Merchandise trade in Nepal
Nepal: Merchandise trade was 36.7% in 2025. ▲ Rising
Merchandise trade in Nepal, 1960–2025
Source: World Trade Organization (WTO). Measured in % of GDP.
Analysis
In 2025, merchandise trade in Nepal stood at 36.7%.
The figure is up 16.7% on the previous year and up 21.4% over ten years.
Over the whole period, merchandise trade in Nepal peaked at 47.6% in 2021 and was at its lowest, 4.9%, in 1961.
That places Nepal 156th out of 204 countries with data for 2025, putting it in the bottom quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 66 years of available data.
Merchandise trade in Nepal, year by year
| Year | % of GDP | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1960 | 10.8% | — |
| 1961 | 4.9% | -54.8% |
| 1962 | 5.2% | +6.9% |
| 1963 | 23.5% | +350.5% |
| 1964 | 28.4% | +20.7% |
| 1965 | 22.4% | -21.0% |
| 1966 | 13.9% | -38.1% |
| 1967 | 13.2% | -5.1% |
| 1968 | 13.6% | +3.1% |
| 1969 | 17.6% | +29.6% |
| 1970 | 13.5% | -23.3% |
| 1971 | 15.1% | +11.5% |
| 1972 | 14.0% | -7.3% |
| 1973 | 17.2% | +23.0% |
| 1974 | 16.4% | -4.4% |
| 1975 | 17.3% | +5.1% |
| 1976 | 18.0% | +4.1% |
| 1977 | 18.0% | +0.3% |
| 1978 | 19.4% | +8.0% |
| 1979 | 19.6% | +0.8% |
| 1980 | 21.7% | +10.6% |
| 1981 | 22.4% | +3.3% |
| 1982 | 20.2% | -10.0% |
| 1983 | 22.8% | +12.9% |
| 1984 | 21.1% | -7.4% |
| 1985 | 23.4% | +11.0% |
| 1986 | 21.1% | -9.7% |
| 1987 | 24.4% | +15.6% |
| 1988 | 24.9% | +2.1% |
| 1989 | 21.0% | -15.7% |
| 1990 | 24.1% | +14.9% |
| 1991 | 25.3% | +5.0% |
| 1992 | 33.7% | +32.8% |
| 1993 | 34.8% | +3.4% |
| 1994 | 37.3% | +7.2% |
| 1995 | 38.1% | +2.2% |
| 1996 | 39.4% | +3.4% |
| 1997 | 42.7% | +8.2% |
| 1998 | 35.4% | -17.0% |
| 1999 | 40.2% | +13.5% |
| 2000 | 43.3% | +7.6% |
| 2001 | 36.8% | -15.0% |
| 2002 | 32.8% | -10.7% |
| 2003 | 38.2% | +16.2% |
| 2004 | 37.3% | -2.4% |
| 2005 | 38.7% | +3.9% |
| 2006 | 36.8% | -4.8% |
| 2007 | 38.6% | +4.9% |
| 2008 | 36.1% | -6.6% |
| 2009 | 40.5% | +12.2% |
| 2010 | 37.4% | -7.6% |
| 2011 | 31.0% | -17.1% |
| 2012 | 32.1% | +3.6% |
| 2013 | 33.6% | +4.6% |
| 2014 | 37.3% | +11.0% |
| 2015 | 30.3% | -18.9% |
| 2016 | 39.3% | +29.8% |
| 2017 | 38.3% | -2.6% |
| 2018 | 40.8% | +6.5% |
| 2019 | 38.9% | -4.5% |
| 2020 | 32.0% | -17.7% |
| 2021 | 47.6% | +48.6% |
| 2022 | 36.5% | -23.3% |
| 2023 | 32.1% | -12.1% |
| 2024 | 31.5% | -1.8% |
| 2025 | 36.7% | +16.7% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 15.4% | 4.9% | 28.4% | 10 |
| 1970s | 16.8% | 13.5% | 19.6% | 10 |
| 1980s | 22.3% | 20.2% | 24.9% | 10 |
| 1990s | 35.1% | 24.1% | 42.7% | 10 |
| 2000s | 37.9% | 32.8% | 43.3% | 10 |
| 2010s | 35.9% | 30.3% | 40.8% | 10 |
| 2020s | 36.1% | 31.5% | 47.6% | 6 |
Countries ranked near Nepal
- 153 United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland 37.6% compare
- 154 Saint Kitts and Nevis 37.5% compare
- 155 South Sudan 37.2% compare
- 157 Benin 36.4% compare
- 158 Indonesia 36.3% compare
- 159 Myanmar 36.3% compare
More private sector data for Nepal
- Food imports 18.0% (2022)
- Manufactures imports 52.5% (2022)
- Merchandise imports 14.40 billion current US$ (2025)
- Food exports 49.4% (2022)
- Manufactures exports 47.5% (2022)
- Merchandise exports 2.31 billion current US$ (2025)
- Merchandise exports (current US$), per capita 78.03 current US$ per person (2025)
- Merchandise exports (current US$), per unit of GDP 0.0508 current US$ per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Merchandise exports (current US$), annual growth rate 75.61 % change on previous year (2025)
- Merchandise imports (current US$), per capita 486.09 current US$ per person (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is merchandise trade in Nepal?
- Merchandise trade in Nepal was 36.7% in 2025, according to World Trade Organization (WTO).
- What is the highest merchandise trade recorded in Nepal?
- The highest recorded value was 47.6% in 2021.
- What is the lowest merchandise trade recorded in Nepal?
- The lowest recorded value was 4.9% in 1961.
- How does Nepal rank for merchandise trade?
- Nepal ranks 156th out of 204 countries with data for 2025.
- Is merchandise trade rising or falling in Nepal?
- Over the last ten years it is up 21.4%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Nepal data come from?
- The figures come from World Trade Organization (WTO), published as part of Merchandise trade (% of GDP). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 66 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data).
About this data
General merchandise trade includes goods whose economic ownership is changed between a resident and a non-resident and that are not included in the following specific categories: goods under merchanting, non-monetary gold, and parts of travel, construction, and government goods and services n.i.e. It is the total of merchandise exports plus merchandise imports. This indicator is expressed as a percentage of Gross Domestic Product (GDP) which is the total income earned through the production of goods and services in an economic territory during an accounting period.