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The price of gold has dropped by Rs 200 per tola in the domestic market on Tuesday.

According to the Federation of Nepal Gold and Silver Dealers’ Association, the yellow metal is being traded at Rs 190, 900 per tola today. It was traded at Rs 191, 100 per tola on Monday.

Similarly, the price of silver has dropped by Rs 10 and is being traded at Rs 1, 995  per tola today.

As bank interest rates continue to decline, insurance companies in Nepal have significantly increased their investments in the stock market, channeling over Rs 37bn into listed shares to diversify portfolios and maximize returns. This reflects a broader trend of seeking higher yields in a low-interest-rate environment, with insurers capitalizing on the Nepal Stock Exchange (Nepse) to bolster profitability.

According to the Nepal Insurance Authority (NIA), 24 listed insurance companies have invested
Rs 37.61bn in shares listed on the Nepse as of mid-April 2025, a sharp rise from Rs 16.51bn in mid-April 2024. The surge in investment is driven by the need to offset diminishing returns from traditional fixed-income instruments, such as bank deposits, which have become less lucrative due to declining interest rates.

Institutional investors, particularly insurance companies, play a pivotal role in stabilizing the stock market. Unlike individual investors, who often engage in short-term, speculative trading, institutions adopt a long-term investment approach. This strategy reduces panic-driven sell-offs, cushions market volatility and enhances liquidity. The steady capital inflows from insurers foster market resilience and boost confidence among individual investors. Insurance companies, as some of the largest institutional investors in Nepal’s capital market, are instrumental in driving this stability.

NIA regulations permit insurance companies to allocate up to 10 percent of their investable funds to shares of listed companies. Life insurance companies have been particularly aggressive, increasing their investments in ordinary shares by an impressive 108 percent over the past year. By mid-April 2025, life insurers had invested Rs 33.07bn in the secondary market, compared to Rs 4.54bn invested by non-life insurance companies. 

Experts attribute this shift to the sharp decline in interest rates, which has eroded returns on low-yielding bank deposits. With traditional investment avenues offering diminished profitability, insurers are increasingly turning to the stock market to maintain financial viability. This trend not only reflects adaptive financial strategies but also signals growing confidence in Nepal’s equity market.

Minister for Communications and Information Technology Prithvi Subba Gurung has said that this year's budget allocation will be based on the classification and priorities of projects. He mentioned that there will be no 'populist' budget. 

During an interaction to collect feedback for the progress report of Dordi Rural Municipality in Lamjung and for the annual budget and programs for the upcoming fiscal year 2025/26, Minister Gurung said that budget for projects that can only be discussed but  not be implemented will be discouraged this time.

Also the government's spokesperson, Minister Gurung also stated, "Many projects have been left unfinished due to excessive spending, and the budget will prioritise completing such neglected projects."

He said that the projects made without any 'estimate' would not be in the priority of the budget. Minister Gurung said that the government would lay emphasis on making the national pride projects successful. He said the government was focused on completing national pride projects first. 

Lauding the good practices of Dordi Rural Municipality, he suggested the local levels to focus on plans to improve the living standard of the people, bring economic prosperity and alleviate poverty while making the budget.

The federal government will implement large projects like roads and highways,” he said, “local governments should prioritise plans to eliminate poverty and create jobs.” 

He mentioned that in the era of information technology, the ministry has emphasised expanding digital access at the local level to make e-governance more effective. 

On the occasion, the municipality released a progress report highlighting achievements in agriculture, employment, health, and education.

Ruling Party Nepali Congress President Sher Bahadur Deuba has emphasised the need to make Nepal an education hub for foreign students by ensuring quality education in the country. 

During a discussion program on education policy organised by his party's Education Department today, he stated that since education is an important matter, efforts should be made to improve its quality, to keep domestic students in the country and even to attract foreign students.

Former Prime Minister Deuba expressed the view that arrangements should be made to fulfill the desire of all parents to provide good education to their children in the country. 

Department head Nain Singh Mahar stressed on the need for developing research-oriented policy in education. 

Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli has urged tourism authorities to ensure warm hospitality to tourists visiting Nepal, while avoiding legal and administrative hassles.

At the National Tourism Dialogue organised by the Ministry of Culture, Tourism and Civil Aviation at Singha Durbar today, he directed for comprehensive reforms to remove obstacles, if any, and advance the pace of tourism infrastructure development.

Unnecessary hassles for visitors at the immigration, loss of luggage and harassing tourists entering through the land border checkpoints should be put to an end. "Let us take tourism ahead as a basis for prosperity without any shortcomings in the facilitation work required from the concerned authorities," the Prime Minister said.

Referring to the EU ban imposed on Nepali aviation service providers, the Prime Minister also directed the concerned authorities to work to address the terms and conditions and to fulfill other criteria towards that end, including by dividing the aviation regulation authority into licensing and regulatory agencies.

The dialogue emphasised the need for timely construction of major highways and roads including Kathmandu-Muglin-Pokhara, Butwal-Palpa-Pokhara, Kathmandu-Dhulikhel, ease of entry of tourists through border checkpoints, direct air connectivity to European countries, branding Nepal on the world stage, formulation of a master plan for tourism promotion, restructuring of Nepal Airlines Corporation, implementation of conclusions of the Sagarmatha Dialogue, quality investment, human resource management, ease of tax and currency exchange, cleaning of the Himalayas, expansion of digital efficiency and increased inter-agency coordination.

The event was attended by the concerned federal ministers, ministers in charge of tourism of the provincial governments, high-ranking officials, and representatives of the private sector. An action plan prepared on the basis of suggestions received from the private sector regarding the existing problems in the tourism sector and solutions was presented for deliberations at the dialogue.

A 4.3 magnitude earthquake shook Jajarkot district on Monday.

The tremor occurred at 2: 25 am today with its epicentre at Ramidanda,  Barekot Rural Municipality in Jajarkot, said Chintak Timsina, Head of the Earthquake Monitoring Centre in Surkhet.

Dr Dhundi Raj Bhattarai has been appointed as the Chairperson of Nepal Water Supply Corporation (NWSC). 

Bhattarai was appointed to the post for three years as per the ministerial decision, shared Secretary at the Ministry of Water Supply, Engineer Pramila Devi Shakya.

Dr Bhattarai is a resident of Bhumikasthan Municipality -9 in Arghakhanchi district.

Nepali Congress (NC) has denied any involvement of Home Minister Ramesh Lekhak in the visit visa scandal.

A meeting of both former and current office bearers of the party held at the private residence of Party President Sher Bahadur Deuba in Budhanilkantha today concluded that Minister Lekhak, who represents the party in the NC-UML coalition government, had no role in the scandal.

During the meeting, the Minister presented a detailed statement regarding his alleged involvement in the scam, according to NC Spokesperson Prakash Sharan Mahat. After reviewing his clarification, the party leadership decided there was no evidence linking him to the scandal.

The meeting also called for an impartial investigation into the matter, urging that those found responsible be brought to justice.

It is worth noting that on May 21, Tirtha Raj Bhattarai, the Chief of the Tribhuvan International Airport (TIA) Immigration Office, was interrogated by the Commission for the Investigation of Abuse of Authority (CIAA) for allegedly facilitating illegal foreign travel of Nepali nationals on visit visas.

It was later discovered that he had been in regular contact with officials in the Ministry, raising suspicions about the Minister's involvement in the scandal.