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CPN-UML Chairman and former Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli has claimed that the Rastriya Swatantra Party will get the Home Ministry. Speaking to journalists at the Biratnagar Airport on Thursday, Oli asserted that the agreement reached in the coalition should be implemented. He claimed that the Home Ministry will not be given to other parties other than the Rastriya Swatantra Party. Leader Oli made it clear that there has been an agreement between Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal and himself on the issue. “It has been agreed to give the Home Ministry to the Rastriya Swatantra Party. But, it is up to the party to choose the minister,” he said, adding, “There is no need to wait for the full text of the Supreme Court for the decision pertaining to the Home Ministry.”  

The price of gold has increased by Rs 1, 200 per tola in the domestic market on Thursday. According to the Federation of Nepal Gold and Silver Dealers’ Association, the precious yellow metal is being traded at Rs 107, 500 per tola today. Meanwhile, tejabi gold is being traded at Rs 107, 000 per tola. Similarly, the price of silver has increased by Rs 25 and is being traded at Rs 1,395 per tola today.

With the continuing bearish run of the country's stock market, the capital gains tax (CGT) from stock trading has fallen dramatically in the current fiscal year. The latest official statistics show CGT has declined by a whopping 84.68 percent in the first six months of FY 2022/23. The government has collected Rs 1.23 billion in CGT in the first half of the current fiscal year compared to Rs 8.06 billion in the same period of the last fiscal year. This year, Rs 491.5 million has been collected in CGT from long-term share trading and Rs 744.1 million from short-term share trading. During the same period in the last fiscal, Rs 2.22 billion was collected from long-term share trading and Rs 5.84 billion from short-term share trading. The CGT collection from trading of shares has taken a beating as the stock market has been in a bearish run for over the last one year. Stock investors are required to pay taxes to the government only after earning profit in the share trading. In the current fiscal year, the stock market has fallen significantly. As most of the investors have suffered losses in share trading, tax collection from stock trading also has declined. According to CDS & Clearing Limited (CDSC) Spokesperson Suresh Neupane, the revenue collection from the stock trading has decreased due to the decline in the NEPSE index and turnover. "Investors will pay tax only after earning profit. Investors made good profits when the stock market rose to an all-time high in earlier fiscal years. As a result, the revenue received by the government increased last year," he said. The government has been collecting up to 10 percent capital gains tax from the profits earned by investors in the secondary market. As per the existing arrangements, 10 percent CGT is levied on institutional investors in the securities market while it is 7.5 percent for individual investors. Among the individuals, the government collects tax by considering those who hold shares for more than 1 year as long-term investors and those who hold shares for less than 1 year as short-term investors. Short-term investors have to pay a 7.5 percent capital gains tax and long-term investors have to pay a 5 percent capital gains tax. The government had collected an all-time high CGT of Rs 14.06 billion from transactions of shares in FY 2020/21 when the domestic bourse was on a bull run. The amount was only Rs 1.01 billion in FY 2019/20. Secondary market transactions contributed a total of Rs 6.59 billion in tax revenue from FY 2015/16 to FY 2019/20.

