types of industries and businesses in seven different sections within the limit.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">According to the information published in the Nepal Gazette, these seven sectors include energy-based projects, agriculture and forest production-based industries and industries related to infrastructure, tourism, information technology, service-oriented and productive sector.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">Baburam Gautam, director general of the Department of Industries, said, “Only investments within the specified limits will be approved through the automated system. The permission to grant investment approval will be done through this system." </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">He said that the department will now proceed with the purchase of the software for the automated system after the publication of the notification in the Nepal Gazette. Gautam said, “The system is not ready yet. It will take some time until the system is developed after proceeding with the procurement process of the software.”</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">The department held a press conference in mid-April and announced that the automated system will be used to approve foreign investment. The then director general of the department, Ram Chandra Tiwari, had informed that such a system, which is implemented in India, Bangladesh and other countries, would be implemented in Nepal from May 15.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">The department says that despite the announcement, the software was not developed because the government did not release the required budget. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">The government had mentioned in the budget statement for the current financial year (FY) 2080/81 that an arrangement will be made for automated system for approval of FDI.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">After the system is established, foreign investors do not need to visit the Department of Industries to get approval for the investment of the specified limit. They can upload the necessary documents in the system while submitting application for the investment.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">With the announcement of the automated system for investment the government claimed that it has created an investment-friendly environment in the country.</span></span></span></p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-10-04', 'modified' => '2023-10-04', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '18898', 'image' => '20231004022051_Foreign investment.jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-10-04 14:19:59', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 3 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '19169', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Nepal’s Tourism Business Returning back to Pre-Covid Situation', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'October 4: With the beginning of the peak tourism season in Nepal, the country has seen an increase in arrival of tourists. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">October 4: With the beginning of the peak tourism season in Nepal, the country has seen an increase in arrival of tourists. This year, foreigners' arrival in September, also known as the start of the tourist season, has reached the level of pre-Covid-19 in 2019.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">The tourism data for 2023 shows that arrival of tourists is higher in the peak season than during other months of the year. Spring (March, April and May) and autumn (September, October and November) are considered peak tourism seasons in Nepal. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">In September, the month when the tourist season begins, there has been a significant improvement in the arrival of foreign tourists compared to previous years. In September 2023, 91,012 tourists entered Nepal by air. According to the data released by the Nepal Tourism Board on Sunday, the arrival of tourists in this year's peak season is almost equal to that of 2019, the year before the onset of Covid-19.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">In September 2019, a total of 92,604 tourists came to Nepal by air. In 2020 and 21, the number of tourists visiting Nepal in September was low. In those two years, COVID-19 and the ban on cross-border travel and international flights, mandatory quarantine, and the necessity of anti-Covid vaccination affected tourist arrivals. The number of tourists visiting Nepal in September has increased since 2022.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">Similarly, the arrival of tourists in May and June this year is also more compared to the corresponding months of 2019. However, tourism entrepreneurs argue that their business has not yet returned to the state of 2019. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">Khum Bahadur Subedi, outgoing president of Trekking Agencies Association of Nepal (TAAN), shared that tourism is yet to return to the state of 2019. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">He estimates that it will be back to normal in 2024. He said that the current influx of tourists can be considered positive, but he said that during the off-season, tourists could not come due to the effects of the global economic situation.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">Sajan Shakya, general secretary of the Hotel Association Nepal (HAN) believes that the arrival of tourists will increase till November as it is the main season. "We estimate that 300,000 tourists will visit Nepal in September, October and November," Shakya said. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">According to the data published by the board, the highest number of tourists came from India in September. A total of 28,694 Indian tourists visited Nepal in September. In terms of numbers, China is second accounting for 8,174 tourists from China in September followed by the United States, Bangladesh, Australia, Britain, Sri Lanka, Germany, South Korea and Israel.