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With non-performing assets (NPA) rising, the overall profit of commercial banks has taken a beating in the first half of the current fiscal year. The second quarter report of the 20 commercial banks shows their profit grew by 11.9 percent in the first six months of the current fiscal year 2022/23. Of the 20 banks that have published their financial reports for the second quarter, 14 have reported an increase in their profits compared to the same period of the last fiscal year. Similarly, six banks have logged a decline in profit while one has reported loss. Sunrise Bank, Citizens Bank International, Siddhartha Bank, Prime Commercial Bank, Prabhu Bank, and Nepal Bank have reported a decline in their profits. The Agriculture Development Bank reported a loss of Rs 0.128 billion in the first half of the current fiscal. The banks' quarterly report shows two banks' profit has crossed the Rs 3 billion mark while two other banks earned above Rs 2 billion in profit in this fiscal. There are other banks whose profit has crossed the Rs 1 billion mark in the first half of FY 2022/23. Nabil Bank has topped the chart as the bank's profit grew by 56.67 percent in the first six months of the current fiscal year. The bank earned Rs 3.41 billion in profit in the first six months of the current fiscal year. NIC Asia Bank is second on the list with a profit of Rs 3.27 billion, an increment of 36 percent followed by the Global IME Bank which has reported a profit of Rs 2.78 billion. However, Global IME's profit grew by a meager 4.42 percent in this fiscal. In terms of percentage growth, Everest Bank has the highest profit growth of 89.49 percent. The bank recorded a profit of Rs 1.58 billion in the first half of this fiscal compared to Rs 0.83 billion in the last fiscal. Standard Chartered Bank's profit also grew by 61.36 percent to Rs 1.90 billion. Meanwhile, Agricultural Development Bank's profit has decreased by a whopping 109.06 percent in the first half of the current fiscal. The bank has incurred a loss of 0.128 billion in the first half of FY 2022/23 compared to a profit of 1.42 billion during the same period of FY 2021/22. The bank's profit decreased due to an increment in the impairment charges. The bank's NPA also increased from 2.08 percent to 4.52 percent in this fiscal. According to the bank, it has set aside Rs 2.17 billion for impairment charges, an increment of 250 percent compared to the last fiscal.  

The price of gold has increased by Rs 1, 000 per tola in the domestic market on Tuesday. According to the Federation of Nepal Gold and Silver Dealers’ Association, the precious yellow metal is being traded at Rs 106, 300 per tola today. The gold was traded at Rs 105, 300 per tola on Monday. This is the highest ever recorded price in the domestic market. Meanwhile, tejabi gold is being traded at Rs 105, 800 per tola. Similarly, the price of silver has dropped by Rs 15 and is being traded at Rs 1,365 per tola today.

The Nepal Stock Exchange (NEPSE) plunged by 13. 71 points to close at 2,165.10 points on Monday. Similarly, the sensitive index dropped by 2. 05 points to close at 413. 01 points. A total of 10,759,579 unit shares of 257 companies were traded for Rs 3. 86 billion. Meanwhile, Adarsha Laghubitta Bittiya Sanstha Limited was the top gainer today with its price surging by 10 percent. Likewise, Himalayam Hydropower Limited was the top loser with its price dropped by 7. 79 percent. At the end of the day, the total market capitalization stood at Rs 3. 12 trillion.

The latest flagship models from the Korean handset maker Samsung arrived in the Nepali market. The Galaxy Z Fold4 and Galaxy Z Flip4 both have been launched in the local market in the third week of January. Both phones were introduced to Nepal six months after they were launched in the global market as the Nepal government restricted imports of mobile handsets costing over USD 300 in April last year. With the government lifting the import restrictions in early December, importers have been gradually bringing flagship models of different brands to the market. The Galaxy Z Fold4 and Z Flip4 are Samsung's fourth-generation foldable smartphones. While the design of the Fold4 looks very similar to its predecessor Fold3, there are a few small changes. Compared to Fold3, Fold4 is slightly lighter, the hinge is slimmer and the bezels are narrower. Fold4 weighs 263 grams while Fold3 is 271 grams. Fold4 comes up with a 6.2-inch exterior display and a 7.6-inch interior display. The interior one is a Foldable Dynamic AMOLED 2X panel with a 120Hz adaptive fast refresh rate & QXGA+ (2176 x 1812p) resolution. While the exterior is an HD+ 2316 x 904p Dynamic AMOLED 2X, 120Hz display protected by Corning Gorilla Glass Victus+. Further, the phone has an aluminum frame and the back panel also gets Gorilla Glass Victus+ protection. There is a side-mounted fingerprint scanner embedded in the power key. The Fold4 is powered by the latest flagship Qualcomm Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1 chipset. Built on TSMC 4nm, the chipset has three CPU clusters comprised of a single powerful Arm Cortex-X2 flagship-core, three performance and efficiency balanced Arm Cortex-A710 big-cores, and four power-efficient Arm Cortex-A510 little-cores. While the Fold4 comes with 12GB RAM and 256GB/512GB/1TB internal storage, only the 256GB variant is available in Nepal. The Fold4 is available for Rs 244,999 for the 12/256GB variant. The phone has a triple-camera setup on the back that includes a 50MP main camera, a 12MP ultra-wide camera, and a 10MP telephoto camera with 3x optical zoom and 30x digital zoom. The Fold4 has a 4400mAh battery and supports 25W fast charging and 15W fast wireless charging. Galaxy Z Flip4 builds on the success of Samsung’s iconic form factor, adding key features, including an upgraded camera experience, a larger battery, and expanded customization while maintaining its ultra-compact design. Galaxy Z Flip4 sports a compact clamshell design and offers unique smartphone experiences. The innovative form factor allows the users to do more without even unfolding the phone, including answering calls and replying to texts. With an upgraded camera equipped with a 65 percent brighter sensor, Galaxy Z Flip4 comes with Samsung’s flagship Nightography feature ensuring your photos and videos are crisper and more stable through the day or night. The Z Flip4 comes with the latest Snapdragon 8+ Gen1 processor and a 10 percent higher battery capacity at 3700mAh. With a slimmer hinge, straightened edges, contrasting hazed back glass, and glossy metal frames, the design is sleeker and the most refined one yet. The Samsung Galaxy Z Flip4 has been priced at Rs 1,44,999 for the 8/256GB variant in the local market.