With the risk of Nepal finding a place on the 'grey list' of the Financial Action Task Force (FATF), the government has decided to expedite the endorsement of amendment bills related to anti-money laundering (AML). Nepal is currently under pressure from FAFT and international lenders like the International Monetary Fund (IMF) to enact a number of laws to address the deficiencies to comply with the standards on AML and anti-terrorist financing. On Tuesday, a meeting of the National Review Council on Money Laundering decided to introduce the amendment bill through a fast-track process. According to the Finance Ministry press statement, Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Bishnu Poudel said that the government planned to take the draft of the bill to the cabinet by Sunday and present the bill at the parliament in a fast-track manner. According to a government secretary, preparations are underway to prepare the draft of the bill to send the draft to the cabinet by Sunday. Though the amendment bill was presented at the erstwhile parliament, it was dissolved before it was endorsed. Later, the government sent an ordinance the President Bidya Devi Bhandari in November last year. But the President didn’t authenticate the ordinance on time, and following the elections of the House of Representatives, the ordinance could not be introduced. The government’s decision has come up at a time when the Asia Pacific Group (APG) on Money Laundering has been conducting a mutual evaluation of Nepal’s compliance with the global standards on anti-money laundering and terrorist financing (AML/CFT). Though the APG team concluded the field visit to Nepal in December last year based on which its report will be prepared, Nepali officials believe Nepal could give accommodate the progress made after their visits to Nepal before APG plenary meeting scheduled to be held in April. A government secretary said that the new bill would also include the amendment to the existing laws on casinos and cooperatives. Earlier, the ordinance submitted to the president had missed the provisions related to casinos. In February, the APG is expected to produce its preliminary report on which Nepal will give its opinion. A face-to-face interaction is expected in April before the APG prepares its final report, according to officials at Finance Ministry. The report will then go to the APG plenary, which will determine whether Nepal will be under the International Cooperation Review Group (ICRG) monitoring of the FATF. The ‘grey list’ is used to denote a group of countries/jurisdictions with “strategic deficiencies” in their regime to counter money laundering and terror financing. Once listed as ‘jurisdiction under increased monitoring’ by the FATF, they must develop an action plan within a specific period. A country on the grey list is not subject to sanctions. However, the grey list signals to the international banking system that there could be enhanced transactional risks from doing business with the said country. Nepal was on the FAFT's 'grey list' from 2008-2014. After a series of progress made on the AML/CFT regime that includes an amendment to the Anti-Money Laundering Act 2008, and the enactment of other laws, the FATF finally removed Nepal from the list in 2014.  

Police have arrested a Canadian national with 9 kg gold from the Tribhuvan International Airport on Wednesday. The Customs Department of the Airport detained Muhammad Kamal Mohagob (passport no. AAM 266548), who arrived in Kathmandu from Malaysia boarding a FlyDubai flight FZ-574 from Dubai, during a routine security check. TIA security police spokesperson Lal Mani Acharya said that the Canadian National was apprehended with 9. 135 kg gold He has been kept at the Metropolitan Police Circle, Gaushala for further investigation.    

The Nepal Stock Exchange (NEPSE) gained 4.97 points to close at 2,116.65 points on Wednesday. Similarly, the sensitive index plunged by 0.54 points to close at 401. 17 points. A total of 5,024,381 unit shares of 261 companies were traded for Rs 1. 76 billion. Meanwhile, Adarsha Laghubitta Bittiya Sanstha limited was the top gainer today, with its price surging by 10. 00 percent. NIC Sambriddhi Fund was the top loser as its price fell by 3.74 percent. At the end of the day, total market capitalization stood at Rs 3. 05 trillion.

Nepal Rastra Bank (NRB) has increased the daily limit in digital transactions that are done using mobile applications, QR scans, and internet banking. Issuing an Integrated Directive on the Payment System, the central bank has said that daily transactions up to Rs 300,000 can be done through mobile applications and QR scans. Earlier, the limit was Rs 200,000. Similarly, the central bank has also increased the limit of transactions through e-wallets. Now, daily Rs 200,000 can be transferred from the bank account to the wallet. Earlier, the limit was only up to Rs 100,000. As per the new provision, one can transfer Rs 1 million from the bank account to the wallet monthly. However, the daily limit for transferring money from one wallet to another has been fixed at Rs 50,000 from earlier Rs 100,000. The central bank has also allowed payment service providers to deposit money from abroad to a wallet operated in Nepal by entering an agreement with a licensed remittance company. As per the new provision, the service providers are allowed to charge a service fee of up to a maximum of Rs 10 per transaction when transferring electronic money (inter-bank fund transfer) through the mobile app or internet banking. Earlier, this fee ranges from Rs 10-30 depending on the amount. The central bank has also reduced the fee for withdrawing cash from an ATM of another bank. Earlier, while withdrawing money from an ATM of another bank, a fee of Rs 20 was charged per transaction. Now, only Rs 15 can be charged for such withdrawal. The central bank has barred remittance companies from doing domestic remittance business. Earlier, they were allowed to remit up to Rs 25000 within Nepal. The central bank, by issuing Integrated Directive on Payment System, stopped remittance companies from doing domestic transactions. According to NRB, earlier, there was no sufficient facility for payment in domestic financing transactions. Therefore, internal remitting was allowed through remittance companies. However, with new products and services being introduced in the payment system, internal remittance is not required now, said the central bank. Nepal Rastra Bank Executive Director Guru Prasad Paudel said remittance companies have been banned from doing domestic business. "Now there is no need for them to involve in domestic payments," he said.