</span></span></span></p> <p><br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> </p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""> </span></span></p> <p> </p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-10-04', 'modified' => '2023-10-04', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '18897', 'image' => '20231004010539_tourism ktm.jpeg', 'article_date' => '2023-10-04 13:04:26', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 4 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '19168', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Lawmakers Express Concernes Over Price Hike, Communal Clashes ', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'October 4: Members of Parliament have expressed concern over the exorbitant price hike of daily essentials and ethnic and communal clashes erupting in different parts of the country.', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">October 4: Members of Parliament have expressed concern over the exorbitant price hike of daily essentials and ethnic and communal clashes erupting in different parts of the country.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Speaking at a meeting of the House of Representatives on Tuesday, the lawmakers demanded strong enforcement of law and order to address the issue of communal and ethnic clashes. They also raised the problems faced by the farmers, and the victims of natural disasters including landslide and floods. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Thakur Prasad Gaire suggested that the government should focus on infrastructure development. Artificial shortage of goods and price hike on the run-up to the festivals is worrying, he said. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Janardan Sharma said time has come to effectively enforce citizen's rights provisioned in the constitution. Peace and order should be maintained in this multi-ethnic, multi-religious and multi-cultural country as per the spirit of the constitution, he said, urging the government to create such atmosphere that the incidents that occurred in eastern Tarai and Nepalgunj would not repeat again. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Hari Dhakal expressed concern saying why none was worried about the declining economy. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Dhruba Bahadur Pradhan said that the country needs to improve good governance. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Pradip Yadav said why some businesspersons were not paying electricity tariff despite repeated prodding by Nepal Electricity Authority. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Abdul Khan demanded government to removed double taxation on NRNs if they invest in Nepal. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Ram Prakash Chaudhary shared that farmers in some eastern Tarai districts were facing hard times due to scant rainfall, so their problems should be addressed. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Similarly, Chitra Bahadur KC questioned why those who failed in exam were recommended for district judges. He further argued it Nepal could not afford federalism. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Dr Amaresh Kumar Singh drew the government's attention towards rising cases of attacks on doctors. -- RSS </span></span></span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-10-04', 'modified' => '2023-10-04', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '18896', 'image' => '20231004122651_20230713052749_parliament building.jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-10-04 12:26:15', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => false, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 5 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '19167', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'CEO Albright Hopeful of Accomplishing MCC Project on Time ', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'October 4: Chief Executive Officer of Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC), Alice Albright has said she is confident and optimistic for the timely completion of the MCC project. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">October 4: Chief Executive Officer of Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC), Alice Albright has said she is confident and optimistic for the timely completion of the MCC project. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Speaking at a press conference organized in the capital on Tuesday, visiting CEO Albright mentioned that she found the Government of Nepal and other stakeholders effortful and dedicated for its implementation as the project has to be completed within five years since its commencement. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">"MCA Nepal is responsible for implementing MCC. This is a structure under the Nepal government," she added. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">CEO Albright shared that projects under MCC have been executed in different parts of the world and stressed the need of cooperation from all sides to overcome challenges in course of its implementation. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Sharing that the high-level meetings and discussions during her Nepal visit were fruitful, she said matters related to the successful implementation of the project were discussed on the occasion. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">During her stay, CEO Albright-led delegation had called on Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal, former Prime Minister and Nepali Congress President Sher Bahadur Deuba, former Prime Minister and CPN-UML Chairperson KP Sharma Oli, Minister for Foreign Affairs NP Saud, Minister for Finance Dr Prakash Sharan Mahat, Minister for Energy, Water Resource and Irrigation Shakti Bahadur Basnet and Minister for Physical Infrastructure and Transport Prakash Jwala among others. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Noting that the MCC has already entered into implementation phase, Albright expressed her confidence that the project would be completed in the designated period. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The MCC CEO further mentioned they had agreed and accepted the interpretive declaration attached to MCC while endorsing the MCC-related proposal by the parliament. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">She further said MCC was a crucial part of the US foreign grants assistance and its execution would further deepen the Nepal-US relations. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">CEO Albright expressed her hope that the project would help develop reliable electricity service and road network as well as open up new avenues for electricity export through the construction of transmission lines. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">She went on saying that the projects under such grants would contribute to the economic growth of Nepal. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Also on the occasion, US Ambassador Dean Thompson and MCA Nepal's Executive Director Khadga Bahadur Bisht also responded to the queries of journalists on the project affairs. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The MCC compact has already entered into execution phase since August 30. The MCC compact was signed between the Government of Nepal and MCC under the US government on September 14, 2017. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">After a long debate, the parliament had endorsed the compact last year. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">There is a provision in the compact that the power transmission lines and roads construction project should be completed within five years since the commencement of the project. -- RSS </span></span></span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-10-04', 'modified' => '2023-10-04', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '18895', 'image' => '20231004110852_20230830105937_1693279080.1692757131.1691983136.1690248678.1681795913[1].jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-10-04 11:08:16', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 6 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '19166', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Bajhang Earthquake Update: One Dead, 135 Houses Damaged ', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'October 4: A person was killed in an earthquake that occurred in Bajhang on Tuesday afternoon. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">October 4: A person was killed in an earthquake that occurred in Bajhang on Tuesday afternoon. The deceased has been identified as Gunamati Dhami, 40, of Jayaprithvi Municipality-11, Okhal. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">According to Information Officer of the District Police Office, Inspector Dipesh Chaudhary, Dhami died in a landslide triggered by the earthquake. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">A police team has been mobilized in the incident site, said Chaudhary. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Some 11 people were injured in the earthquake in Bajhang. Two of them returned home after treatment while nine are being treated at the district hospital. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Police informed that the earthquake caused damage to 135 structures in the district. Chaudhay further shared at least 60 houses were damaged in Thalara and 41 houses in Jayaprithvi municipality. -- RSS </span></span></span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-10-04', 'modified' => '2023-10-04', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '18894', 'image' => '20231004105318_20230620111902_earth.jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-10-04 10:52:31', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 7 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '19165', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'NEA Calls Promotors of Hydropower Projects for PPA', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'The Nepal Electricity Authority (NEA) has issued a call to promoters of hydropower projects to engage in Power Purchase Agreement (PPA).', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">October 4: The Nepal Electricity Authority (NEA) has issued a call to promoters of hydropower projects to engage in Power Purchase Agreement (PPA). </span></span><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">The NEA has set specific upper limits for run-of-river (ROR) and semi-reservoir (PROR) hydropower projects, namely 6,750 MW and 4,500 MW, respectively.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">Furthermore, the NEA has outlined that the progression of the PPA process will be determined by the roll order, contingent on the completion date of the grid connection agreement with the NEA.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">In an official notice published on Tuesday, the NEA has summoned promoter companies involved in the PPA process and the Electricity Regulatory Commission to review and finalize the draft PPA. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">Additionally, they are required to submit the necessary authorizations, performance bank guarantees, and the PPA fee for the purpose of executing the agreement.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">The notice specifies that failure to submit the application within the stipulated timeframe or to provide the requisite documents will result in the NEA removing the projects from the roll order. