Nepal Rastra Bank Releases Flexible and Growth-Oriented Monetary Policy for FY 2082/83

Nepal Rastra Bank (NRB) has unveiled a flexible and development-focused monetary policy for the fiscal year 2082/83. Governor Dr. Bishwanath Paudel, presenting his first monetary policy since taking office, stated that the policy aims to ensure macroeconomic stability, control inflation, and support economic growth.

The policy is designed to align with the government’s target of 6% economic growth and aims to keep inflation within 5%. Additionally, NRB plans to maintain foreign exchange reserves sufficient to cover at least seven months of goods and services imports.

The policy projects:

• Broad money supply to expand by 13%

• Private sector credit flow to grow by 12%

Key liquidity ratios like the Cash Reserve Ratio (CRR) and Statutory Liquidity Ratio (SLR) have been kept unchanged, while the interest rate corridor has been revised slightly to encourage credit expansion and manage liquidity more efficiently.

Key Announcements:

• Bank Rate reduced from 6.5% to 6%

• Policy Rate reduced from 5% to 4.5%

• Deposit Collection Rate reduced from 3% to 2.75%

• NRB may issue bonds as needed to manage excess liquidity

• Commitment to ensure real interest rates do not turn negative

The central bank emphasized that it will move forward with a balanced approach to monetary and foreign exchange policies, aiming to stimulate domestic demand while ensuring price and external sector stability.

This monetary policy is widely seen as a strategic shift toward boosting growth through credit expansion and easing financial conditions in a cautious yet forward-looking manner.