Pakistan imported $724.85 million worth of mobile phones during the July-November period of FY2020-21, according to data released by the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS). Compared to last year’s mobile phone import value of $498.463 million during the same period, this current figure represents a surge of 45.26 percent.
The overall telecom imports into the country during the July-November period increased by 31.32 percent, going up from $682.762 million in 2019-20 to $896.597 million during the current financial year (FY21).
On a year-on-year basis, the import figures of mobile phones by Pakistan increased by 50.04 percent during November 2020, compared to the imports in the same month of last year.
The mobile phone imports during November 2020 were recorded at $166.124 million against the imports of $110.723 million during November 2019, the PBS data revealed.
On a month-on-month basis, the mobile phone imports increased by 155.30 percent in November 2020, compared to the imports of $65.069 million in October 2020.
On a year-on-year basis, the overall telecom imports into Pakistan increased by 38.81 percent during November 2020, compared to the imports in November last year.
The telecom imports during November 2020 were recorded at $204.953 million against the imports of $147.648 million during November 2019.
On a month-on-month basis, the overall telecom imports increased by 102.14 percent in November 2020, compared to the imports of $101.390 million in October 2020. Other apparatus imports during July-November decreased by 6.39 percent by going down from $184.596 million in 2019-20 to $172.512 million during the current fiscal year.
Revenue collected from the import of mobile phones has also increased tremendously, with Pakistan Customs collecting Rs54 billion in the last year alone through the Device Identification, Registration and Blocking System (DIRBs).
