Manahari (Makawanpur): Finance Minister Dr Prakash Sharan Mahat has asserted that the country's economy is gradually improving. Encouraging investors to confidently make investments, he highlighted the decreasing bank interest rates.

Speaking at the first district convention of the Nepali Congress (NC) Makawanpur district committee, Minister Mahat, who also serves as the NC spokesperson, stated that the economy is in a favorable situation with declining bank interest rates, improved share market and real estate, increased tourism arrivals, and impressive growth in remittance inflow.

"Economic activities have eased as the bank interest rates have declined, the share market and real estate have improved, tourism arrivals are good, and remittance inflow has posted impressive growth. The country's economy is improving," Mahat emphasized. He attributed the present crisis to the impact of pouring a significant amount of loan investment into the share market and real estate during the COVID-19 pandemic when economic activities were restrained.

Mahat shared that banks and insurance companies have paid taxes to the government following the decision to bring them under the tax ambit. Recently, over Rs 12.8 billion in revenue was collected in the state coffers as per the government's direction to collect revenues gained from bargain purchase gains through the premium of further public offerings, mergers and acquisitions, and sale of auction shares.

Expressing the government's focus on result-oriented sectors, Minister Mahat mentioned that loans received by the government would be directed towards production and investment in sectors such as hydropower, technology-driven agriculture, tourism, and road network development.