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">Subsequently, the NEA will proceed with the PPA process for subsequent projects that have completed the grid connection agreement, following the established roll order.</span></span></p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-10-04', 'modified' => '2023-10-04', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '18893', 'image' => '20231004060012_collage (15).jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-10-04 05:58:29', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '42' ) ), (int) 8 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '19164', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'CNI Suggests IMF not to Influence Nepal's Policy Making ', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'October 3: The Confederation of Nepalese Industries (CNI) has suggested the International Monetary Fund (IMF) to not exert undue influence on Nepal's policy making process. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">October 3: The Confederation of Nepalese Industries (CNI) has suggested the International Monetary Fund (IMF) to not exert undue influence on Nepal's policy making process. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">CNI made such suggestion to the IMF during a discussion held on Nepal's economy and measures to adopt for its reform. The discussion was held at CNI secretariat. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">On the occasion, CNI President Rajesh Kumar Agrawal urged IMF not to impose unnecessary rulings on government's policy and direction. </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">“Nepal’s economy has its own features,” he said, reminding that all principles or any practices abroad cannot be replicated identically in Nepal. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">According to him, increase in interest rate to control price hike is not a proper measure. He was of the view that the import of petroleum products and other goods resulted in price hike. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Agrawal said that the interest rate doesn’t matter when the demand for goods is normal but it affects business when the industries are operating down at 30 percent of their capacity.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Moreover, CNI President Agrawal claimed that the country's economy was facing problems due to the policy the government adopted to increase the interest rate to contain inflation. Although loans were misused to some extent for lack of oversight following the COVID-19 pandemic, the regulatory body adopted the policy in haste rather than in a gradual manner, he blamed. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Moreover, Agrawal further said Nepal Rastra Bank's policy and direction were only favourable towards banks.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">“It was agreed between NRB and IMF on restructuring of loans for addressing the liquidity problem, but the NRB's recent policy is against it.” </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">IMF's mission chief Tidiane Kinda, Country Representative in Nepal, Teresa Daban Sanchez and others held the discussion with CNI. -- RSS </span></span></span><br /> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-10-03', 'modified' => '2023-10-03', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '18892', 'image' => '20231003095424_20230828114446_CNIIII.jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-10-03 21:53:56', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 9 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '19163', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Seven Injured in Earthquake in Sudurpaschim Province ', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'October 3: At least five persons were reportedly injured in Bajura district of Sudurpaschim Province while two others sustained injuries in Baitadi when an earthquake hit Bajura on Tuesday afternoon. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">October 3: At least five persons were reportedly injured in Bajura district of Sudurpaschim Province while two others sustained injuries in Baitadi when an earthquake hit Bajura on Tuesday afternoon. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The quake measuring 5.3 on the Richter scale with its epicentre at Talkot of the district damaged some houses and other physical infrastructures in the district. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The injured were immediately rushed to the hospital for treatment, said Narayan Pandey, Chief District Officer (CDO) of Bajhang. However, no human casualty has been reported so far in the quake, informed CDO Pandey. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">The injured ones' condition is normal while more details on the extent of damages by the quake are yet to be obtained, according to the CDO. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">He shared that there were reports that some houses in the district headquarters and its surrounding areas were damaged while some were rendered uninhabitable. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Public office buildings including that of Masta Rural Municipality's ward no-1 were reduced to rubbles by the quake. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Patients at the District Hospital in Bajhang were provided services outdoor due to the dear of aftershock. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Sudurpaschim Province Police Office Chief DIG Bharat Bahadur Bohora said that a person returning home from school in Baitadi district was injured by a boulder that fell off a cliff and another one collecting grass also received injury due to quake-triggered landslide. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">He added that no human fatalities were reported so far while the condition of the injured is said to be normal. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Meanwhile, a huge tremor was experienced in Doti district at 3:07 pm on Tuesday and subsequent aftershocks continue to jolt Doti. