Nepal's trade with the US increased by 0.17% in 2015

US imported about US$ 86.4 million worth of goods from Nepal in 2015, according to US Census Bureau (https://www.census.gov/foreign-trade/balance/c5360.html). Total exports from the US for the same period was US $36.5 million. With a total of US$ 123.1 million compared to US$ 122.9 million in 2014, total amount of US-Nepal trades increased by 0.17%. With this, Nepal now ranks 159th among the top trading partners of the US. In 2014, Nepal ranked 163rd and in 2013 it ranked 164th. As these numbers show, overall trade is improving but in a very small level.

With enforcement of the the Trade Facilitation and Trade Enforcement Act (TFTEA) recently signed by the President Obama next month, Nepal's trade with the US is expected to improve this year onward provided that the political and macro economic situation remain under control in Nepal. In 2015, carpets and textile floor coverings made the biggest share of Nepal's exports to the US (Table 1). With the TFTEA in action, the opportunity to improving the trade of such products with the US has opened up, one more time.

Table 1. Total 10 imports to US from Nepal, 2015
Rank	Commodity	Total
1	Carpets, other textile floor coverings, knotted	$31,110,177
2	Carpets & Other Text Floor Cover, Woven	$6,327,023
3	Antiques	$5,731,358
4	Shawls, Scarves, Mufflers, Mantillas, Veils E 6214	$3,009,605
5	Preparations for animal feeding	$2,951,607
6	Travel goods, including handbags, wallets, jewelry	$2,225,655
7	Women's or girls' overcoats, knit or crochet	$2,117,947
8	Misc. articles made from textile materials	$1,834,792
9	Hats, headgear, knit, lace	$1,754,664
10	Men's or boys' suits, not knit	$1,555,168

Source: http://ustradenumbers.com/countries/nepal/

We will be closely monitoring and reporting the trade numbers to continuously gauge the effect of the TFTEA and overall trade situations between the two countries. Its an important that Nepal uses this new opportunity to expand the locally made products to the US markets, and builds a foundation of a robust global-local economy.