Kathmandu: Nepal’s overall national savings position has shown improvement, even as domestic household savings continue to weaken, according to the Economic Survey 2025/26 (2082/83 BS) presented in the federal parliament by Finance Minister Swarnim Wagle.
The report states that the gap between savings and investment in the domestic economy is expected to narrow this fiscal year. The savings-investment gap, which stood at 20.9 percent of gross domestic product (GDP) last fiscal year, is projected to decline by 2.8 percentage points to 18.1 percent this year. The survey notes that the gap had reached its highest level in the past decade during fiscal year 2019/20 (2076/77 BS).
While domestic savings remain under pressure, Nepal’s national savings indicators have improved steadily in recent years. The gap between national savings and investment, which was negative by 8 percent in fiscal year 2021/22 (2078/79 BS), has since moved into positive territory.
According to the report, the improvement has largely been driven by rising remittance inflows, along with growing earnings from professional services and information technology exports. The ratio of national savings to investment, which stood at 9 percent last year, is expected to rise further to 12.8 percent this fiscal year.
Nepalis’ per capita disposable income has also increased. The survey estimates that annual per capita disposable income will rise from 1,914 US dollars last fiscal year to 2,044 dollars this year.
Despite sluggish economic activity and relatively weak economic growth, the report suggests that rising income from external sources — particularly remittances and service exports — has helped strengthen several macroeconomic indicators.
Nepal’s per capita GDP at current prices is projected to grow by 5.5 percent this fiscal year, reaching Rs 217,946, up from Rs 206,625 last year.
However, the depreciation of the Nepali rupee against the US dollar has slightly reduced income levels in dollar terms. With the Nepali currency weakening by 5.7 percent against the dollar, per capita GDP measured in US dollars is projected to decline marginally from 1,516 dollars to 1,513 dollars.
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