Laxmi Bank mutual fund

K2ATHMANDU, FEB 03, 2012

Laxmi Bank will soon launch its mutual fund. The bank has already obtained licence from Securities Board of Nepal to bring the mutual fund. Laxmi Capital Market — a fully owned subsidiary of the bank — will act as the fund manager and depository for the mutual fund. The bank’s board has fully authorised its chief executive Suman Joshi for managing the mutual fund issue, it said. The bank’s board, considering the quality of Risk Assets, has entrusted Joshi with additional authority on credit approvals. The 12th AGM of the bank, conducted on January 13, had approved 10 per cent cash dividend to shareholders.

 

 

Source: THT

Panel to submit report on petro pipeline next week

KATHMANDU, FEB 03 - 2013

A technical team entrusted with the task of holding study on the appropriate modality for the Nepal-India cross-border petroleum pipeline is scheduled to submit its report to the National Planning Commission (NPC) next week.

The team led by the Ministry of Commerce and Supplies (MoCS) Secretary Lalmani Joshi comprises experts from the Finance and Home Ministries and Public Procurement Office, among others. “We will hold a meeting soon and forward the project report to the NPC appropriate suggestion,” Joshi said.

The build, operate, own, and transfer (BOOT) committee of the NPC will evaluate the report before giving the final nod to develop the much-delayed 41-km petroleum pipeline . The BOOT committee is led by NPC Vice Chairman Dipendra Bahadur Kshetry.

The project, which was first proposed by the Indian Oil Corporation (IOC) in 1995, has been the subject of much discussion. “The study will help fast-track the project as it has been put on ice for several years,” Joshi said, adding there are some positive indications that the project will be executed this time.

On Jan 3, the Cabinet had agreed in principle to develop the project. Subsequently, the NPC formed a committee to look after a number of legal and technical complexities.

MoCS officials said the IOC was keen to develop the project with its own resources. However, the committee will decide whether Nepal can utilise its own resources, go for a 50-50 percent ownership or ask India for grant to build the project.

The project has been estimated to cost Rs 1.6 billion, besides the costs for the land acquisition. A pre-feasibility study in 2004 and a technical study in 2006 had termed the project economically viable on condition the pipeline is operated unhindered for 20 years.

The pipeline , if developed, is expected to save Rs 300-350 million annually in transportation costs alone for Nepal Oil Corporation, which currently spends around Rs 500 million annually to transport petroleum products from Raxaul of India, to Amalekhgunj.

The annual operation cost of the proposed pipeline is estimated at Rs 120 million.

The project is envisaged to reduce leakage and ensure the supply of cleaner and cheaper fuel. It could also bring relief to Nepali consumers from frequent shortages caused by strikes.

A report of the High-Level Petroleum Reform Committee had also suggested immediate construction of the pipeline .

A joint-venture model with equity participation of the NOC and IOC was planned when the government approved the project in February 2010. But in March 2011, Nepal and India dropped the JV model and agreed to a new modality, whereby the two countries would construct the pipeline separately on their respective territories, and it would then be linked after signing a bilateral pipeline treaty.

Source: The Kathmandu Post

Revenue collection 2pc above target in H1

KATHMANDU, FEB 01 - 2013

The government collected Rs 134.57 billion in revenue during the first half of the current fiscal year, surpassing the target by 2.04 percent.

According to the Finance Ministry, the government earned Rs 27.07 billion in customs

duty, Rs 40.13 billion in value added tax (VAT), Rs 30.64 billion in income tax and Rs 17.69 billion in excise duty.

Likewise, income from registration fees reached Rs 1.74 billion, vehicle tax Rs 2.15 billion and non-tax sources such as royalty and dividends Rs 14.5 billion.

The total intake was up 21.2 percent year on year. The Finance Ministry said that tax revenue jumped 25.72 percent while non-tax revenue declined 6.56 percent during the period.

Revenue collection may have climbed during the first six months, but the ministry said it was due more to an increase in imports, and thus not a cause for excessive jubilation. Chief of the ministry’s Revenue Management Department Rajan Khanal said collection of VAT and excise duty under the Inland Revenue Department was not as high as that from the customs offices.

During a review meeting of the revenue collection status of the first half of the fiscal on Thursday, Khanal said that the rate of revenue collection had been in decline in the latter part of the period. “The reason of this drop should be analyzed,” the ministry said in a press release.

He added that low spending by the public sector would make revenue collection challenging in the days ahead. “A change in the exchange rate of the US dollar could also affect customs revenue in the future,” he said.

Meanwhile, speaking at the interaction, director general of the IRD Tanka Mani Sharma said the level of VAT collection was not satisfactory due to a fall in capital expenditure. “Revenue collection is challenging as the revenue policy could not be changed in the absence of a full budget,” he added.

Finance secretary Shanta Raj Subedi directed the offices under the Finance Ministry to move ahead with a clear work plan in order to collect more revenue.

He also instructed them to adopt specific measures to increase inland VAT, take stringent action to raise VAT collection from the service sector, work to bring untouched sectors under the tax net and control leakages through a partnership between the IRD and the Department of Revenue Investigation.

National Planning Commission vice-chairman Dipendra Bahadur Kshetry, Nepal Rastra Bank governor Yubaraj Khatiwada and economic advisor to the Finance Ministry Sri Ram Poudel, among others, took part in the review meeting.

Source: The Kathmandu Post