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">A tremor measuring 6.3 on the Richter Scale with an epicentre in Chainpur was measured by the Earthquake Measurement Centre in Surkhet with its epicentre in Chainpur, Bajhang while another one with 5.3 on Richter scale occurred at Talkot in the district. -- RSS</span></span></span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-10-03', 'modified' => '2023-10-03', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '18891', 'image' => '20231003093745_20230329121710_earth.jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-10-03 21:37:16', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 10 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '19162', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'NEPSE Index Sheds Double Digits to Close at 1958.72 Points', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'The Nepal Stock Exchange (NEPSE) lost 17.56 points or 0.88% and closed at 1958.72 points on the third trading day of the week, Tuesday. The secondary benchmark index lost 17.58 points against its gain of 5.19 points in yesterday’s trading.', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">October 3: The Nepal Stock Exchange (NEPSE) lost 17.56 points or 0.88% and closed at 1958.72 points on the third trading day of the week, Tuesday. </span></span><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">The secondary benchmark index lost 17.58 points against its gain of 5.19 points in yesterday’s trading. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif">Experienced investors and stock market analysts attributed to the influence of the festive season as the cause of the consistent decline in the stock market. </span>They believe that the market could see further corrections during the Dashain festival, a major festival in Nepal.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif">Experts in the stock market suggest that a bullish trend is unlikely to start unless the Nepal Rastra Bank (NRB) eases its policies related to the stock market.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><span style="font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif">One investor said, “Market could see some corrections due to the Dashain festival. But, it could pick up the upward momentum if the NRB changes the cap of 120 million cap on the margin loan,” the investor said.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">During today’s trading session, a total of 281 scrips were traded through the total of 55,096 transactions. As many as 3,965,917 shares exchanged their hands, amounting to Rs 1.19 billion.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">Citizen Life Insurance had the highest turnover of Rs 5.59 crores, closing at a price of Rs 446 per share. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">Samata Gharelu Laghubitta Bittiya Sanstha gained the highest percent of Rs 7.91, closing at a price of Rs 696 per share, while Samudayik Laghubitta Bittiya Sanstha lost the highest percent of 7.54%, closing at a price of Rs 779. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">Sensitive Index lost 0.97%, while Float Index and Sensitive Float Index shrunk by 0.87% and 1.06% respectively. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">All sector indices closed in the red territory. Trading SubIndex lost the highest 1.47% while the Banking SubIndex lost the least of 0.61%. </span></span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-10-03', 'modified' => '2023-10-03', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '18890', 'image' => '20231003035723_collage (10).jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-10-03 15:55:13', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '42' ) ), (int) 11 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '19161', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'World Bank Forecasts 3.9% Economic Growth for Nepal in 2023/2024', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'The World Bank has projected Nepal’s economic growth to be 3.9% in the current fiscal year 2023/2024.', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">October 3: The World Bank has projected Nepal’s economic growth to be 3.9% in the current fiscal year 2023/2024.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">This projection hinges on the removal of import restrictions, a revival of the tourism sector, and an expansion of the monetary policy aimed at stimulating the economy.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">In contrast, the budget for the fiscal year 2023/2024 has set the target of achieving 6% economic growth. In the last fiscal year, Nepal's economic growth was only 1.9 percent.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">While the agriculture and industrial sectors may see some growth in the current fiscal year, it is the service sector that is poised to make a significant contribution to Nepal's economic upswing. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">The agriculture sector is projected to grow at 2.1 percent, and the industrial growth rate is estimated at 3.2 percent. Likewise, the service sector is expected to grow at a satisfactory rate of 5.1 percent.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">Nayan Krishna Joshi, an economist affiliated with the World Bank, said that the institution's growth projection considered the lingering impact of the lumpy skin epidemic in Nepal. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">However, the World Bank has also issued cautionary notes regarding potential risks. These include the specter of decreased agricultural production due to fluctuations in the monsoon, inflationary pressures, and the consequences of import restrictions imposed by India.