Nepal’s handicraft export down by 4.65 pct
People’s Daily Online, China
Nepal’s export of handicraft goods fell by 4.65 percent in the first three quarters of the current fiscal year ending in mid-July, handicraft associations said in Kathmandu Thursday.
Data compiled by the Federation of Handicraft Associations of Nepal (FHAN) showed that 2.02 billion Nepali rupees (some 31 million US dollars) worth of handicraft were exported in the first nine months of 2006/07, as against 2.12 billion rupees (some 32 million dollars) in the same period of last fiscal year.
The dip is attributed largely to slump in export of pashmina products, metal craft and handmade paper, which together contributed 41 percent of all handicraft exports from Nepal.
Slump in export of pashmina products, which make up 19 percent of the total handicraft exports, continues, said the association.
A total of 359.94 million rupees (some 5.5 million dollars) worth of pashmina products were exported in the nine months of this fiscal year, down by 18.56 percent compared with the same period last year.
FHAN officials said that pashmina export suffered mostly from tough foreign competition and its inability to adapt to new market trends and develop new products.
Similarly, export of metal craft fell down by 12.47 percent to 276.5 million rupees (some 4.2 million dollars) while handmade paper products marked a 10.26 percent decrease in export to 175.04 million rupees (some 2.6 million dollars) in the first nine months of the current fiscal year.
The export of woolen goods came down by 27.47 percent this year. This was attributed to the separation of felt product export from the category of woolen goods.
Source: Xinhua