Once again Nepal has continued the ongoing import bans for the next two months. The announcement was made by the Ministry of Industry, Commerce, and Supplies, without any changes with only four items on the list. This affects the import of liquor, expensive vehicles, and few gadgets. The list of the import ban extended includes:
- Liquor
- Mobile phones priced above USD 300
- SUVs, cars, and vans (except ambulances and hearses)
- Motorcycles above 150 CC
While the ban extended till October has finally ended, it is disappointing that the import continues to restrict and affect brands. The import ban all began in April, seven months ago when the nation’s revenue had dunked and the foreign exchange reserve had shrunk. The ban action was extended once again after mid-July, following August and October.
The result of the ban is affecting the general public and government revenues. Resham Thapa, economist and associate professor at the Central Department of Economics of Tribhuvan University, states that the government might lift the ban as the country’s forex reserves have now improved to cover the import costs of at least seven months.
However, the ban hasn’t been a positive note to the nation’s economy but also a problem for the general public.
Thapa states that the ban has affected the economic activities related to trade in certain technical ways.
“The ban on imports of automobiles affected the country’s fuel consumption, workshops, and the revenue collected by the government, among other economic activities.
Thus, lifting the ban now can assist in recovering some of the lost economic activities,” he added.
Besides that, there haven’t been any statements from the ministry officials. The ban also really dont seem to affect the gadgets field, during these import bans. For example, tv bans above 32-inch were also part of the list. However, there are premium smart TVs launching at a high cost as well. Smartphones also continue doing good in the Nepali market as well where we can see launches continuing with the best brands.
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