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While Southeast Asian countries such as Thailand, Singapore, and Malaysia are seeing a surge in the number of Chinese visitors since February, Nepali travel trade entrepreneurs are still waiting for the inclusion of Nepal in the Chinese government's list for outbound group tours. Nepal was excluded when China first published the list of outbound destinations for Chinese citizens in January this year after the country abandoned the strict travel measures related to the Covid-19 pandemic. Despite China not including Nepal in its list of outbound travel destination countries, there has been a growth in the number of Chinese nationals visiting Nepal in February. A total of 2,266 visitors from the northern neighbor came to Nepal in February compared to 1,426 in January. Travel agencies involved in bringing Chinese tourists said they are waiting for the inclusion of Nepal in the Chinese outbound group tours list. According to them, there have been increasing inquiries from Chinese travel agencies of late. While there is growth in the FITs (free independent travelers) in recent months, group travelers from the northern neighbor are yet to visit Nepal. "There are no group tour movements from the northern neighbor," said Bishwesh Shrestha, owner of C&K Travels, which specializes in Chinese tourists. "We are waiting for the Chinese government to include Nepal's name in the list of countries where Chinese can travel." Once China includes Nepal in the list, travel trade entrepreneurs said they can start their preparations in Nepal as well as in China. According to them, travel agencies in China have started their homework about Nepal, especially the new hotels added last year, and the cost part. "The Chinese travel agencies have started collecting information," said Shrestha. When China announced the reopening of outbound travel for its citizens, travel trade entrepreneurs in Nepal were quite hopeful of welcoming a good number of Chinese guests in 2023. The Chinese Ministry for Culture and Tourism on January 20 issued the first list of the 20 countries where Chinese tourists could travel. China had included Thailand, Indonesia, Cambodia, Sri Lanka, Maldives, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, Laos, United Arab Emirates, Egypt, Kenya, South Africa, Russia, Switzerland, Hungary, New Zealand, Fiji, Cuba, and Argentina as an outbound destination for Chinese citizens. The Global Times, an influential Chinese newspaper, China's outbound travel has reported a rapid rebound in the month since the country resumed cross-border group tours on February 6, with more passenger trips and increased flight capacity. Asian countries and regions are among the most popular tourist destinations, taking more than 80 percent of the growth, with Thailand, Singapore, and Malaysia ranking as the top three destinations in terms of outbound passenger trips from mainland China. The missing of Nepal from the list, according to Nepali travel trade entrepreneurs could affect the government's target of welcoming 1 million tourists in 2023. Before the pandemic-related travel restrictions began in early 2020 in Nepal and across the world, China was the second largest source market for Nepal after India as the country welcomed 169,543 tourists from the northern neighbor in 2019. A total of 1.19 million foreign tourists visited Nepal in 2019 before the pandemic disrupted global tourism. According to travel trade entrepreneurs, a significant contribution of Chinese tourists would be required if Nepal wants to meet the target of 1 million in 2023. In 2022, tourist arrivals reached over 600,000 without any significant contribution from China. Nepal welcomed only 9,595 Chinese tourists in 2022. With Chinese airlines also resuming their Nepal operations, travel trade entrepreneurs said air connectivity is no more issue now. While China Southern and Air China are already operating their flights to Kathmandu, Sichuan Airlines is resuming its Kathmandu flights on March 20. “There is no problem for Chinese tourists to visit Nepal,” said a tour operator.

The price of gold has dropped by Rs 500 per tola in the domestic market on Thursday. According to the Federation of Nepal Gold and Silver Dealers’ Association, the yellow bullion is being traded at Rs 101, 000 per tola today. The yellow metal was traded at Rs 101, 500 per tola on Wednesday. Meanwhile, tejabi gold is being traded at Rs 100, 500 per tola. It was traded at Rs 101, 000. Similarly, the price of silver has dropped by Rs 5 and is being traded at Rs 1,220 per tola today.

