!!!Nepal: Economy
Nepal is among the poorest and least developed countries in the world, with about one-quarter of its population living below the poverty line. Nepal is heavily dependent on remittances, which amount to as much as 29% of GDP. Agriculture is the mainstay of the economy, providing a livelihood for almost 70% of the population and accounting for about one-third of GDP. Industrial activity mainly involves the processing of agricultural products, including pulses, jute, sugarcane, tobacco, and grain. \\  \\ Nepal has considerable scope for exploiting its potential in hydropower, with an estimated 42,000 MW of commercially feasible capacity. Nepal and India signed trade and investment agreements in 2014 that increase Nepal’s hydropower potential, but political uncertainty and a difficult business climate have hampered foreign investment. \\  \\ Nepal was hit by massive earthquakes in early 2015, which damaged or destroyed infrastructure and homes and set back economic development. Political gridlock in the past several years and recent public protests, predominantly in the southern Tarai region, have hindered post-earthquake recovery and prevented much-needed economic reform. Additional challenges to Nepal's growth include its landlocked geographic location, persistent power shortages, and underdeveloped transportation infrastructure.
!!Economic Facts
||GDP (purchasing power parity)|$71.52 billion (2016 est.) \\ $71.12 billion (2015 est.) \\ $69.24 billion (2014 est.) \\ ''__note__'': data are in 2016 dollars \\ 
||GDP (official exchange rate)|$21.15 billion (2015 est.)
||GDP - real growth rate|0.6% (2016 est.) \\ 2.7% (2015 est.) \\ 6% (2014 est.)
||GDP - per capita (PPP)|$2,500 (2016 est.) \\ $2,500 (2015 est.) \\ $2,500 (2014 est.) \\ ''__note__'': data are in 2016 dollars \\ 
||Gross national saving|37.9% of GDP (2016 est.) \\ 43.8% of GDP (2015 est.) \\ 45.7% of GDP (2014 est.)
||GDP - composition, by end use|''household consumption'': 82% \\ ''government consumption'': 10.9% \\ ''investment in fixed capital'': 25% \\ ''investment in inventories'': 10.8% \\ ''exports of goods and services'': 10.7% \\ ''imports of goods and services'': -39.4% (2016 est.) \\ 
||GDP - composition, by sector of origin|''agriculture'': 29.4% \\ ''industry'': 13% \\ ''services'': 50.4% (2016 est.) \\ 
||Agriculture - products|pulses, rice, corn, wheat, sugarcane, jute, root crops; milk, water buffalo meat
||Industries|tourism, carpets, textiles; small rice, jute, sugar, and oilseed mills; cigarettes, cement and brick production
||Industrial production growth rate|-6.3% (2016 est.)
||Labor force|15.2 million \\ ''__note__'': severe lack of skilled labor (2013 est.) \\ 
||Labor force - by occupation|''agriculture'': 69% \\ ''industry'': 12% \\ ''services'': 19% (2014 est.) \\ 
||Unemployment rate|46% (2008 est.) \\ 42% (2004 est.)
||Population below poverty line|25.2% (2011 est.)
||Household income or consumption by percentage share|''lowest 10%'': 3.2% \\ ''highest 10%'': 29.5% (2011) \\ 
||Distribution of family income - Gini index|32.8 (2010) \\ 47.2 (2008 est.)
||Budget|''revenues'': $4.848 billion \\ ''expenditures'': $5.452 billion (2016 est.) \\ 
||Taxes and other revenues|22.9% of GDP (2016 est.)
||Budget surplus (+) or deficit (-)|-2.9% of GDP (2016 est.)
||Public debt|30% of GDP (FY 2012/13 est.) \\ 32% of GDP (2013 est.) (FY11/12)
||Fiscal year|16 July - 15 July
||Inflation rate (consumer prices)|9.1% (2016 est.) \\ 7.9% (2015 est.)
||Central bank discount rate|8% (31 July 2015) \\ 8% (31 July 2014)
||Commercial bank prime lending rate|9.8% (31 December 2016 est.) \\ 9.8% (31 December 2015 est.)
||Stock of narrow money|$5.202 billion (31 December 2016 est.) \\ $4.762 billion (31 December 2015 est.)
||Stock of broad money|$23.04 billion (31 December 2016 est.) \\ $18.99 billion (31 December 2015 est.)
||Stock of domestic credit|$17.54 billion (31 December 2016 est.) \\ $14.92 billion (31 December 2015 est.)
||Market value of publicly traded shares|$11.81 billion (31 October 2015 est.) \\ $9.574 billion (31 October 2014 est.) \\ $5.235 billion (31 December 2010 est.)
||Current account balance|$831 million (2016 est.) \\ $1.067 billion (2015 est.)
||Exports|$898.4 million (2016 est.) \\ $813.1 million (2015 est.)
||Exports - commodities|clothing, pulses, carpets, textiles, juice, jute goods
||Exports - partners|India 61.3%, US 9.4% (2015)
||Imports|$7.116 billion (2016 est.) \\ $6.511 billion (2015 est.)
||Imports - commodities|petroleum products, machinery and equipment, gold, electrical goods, medicine
||Imports - partners|India 61.5%, China 15.4% (2015)
||Reserves of foreign exchange and gold|$8.054 billion (31 December 2016 est.) \\ $7.945 billion (31 December 2015 est.)
||Debt - external|$4.99 billion (31 December 2016 est.) \\ $4.609 billion (31 December 2015 est.)
||Stock of direct foreign investment - at home|$103 million (31 July 2013 est.)
||Stock of direct foreign investment - abroad|$NA
||Exchange rates|Nepalese rupees (NPR) per US dollar - \\ 108.8 (2016 est.) \\ 102.41 (2015 est.) \\ 102.41 (2014 est.) \\ 99.53 (2013 est.) \\ 85.2 (2012 est.)