Pakistan witnessed a significant surge in mobile phone imports during the fiscal year 2023-24. The country imported phones worth $1.898 billion, a staggering 233% increase compared to the previous year. This upward trend held true on a monthly basis as well, with June 2024 imports reaching $278.574 million, reflecting a 76.77% jump from May 2024.
While local manufacturing of mobile phones has seen a slight dip recently, it continues to contribute to meeting the national demand. In the first five months of 2024, local plants produced 13.08 million handsets, with smartphones leading the pack at 8.1 million units compared to 4.98 million 2G phones.
This trend aligns with data from PTA, indicating a shift towards smartphones. Currently, smartphones account for 61% of devices on Pakistani networks, with 2G phones holding the remaining 39% share.
Moving forward, it will be interesting to observe whether the recent surge in mobile phone imports continues and how it impacts local manufacturing efforts in Pakistan.
