Nepal:
Economy

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Other pages in this profile of Nepal:
Geography, People, Government, Communications & Transportation, Military & Transnational Issues.


Economy - overview	Definition Nepal is among the poorest and least developed countries in the world with almost one-third of its population living below the poverty line. Agriculture is the mainstay of the economy, providing a livelihood for three-fourths of the population and accounting for 38% of GDP. Industrial activity mainly involves the processing of agricultural produce including jute, sugarcane, tobacco, and grain. Security concerns relating to the Maoist conflict have led to a decrease in tourism, a key source of foreign exchange. Nepal has considerable scope for exploiting its potential in hydropower and tourism, areas of recent foreign investment interest. Prospects for foreign trade or investment in other sectors will remain poor, however, because of the small size of the economy, its technological backwardness, its remoteness, its landlocked geographic location, its civil strife, and its susceptibility to natural disaster.
GDP (purchasing power parity)	Definition - World rank and map $29.04 billion (2007 est.)
GDP (official exchange rate)	Definition $9.627 billion (2007 est.)
GDP - real growth rate	Definition - World rank and map 2.5% (2007 est.)
GDP - per capita	Definition - World rank and map $1,200 (2007 est.)
GDP - composition by sector	Definition agriculture: 38% industry: 20% services: 42% (FY05/06 est.)
Labor force	Definition 11.11 million note: severe lack of skilled labor (2006 est.)
Labor force - by occupation	Definition agriculture: 76% industry: 6% services: 18% (2004 est.)
Unemployment rate	Definition - World rank and map 42% (2004 est.)
Population below poverty line	Definition 30.9% (2004)
Household income or consumption by percentage share	Definition lowest 10%: 2.6% highest 10%: 40.6% (2004)
Distribution of family income - Gini index	Definition - World rank and map 47.2 (2004)
Inflation rate (consumer prices)	Definition - World rank and map 6.4% (2007 est.)
Budget	Definition revenues: $1.153 billion expenditures: $1.927 billion (FY06/07)
Agriculture - products	Definition rice, corn, wheat, sugarcane, jute, root crops; milk, water buffalo meat
Industries	Definition tourism, carpets, textiles; small rice, jute, sugar, and oilseed mills; cigarettes, cement and brick production
Industrial production growth rate	Definition - World rank and map 2.2% (FY05/06)
Electricity - production	Definition - World rank and map 2.511 billion kWh (2006)
Electricity - consumption	Definition - World rank and map 1.96 billion kWh (2006)
Electricity - consumption per capita	Definition - World rank and map 66.4 kWh (2006)
Electricity - exports	Definition 101 million kWh (2006)
Electricity - imports	Definition 266 million kWh (2006)
Oil - production	Definition - World rank and map 0 bbl/day (2005 est.)
Oil - consumption	Definition - World rank and map 11,550 bbl/day (2006 est.)
Oil - consumption per 1,000 people	Definition - World rank and map 0.4 bbl/day (2006 est.)
Oil - exports	Definition - World rank and map 0 bbl/day (2004)
Oil - imports	Definition - World rank and map 11,530 bbl/day (2006 est.)
Oil - proved reserves	Definition - World rank and map 0 bbl (1 January 2006 est.)
Natural gas - production	Definition - World rank and map 0 cu m (2005 est.)
Natural gas - consumption	Definition - World rank and map 0 cu m (2005 est.)
Natural gas - consumption per capita	Definition - World rank and map 0 cu m (2005 est.)
Natural gas - exports	Definition - World rank and map 0 cu m (2005 est.)
Natural gas - imports	Definition - World rank and map 0 cu m (2005)
Natural gas - proved reserves	Definition - World rank and map 0 cu m (1 January 2006 est.)
Current account balance	Definition - World rank and map $58 million (2007)
Exports	Definition - World rank and map $830 million f.o.b.; note - does not include unrecorded border trade with India (2006)
Exports - commodities	Definition carpets, clothing, leather goods, jute goods, grain
Exports - partners	Definition India 70.3%, US 8.9%, Germany 4.1% (2006)
Imports	Definition - World rank and map $2.398 billion f.o.b. (2006)
Imports - commodities	Definition gold, machinery and equipment, petroleum products, fertilizer
Imports - partners	Definition India 56.9%, China 12.1%, Indonesia 2.9% (2006)
Debt - external	Definition - World rank and map $3.07 billion (March 2006)
Stock of direct foreign investment - at home	Definition $NA
Stock of direct foreign investment - abroad	Definition $NA
Market value of publicly traded shares	Definition $963.5 million (2005)
Economic aid - recipient	Definition $427.9 million (2005)
Currency (code)	Definition Nepalese rupee (NPR)
Exchange rates	Definition Nepalese rupees per US dollar - NA (2007), 72.446 (2006), 72.16 (2005), 73.674 (2004), 76.141 (2003)
Fiscal year	Definition 16 July - 15 July

Nepal: Economy

Nepal:
Economy