After a long wait, Mahindra's flagship global SUV - the XUV700 has been launched in Nepal. Mahindra & Mahindra, India’s leading SUV manufacturer, launched the XUV700 in India last year, but the SUV's Nepal launch was delayed due to the import restrictions enforced by the Nepal government. Agni Incorporated Pvt. Ltd., the authorized distributor of Mahindra vehicles in Nepal launched the XUV700 on Monday amid a function held in Kathmandu. Outside of India, Nepal is the second market after South Africa where the XUV700 is being launched. In Nepal, the XUV700 is available with the gasoline engine, manual and automatic options in five and seven-seater capacities. The Mahindra XUV700 has been launched at an attractive price starting at Rs 7.4 million. The introductory price is applicable for one month from the launch with early delivery in February 2023. "The XUV700 sets a new benchmark in the premium SUV segment of Nepal. Premium features on board the SUV include a 10.25-inch touchscreen infotainment system and cluster, a six-way powered driver seat, and class-leading music system with 12 Sony speakers," states the press statement issued by Agni Incorporated. According to the company, the latest Mahindra SUV comes up with a panoramic sunroof and dual-zone climate control. Mahindra has also achieved a major milestone with the 5-star safety rating by GNCAP for adult protection and the SUV also became the first made-in-India and owned brand to offer Autonomous Emergency Braking (AEB) as a safety option. Agni Incorporated has introduced three variants of the XUV700—AX3, AX5, and AX7—currently for the Nepali market. The SUV has a 2.0mStallion Turbo-petrol engine that delivers 147 kW power and 380 Nm of torque. It is coupled with a smooth-shifting 6-speed manual & automatic transmission system, offering an effortless and thrilling drive experience. The XUV700 offers best-in-class performance through multi-link suspension with a stabilizer bar and FSD (Frequency Selective Damping) technology. The XUV700 is also powered with a first-in-segment feature—‘Smart door handles’, prominent wheel haunches above the wheel arches, and LED Clear-view Headlamps. The company said that safety is one of the core pillars of the XUV700 as it comes up with 7 airbags. The SUV offers comprehensive Advanced Driving Assistance Systems (ADAS) in the AX7 variant. This includes Smart Pilot Assist, Adaptive Cruise Control, Automatic Emergency Braking, Lane Departure Warning, Lane Keep Assist, and Event Traffic Sign Recognition as standard. The automatic headlamps with High Beam Assist dynamically adjust the illumination of dark areas on the road, without blinding oncoming traffic. Safety is further taken care of by tire pressure monitoring systems, an additional reverse camera, an intelligent driver drowsiness detection system, and Stop and Go driving function as part of its adaptive cruise control. According to Agni Incorporated, the XUV700 will be offered from the Twin Peaks branded SUV showroom, which has been curated to provide Nepalese customers with a premium experience. Initially, the XUV700 will be offered from two Twin Peak-branded showrooms in Kathmandu. The Twin Peaks network will be expanded to five showrooms across Nepal by March 23. The new showroom has been designed to elevate the customer experience and bring in a new customer base for Mahindra. Pricing details (ex-showroom in Rs, in m)    AX3 Series