KATHMANDU, Sept. 25 (Xinhua) -- Nepal's import of electric cars surged by over 78 percent during the first two months of the current 2024-25 fiscal year starting in mid-July, as such vehicles have become popular in the South Asian country, customs data showed.
A total of 1,602 electric cars had been shipped into Nepal by mid-September, a sharp rise from 898 over the same period of 2023-24, and 1,125 of them were from China, according to the figures from the Department of Customs.
Nepal has been witnessing a rapid rise in the use of electric vehicles in the last few years, and a total of 11,701 electric cars were imported in 2023-24, with 8,065 from China, the agency data showed.
Electric vehicles dominated Nepal's largest auto show held in Kathmandu in late August and early September, and the majority of vehicles booked were electric ones, according to NADA Automobiles Association of Nepal, the organizer of the auto show.
"Lately there has been a surge in the import of electric cars through Rasuwagadhi border crossing from China," said Rabindra Prasad Pyakurel, information officer at the Rasuwa Customs Office.
"Auto distributors said they are importing the electric vehicles as per the bookings they received during the recent auto expo," he told Xinhua. ■