Commercial banks have disbursed 28.88 percent of their total loans to the priority sectors in the first half of the current fiscal year. The Nepal Rastra Bank (NRB) has identified agriculture, energy, and micro, cottage, small, and medium industries (MCSMI) as 'prescribed sectors'. According to NRB statistics, of the total lending of Rs 4,276.33 billion, banks have invested Rs 1,235 billion in these sectors till the first half of FY 2022/23. Of the total loans to the priority sectors, 13.09 percent went to the agriculture sector, 6.29 percent to the energy sector, and 9.51 percent for the MCSMI sector. Of the 22 commercial banks, only five banks have extended credit to the agriculture sector beyond the minimum threshold by mid-January 2023. Similarly, the extension of credit of only three banks is above the threshold in the energy sector and four banks' credit is above the threshold in the MCSMI sector. As per NRB guidelines, the banks have to extend at least 13 percent of their total loans to the agricultural sector, 7 percent to the energy sector, and 12 percent to the MCSMI sector. In total, banks have to extend 32 percent of their total loans to these priority sectors by the end of the current fiscal year. The central bank statistics show banks' credit disbursement to the agriculture sector is as per the NRB's threshold while that to the energy sector is close to the threshold. However, credit disbursement to the MCSMI sector is well below the threshold. Bankers admit that it is a challenge to provide loans to the MCSMI sector as per the NRB threshold by the end of this fiscal year. While the prolonged liquidity crunch has hit the banks' credit expansion this fiscal, the MCSMI are also hard hit by the rising price and slowdown in market demand, say bankers. According to them, it will be a tough task to increase credit flow to the MCSMI sector in the current macroeconomic environment. As of mid-January, 2023, only Agricultural Development Bank Limited, Himalayan Bank, Nepal SBI Bank, Standard Chartered Bank Nepal, and Sunrise Bank have their credit disbursement to the agriculture sector above the NRB threshold. In the energy sector, NMB Bank, Sunrise Bank and Sanima Bank have credit disbursement above the NRB threshold of 7 percent. Similarly, four banks - Agriculture Development Bank, Rastriya Banijya Bank, Kumari Bank and NIC Asia Bank have credit disbursement above the threshold of 12 percent in the MCSMI sector. The state-owned banks fare better than private sector banks when it comes to priority sector lending. Among the commercial banks, Agriculture Development Bank's disbursement to the priority sectors is the highest. The bank has disbursed 57.50 percent of its total loans to the priority sectors. The ADBL has disbursed 28.35 percent of loans to the agriculture sector, 4.79 percent to the energy sector, and 24.36 percent to the MCSMI sector in this fiscal. Similarly, the lending of another state-owned bank - Rastriya Banijya Bank (RBB) to priority sectors stood at 36.98 percent. RBB has 12.16 percent of its total loans to the agriculture sector, 6.89 percent to the energy sector, and 17.93 percent to the MCSMI sector. Among the private sector banks, NMB Bank is ahead of others when it comes to lending to the priority sectors. The bank has 32.90 percent of its total loans to the priority sector. NMB Bank has disbursed 12.74 percent of its total loans to the agricultural sector, 8.94 percent to the energy sector, and 11.22 percent to the MCSMI sector.  

After a devastating plane crash near the Pokhara Airport in January, various assumptions were made about its cause raising serious safety concerns. In response, Pokhara International Airport Civil Aviation Office (PIA CAO) has taken various emergency measures to dispel those concerns and regain public confidence. Although the number of arrivals is still below the levels seen before the crash, officials at PIA CAO report that the numbers are gradually increasing. Their main focus at this time is to reassure people of their safety and security, as the crash was not caused by any safety issues at the airport. Bikram Gautam, the Chief of PIA CAO, emphasized that safety is the topmost priority for the airport administration, and they are taking all necessary measures to ensure it. He further stated that the airport is actively working to address any misconceptions about safety measures and to reassure the public of their safety while using the airport. The official investigation into the cause of the Yeti Air crash near the newly built international airport is still ongoing. While there is no denying that the incident has caused people to lose confidence in air travel, efforts are being made to restore public trust and increase the number of passengers. According to eyewitnesses, they did not hear any sound from the plane before the sudden blast, even though it was approaching very close to their homes. "Maybe the plane had an engine problem, otherwise we would have heard the sound when it approached our dwellings," Ramesh Khatri, a local resident of Hariyokharka in Pokhara-15, said. Ganesh Poudel, a local resident of Chauthe in Pokhara-14, speculated that the plane may have collided with birds crossing the runway, as he frequently sees birds approaching the airport. Some locals share this concern, while others believe that the airport's design is not suitable for the climatic conditions of the Pokhara valley. Before transitioning to the newly constructed international airport at Chauthe in Pokhara-14, the Pokhara Airport used to handle more than 2,500 passengers every day, which would double during the tourist season. However, this year the maximum number of passengers per day is limited to around 1500, even though the tourist season has already begun. “But this number cannot be considered low. Even in the initial stage of operation, the airport has succeeded in accommodating this number of passengers," said Yashoda Regmi, the spokesperson for the PIA CAO. On the other hand, tourism stakeholders say that they have experienced a loss of passengers in the two months following the crash. Hari Ram Adhikari, president of the Nepal Association of Tours and Travel Agents (NATTA) Gandaki Chapter, said almost 80 percent of clients had canceled their flights in the initial days after the crash. “Most of those who canceled their air tickets were Nepali people, while the impact on foreigners was minimal,” he said. "Foreigners did not seem fearful after the crash; they accepted it as an incident." According to Adhikari, the number of travelers choosing air travel is gradually increasing, not only because they are forgetting the accident day by day but also due to additional facilities and safety measures put in place by the airport administration. Pokhara International Airport is taking significant measures to restore people's confidence and make the approach slope free of birds. It recently installed a bird inspection device around the runway and also recruited a bird hunter. It has also installed a siren system that alerts officials if birds are on the runway. Likewise, the airport administration is collaborating with local bodies and stakeholders to clean up the rivers, lakes, and ponds in the Pokhara area. It has already sent request letters to all local government agencies in this regard. The airport management has been meeting frequently with local stakeholders to discuss ways to improve the Pokhara International Airport. "We are committed to conveying the reality to people first. Therefore, we are taking some additional measures that were not in our annual plan," Gautam said. According to airport officials, there are still many tasks to be completed before the airport can operate at full capacity. "Preparations are ongoing to make agreements with international airlines. Some airlines will be operating soon," Jagannath Niroula, the spokesperson for the Civil Aviation Authority Nepal (CAAN), said. Recently, the airport successfully completed a 60-day procedure for testing international standard mechanisms and has been enlisted in the Aeronautical Information Publication (AIP). It has recently started Instrument Flight Rules (IFR) and also begun night landing and take off. The airport officials claim that PIA is the first airport in the country to have a Distance Measuring Equipment and Instrument Landing System.