Nepal's Gross Domestic Product (GDP) is estimated to have grown by 3.51 percent in the third quarter of the current fiscal year, according to preliminary figures.

The National Statistics Office released it's national accounts estimates on Monday, showing the 3.51 percent growth for the third quarter. The office clarified that the figure does not account for seasonal effects.  The growth estimate is based on a comparison with the corresponding period of the previous fiscal year 2081/82 at basic prices, reflecting improvements across various sectors of the economy.

According to the office, the growth was driven mainly by improvements in electricity generation and distribution, deposit collection and credit flow, non-life insurance premium collection, and trade services. However, a decline in construction material imports, a drop in paddy production, and reduced domestic output of certain goods kept overall growth modest.

Of the 18 industrial classifications that make up the economy, 16 sectors recorded positive growth in gross value addition during the review period, the office said. The highest growth was recorded in the electricity, gas, steam and air conditioning supply sector, which expanded by 24.88 percent.

This was followed by growth of 10.27 percent in financial and insurance activities, 7.83 percent in transportation and storage, and 5.25 percent in wholesale and retail trade, according to the preliminary estimates. Agriculture, forestry and fishing the largest sector in the economy posted modest positive growth of 1.58 percent, as a decline in paddy production was offset by slight improvements in livestock farming and vegetable production.

Meanwhile, the public administration and defence sector contracted by 1.59 percent, and industrial production shrank by 0.54 percent. Separately, based on seasonally adjusted data calculated using the International Monetary Fund (IMF) methodology, the economy is estimated to have grown by just 0.58 percent in the third quarter compared to the second quarter (mid-October to mid-January) of the current fiscal year.