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">According to the World Bank's semi-annual report, which was unveiled on Tuesday, Nepal is poised to achieve a 5 percent economic growth rate in the upcoming fiscal year 2024/2025.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">World Bank has set a higher target for inflation in the current fiscal year than the central bank. The central bank has set a target of 6.5 percent, while the World Bank's projection is 7.5 percent. In the previous fiscal year, inflation stood at 7.8 percent.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:20px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">In the last fiscal year, both production and construction sectors contracted. Similarly, wholesale and retail sectors within the service sector also faced shrink. </span></span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-10-03', 'modified' => '2023-10-03', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '18889', 'image' => '20231003023435_collage (8).jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-10-03 14:31:06', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '42' ) ), (int) 12 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '19160', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Interest Rates of Treasury Bills below 3 Percent', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'October 3: Short-term interest rates in the market are continuously decreasing due to the inability of banks and financial institutions to provide loans. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">October 3: Short-term interest rates in the market are continuously decreasing due to the inability of banks and financial institutions to provide loans. Despite the increase in liquidity in the banking system, the short-term interest rates fell to a low point because Nepal Rastra Bank did not use monetary instruments as per the announcement made in the monetary policy.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">On Monday, the interest rate of treasury bills fell below 3 percent. The interest rate of treasury bills had exceeded 12 percent in the previous fiscal year. Similarly, the interbank interest rate has been maintained at around 2 percent for the last 2 weeks. As the short-term interest rates fell, the government is raising domestic debt at a low rate.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">On Monday, the government renewed treasury bills worth Rs 18.5 billion. Among them, the interest on 28-day treasury bills worth Rs 5 billion has been maintained at 2.90 percent, while that of 91-day treasury bills worth 7.75 billion is 5.05 percent and 5.34 percent for 182-day treasury bills worth Rs 5.30 billion.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">The interest rates of all treasury bills have decreased compared to last week. Last week, the average interest rate of 28-day treasury bills was 3.44 percent, while it was 5.35 percent for 91-day treasury bills and 5.39 percent for 182-day treasury bills.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">In order to increase the credit flow of the banks, the government has given the facility to the banks to count the amount of accumulated funds of the local level as deposits. However, as the demand for loans in banks is not encouraging, there is competition among banks to bid for government bonds.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">In the current fiscal year's monetary policy, NRB announced that the upper limit of the interest rate corridor will be 7.5 percent and the lower limit of the deposit collection rate will be 4.5 percent, keeping the average interbank interest rate within the limit. In order to maintain the interest rate corridor, there is a provision for NRB to use various monetary instruments. However, even though the interbank interest rate has dropped below the required limit, NRB has not mopped excess liquidity from the market.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">NRB has been using the excess liquidity of banks to raise government bonds. Due to this, the cost of internal debt of the government has decreased.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">The average interest rate of development bonds, which was 8.64 percent last year, has dropped to 6.96 percent in the current year. </span></span></span></p> <p> </p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-10-03', 'modified' => '2023-10-03', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '18888', 'image' => '20231003022219_Nepal_Rastra_Bank2 2.jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-10-03 14:21:03', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 13 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '19159', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'SEBON signs MoU with NEPA to Promote Private and Alternative Investment', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'October 3: The Securities Exchange Board of Nepal (SEBON) and the Nepal Private Equity Association (NPEA), a non-profit association of private equity, venture capital, and alternative investors, officially entered into a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to foster collaboration and promote the growth of the private and alternative investment industry in Nepal.', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">October 3: The Securities Exchange Board of Nepal (SEBON) and the Nepal Private Equity Association (NPEA), a non-profit association of private equity, venture capital, and alternative investors, officially entered into a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to foster collaboration and promote the growth of the private and alternative investment industry in Nepal. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">Issuing a statement on Monday, NEPA said its Chairman Siddhant Raj Pandey and the Executive Chairman of SEBON, Ramesh Kumar Hamal, signed the MOU on behalf of their respective organizations.