That dollar amount results from a 66.4% increase from $781.1 million in 2018.
Year over year, the value of Nepalese exports shrank by -22% compared to $1.67 billion during 2021.
Based on the average exchange rate for 2022, the Nepalese rupee weakened by -14.9% against the US dollar since 2018 and diluted by -6% from 2021 to 2022. Nepal’s weaker local currency made Nepalese exports paid for in stronger US dollars relatively less expensive for international buyers.
Nepal’s Major Trading Partners
The latest available country-specific data shows that 94.9% of products exported from Nepal were bought by importers in: India (71.9% of the global total), United States of America (11.3%), Germany (2.5%), Türkiye (2%), United Kingdom (1.8%), France (1%), Australia (0.83%), Japan (0.8%), Canada (0.78%), Italy (0.76%), Netherlands (0.6%) and Denmark (0.55%).
From a continental perspective, 77.5% of Nepal’s exports by value was delivered to Asia countries while 12.1% was sold to importers in North America. Nepal shipped another 9.2% worth of goods to Europe.
Smaller percentages went to buyers in Oceania (0.9%) led by Australia and New Zealand, Africa (0.2%), then Latin America (0.1%) excluding Mexico but including the Caribbean.
Given Nepal’s population of 30.2 million people, its total $1.3 billion in 2022 exports translates to roughly $45 for every resident in the South Asian country. That dollar metric falls below the average $60 per capita one year earlier in 2021.
Nepal’s Top 10 Exports
At the 2-digit Harmonized Tariff System code level, the following export product groups represent the highest dollar value in Nepalese global shipments during 2022. Also shown is the percentage share each export category represents in terms of overall exports from Nepal.
- Animal/vegetable fats, oils, waxes: US$391.9 million (30.2% of total exports)
- Manmade staple fibers: $102.6 million (7.9%)
- Coffee, tea, spices: $90.4 million (7%)
- Textile floor coverings: $89 million (6.8%)
- Clothing, accessories (not knit or crochet): $57.8 million (4.4%)
- Iron, steel: $54.3 million (4.2%)
- Food industry waste, animal fodder: $51.2 million (3.9%)
- Vegetable/fruit/nut preparations: $48.6 million (3.7%)
- Paper yarn, woven fabric: $45.5 million (3.5%)
- Felt, yarn, twine, ropes, cables: $39.8 million (3.1%)
Nepal’s top 10 exports generated about three-quarters (74.7%) of the overall value of its global shipments.
Iron and steel as materials represent the fastest grower among the top 10 export categories, up by 708.7% from 2021 to 2022.
In second place for improving export sales were exported textile floor coverings, via a 24.7% advance.
Nepal’s shipments of manmade staple fibers from Nepal posted the third-fastest gain in value, up by 18.1%.
The leading decliner among Nepal’s top 10 export categories was the animal or vegetable fats, oils and waxes, pulled down by a -56% year-over-year reduction.
At the more granular four-digit Harmonized Tariff System (HTS) code level, soya-bean oil represents Nepal’s most valuable exported product accounting for 14.4% of the country’s total. Close behind in second place was palm oil (14.3%) trailed by yarn made from synthetic staple fibers (6.9%), knotted textile floor coverings including carpets (6.5%), fruit and vegetable juices (3.7%), nutmeg and cardamoms (3.6%), plated or coated flat-rolled iron or non-alloy steel products (3.4%), woven jute fabrics (3.2%), felt (3%) and tea (2.5%).
The top 10 exports at the more detailed HTS level represent over three-fifths (61.6%) of Nepalese export sales.
Products Generating Nepal’s Largest Trade Surpluses
The following types of Nepalese product shipments represent positive net exports or a trade balance surplus. Investopedia defines net exports as the value of a country’s total exports minus the value of its total imports.
In a nutshell, net exports represent the amount by which foreign spending on a home country’s goods or services exceeds or lags the home country’s spending on foreign goods or services.
