KATHMANDU: The carpet industry which has been severely impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic and the subsequent lockdown and prohibitory orders has witnessed a decline of 80 percent.
Carpet manufacturers have said that not only has their domestic business been affected but exports too have declined notably as the international market too is reeling under the effect of the coronavirus.
Nepali carpets are exported to more than 50 countries including the USA, Germany, UK, Italy, France, Canada, Belgium and Australia. Of the total exports that the country makes, about 70 percent of the carpets are exported to the United States.
However, Nepali traders have not been able to export carpets to the US as the markets there too are closed as the pandemic continues to spread.
Owing to the plummeting demand of carpets, almost 70 percent of the carpet industry in Nepal is utilizing only 30 percent of their production capacity.
With the decline in production, more than 300,000 workers in the industry, including 700 industrialists and more than 150 exporters, have been badly affected.
Carpet is one of the major export items of the country and plays a crucial role in substituting imports.