KATHMANDU, April 30 (Xinhua) -- Nepal's economy is projected to grow by 3.87 percent in the current 2023-24 fiscal year ending in mid-July, the National Statistics Office (NSO) said on Tuesday.

The Nepali government set a target of 6 percent growth for the current fiscal year. But it is unlikely to be achieved as the country has been struggling with dampening demands for goods and services, which in turn have affected industrial and trading activities, according to the statistics body.

The manufacturing and construction sectors are expected to see negative growth of 1.6 percent and 2.07 percent, respectively, while the wholesale and retail sector, the second largest contributor to the economy after the agriculture sector, is projected to see a meager growth of 0.16 percent.

"The manufacturing industries could not run in full capacity because of reduced demands as construction and trading activities had slumped," the NSO said in a statement.

Nepal's private sector has long been complaining about declining demands for manufactured goods in the market which had forced them to cut industrial production.

The South Asian country is also seeing sluggish trading activities which have also affected the growth prospect of the economy, Hem Raj Regmi, NSO's deputy chief statistician, said at a press meet.

During the current fiscal year, the agriculture sector is expected to see a modest growth of 3.05 percent, while the hospitality and electricity sectors are expected to grow by 21.84 percent and 17.44 percent, respectively, according to the NSO.

In April, the World Bank and the Asian Development Bank projected a growth of 3.3 percent and 3.6 percent for Nepal during the current fiscal year. Enditem

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