- Textile floor coverings: US$85.4 million (Up by 30.7% since 2021)
- Vegetable/fruit/nut preparations: $29.7 million (Up by 17.3%)
- Coffee, tea, spices: $29.3 million (Reversing a -$4.5 million deficit)
- Felt, yarn, twine, ropes, cables: $24.5 million (Up by 24%)
- Vegetable plaiting materials: $15.3 million (Up by 31.7%)
- Paper yarn, woven fabric: $7 million (Down by -42.8%)
- Lead: $6.4 million (Up by 57.7%)
- Musical instruments: $5.1 million (Down by -11.2%)
- Collector items, art, antiques: $3.9 million (Down by -11%)
- Raw hides, skins not furskins, leather: $2.8 million (Up by 15.6%)
Nepal has highly positive net exports in the international trade of carpets and other textile floor coverings. In turn, these cashflows indicate Nepal’s strong competitive advantages under the textile floor coverings product categories.
Products Causing Nepal’s Worst Trade Deficits
Overall, Nepal incurred -US$12.4 billion trade deficit for 2022, down by -12.1% compared to -$14.1 billion in red ink one year earlier in 2021.
Below are exports from Nepal that result in negative net exports or product trade balance deficits. These negative net exports reveal product categories where foreign spending on home country Nepal’s goods trail Nepalese importer spending on foreign products.
- Mineral fuels including oil: -US$3.1 billion (Up by 31.7% since 2021)
- Iron, steel: -$1.1 billion (Down by -28.6%)
- Machinery including computers: -$946.9 million (Down by -23.9%)
- Electrical machinery, equipment: -$854.4 million (Down by -15.6%)
- Vehicles: -$525.6 million (Down by -45.7%)
- Plastics, plastic articles: -$522.0 million (Down by -15.6%)
- Cereals: -$476.8 million (Down by -30.3%)
- Gems, precious metals: -$437.3 million (Down by -19.6%)
- Pharmaceuticals: -$422.5 million (Down by -16.8%)
- Animal/vegetable fats, oils, waxes: -$358.6 million (Up by 60.6%)
Nepal has highly negative net exports and therefore deep international trade deficits under the mineral fuels-related category. Notable loss leaders among these energy products are refined petroleum oils and petroleum gases.
Nepal’s Export Companies
Not one Nepalese corporation ranks among the Forbes Global 2000.
Wikipedia lists exports-related companies from Nepal. Selected examples are shown below.
- Chaudhary Group (conglomerate)
- Citizens Bank International (commercial bank)
- Deurali-Janta Pharmaceuticals (drugs and medicines)
- Giribandhu Tea Estate (beverages)
- Hulas Motors (vehicles)
- IME Group (conglomerate)
- Krishna Pauroti (bakery)
- Nepal Oil Corporation (oil, gas)
From a macroeconomic perspective, Nepal’s exported goods in 2022 represent 0.9% of the country’s Gross Domestic Product on a Purchasing Power Parity basis ($143.8 billion), down from 1.3% for 2021. Those percentages suggest Nepal is depending less on international trade compared to other economic activities, albeit based on a very short timeframe.
Another key indicator of a country’s economic performance is its unemployment rate. Nepal’s average unemployment rate averaged 11.12% for 2022, down from an average 12.22% jobless rate one year earlier in 2021 according to metrics from Statista.
Nepal’s capital city is Kathmandu.
See also Nepal’s Top 10 Imports, Nepal’s Top Trading Partners, India’s Top Trading Partners, Palm Oil Exports by Country and Top Cardamoms Exports & Imports by Country Plus Average Prices
Research Sources:
Central Intelligence Agency, The World Factbook Country Profiles. Accessed on August 23, 2023
Forbes, Global 2000 rankings, The World’s Biggest Public Companies. Accessed on August 23, 2023
International Monetary Fund, World Economic Outlook Databases (GDP based on Purchasing Power Parity). Accessed on August 23, 2023
International Trade Centre, Trade Map. Accessed on August 23, 2023
Investopedia, Net Exports Definition. Accessed on August 23, 2023
Wikipedia, List of Companies of Nepal. Accessed on August 23, 2023
Wikipedia, Nepal. Accessed on August 23, 2023