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">The statement further says that the MOU was signed after the second annual general meeting of NPEA held at Thamel-based Aloft Kathmandu on October 2. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">The statement further said that the MoU solidifies the commitment of both parties to advance innovation, entrepreneurship, and job creation in Nepal by facilitating greater access to finance for businesses in the region. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">As per the agreement, SEBON will provide regulatory support, while both will work towards industry advocacy and promotion of alternative/specialized investment industry including training and information sharing.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif"">NPEA is an umbrella organization that represents all alternative investment players in the domestic market of Nepal.</span></span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-10-03', 'modified' => '2023-10-03', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '18887', 'image' => '20231003020701_IMG-20231003-WA0009.jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-10-03 14:06:19', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ), (int) 14 => array( 'Article' => array( 'id' => '19158', 'article_category_id' => '1', 'title' => 'Nepal’s Fairytale Run in Asiad Cricket comes to an End', 'sub_title' => '', 'summary' => 'October 3: Nepal’s fairytale run in the cricket tournament during the ongoing Asian Games came to an abrupt end on Tuesday when it faced a 23-run defeat to India in the quarter final match of the T20 Cricket Tournament held in Hangzhou, China. ', 'content' => '<p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">October 3: Nepal’s fairytale run in the cricket tournament during the ongoing Asian Games came to an abrupt end on Tuesday when it faced a 23-run defeat to India in the quarter final match of the T20 Cricket Tournament held in Hangzhou, China. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Chasing a massive 203-run target presented by the second-rung team of India, Nepal could only make 179 runs losing nine wickets in the allotted 20 overs. However, Nepal's performance was worth appreciating, reported the state-owned RSS. Nepal made a perfect start to the Asian Games in cricket breaking several world records last week during its impressive win against Mongolia.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">But Nepal was not match to India despite the cricket superpower fielding second-choice teams while the top-not players prepare for the cricket world cup.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Calibri,"sans-serif""><span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">According to RSS, the national news agency of Nepal, Dipendra Singh Airee hit the highest 32 runs for Nepal. Similarly, Kushal Bhurtel made 28 runs, Aasif Shekh 10, Kushal Malla 29, captain Rohit Poudel 3, Sundip Jora 29, Sompal Kami 7, Gulshan Jha 6, Karan KC 18 not out and Sandip Lamichhane 5 runs. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Ravi Bishnoi and Abhesh Khan took three wickets each for India. Likewise, Arshadeep Singh took 2 wickets and Sai Kishor one wicket. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Earlier, India elected to bat first after winning the toss and posted a mammoth 202 runs in 20 overs. Yashashwi Jaiswal hit a century. He made 100 runs off 49 balls, putting Nepal under pressure. Ruturaj Gaikwad collected 25 runs, Shivam Dube 25 and Rinku Singh made an aggressive 37 runs. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">Nepali bowlers Dipendra Singh Airee took 2 wickets and Sandip Lamichhane and Sompal Kami one wicket each. </span><br /> <span style="font-family:"Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"">With this defeat, Nepal has been eliminated from this tournament while India have entered the semi-final round. </span></span></span></p> ', 'published' => true, 'created' => '2023-10-03', 'modified' => '2023-10-03', 'keywords' => '', 'description' => '', 'sortorder' => '18886', 'image' => '20231003014504_F7fVir6XwAAzi92 - Copy.jpg', 'article_date' => '2023-10-03 13:44:00', 'homepage' => false, 'breaking_news' => false, 'main_news' => true, 'in_scroller' => null, 'user_id' => '34' ) ) ) $current_user = null $logged_in = false $xml = falsesimplexml_load_file - [internal], line ?? include - APP/View/Elements/side_bar.ctp, line 133 View::_evaluate() - CORE/Cake/View/View.php, line 971 View::_render() - CORE/Cake/View/View.php, line 933 View::_renderElement() - CORE/Cake/View/View.php, line 1224 View::element() - CORE/Cake/View/View.php, line 418 include - APP/View/Articles/index.ctp, line 157 View::_evaluate() - CORE/Cake/View/View.php, line 971 View::_render() - CORE/Cake/View/View.php, line 933 View::render() - CORE/Cake/View/View.php, line 473 Controller::render() - CORE/Cake/Controller/Controller.php, line 968 Dispatcher::_invoke() - CORE/Cake/Routing/Dispatcher.php, line 200 Dispatcher::dispatch() - CORE/Cake/Routing/Dispatcher.php, line 167 [main] - APP/webroot/index.php, line 117
| Currency | Unit |
Buy | Sell |
| U.S. Dollar | 1 | 121.23 | 121.83 |
| European Euro | 1 | 131.65 | 132.31 |
| UK Pound Sterling | 1 | 142.47 | 143.18 |
| Swiss Franc | 1 | 124.29 | 124.90 |
| Australian Dollar | 1 | 71.69 | 72.05 |
| Canadian Dollar | 1 | 83.90 | 84.32 |
| Japanese Yen | 10 | 10.94 | 11.00 |
| Chinese Yuan | 1 | 17.17 | 17.26 |
| Saudi Arabian Riyal | 1 | 32.27 | 32.43 |
| UAE Dirham | 1 | 33.01 | 33.17 |
| Malaysian Ringgit | 1 | 27.36 | 27.50 |
| South Korean Won | 100 | 9.77 | 9.82 |
Update: 2020-03-25 | Source: Nepal Rastra Bank (NRB)
| Fine Gold | 1 tola | 77000.00 |
| Tejabi Gold | 1 tola | 76700.00 |
| Silver | 1 tola | 720.00 |
Update : 2020-03-25
Source: Federation of Nepal Gold and Silver Dealers' Association
| Petrol | 1 Liter | 106.00 |
| Diesel | 1 Liter | 95.00 |
| Kerosene | 1 Liter | 95.00 |
| LP Gas | 1 Cylinder | 1375.00 |
Update : 2020-03-25
