Rs158 Billion Spent on Importing Mobile Phones to Pakistan in the Last Five Months

According to data from the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS), Pakistan imported mobile phones worth $570.167 million during the first half of the current fiscal year (July – November 2024-25). This marks a decline of 7.52% compared to the $616.518 million worth of imports during the same period last fiscal year.

With a decline of 10.60% from Rs177.311 billion in the same time the previous year, imports came to Rs158.514 billion in rupee terms.

From $174.332 million in October 2024 to $149.375 million in November 2024, mobile phone imports fell 14.32% month-on-month (MoM).

Imports increased from $146.549 million in November 2023 to $146.549 million in December 2023, a 1.93 percent YoY growth.

Decline in Telecom Imports

From July to November of 2024, total telecom imports (including mobile phones) were $794.363 million, down slightly (less than 1% from $794.377 million in the previous fiscal year).

After reaching $235.287 million in October 2024, telecom imports dropped to $184.907 million in November, a decline of 21.41% month-over-month. Compared to November 2023, when they were $187.544 million, telecom imports fell 1.41 percent year over year.

Growth in Local Manufacturing

In the meanwhile, local manufacturing grew. In the first nine months of 2024, from January to September, domestic manufacturing and assembly factories produced 22.59 million mobile devices, which was much higher than the 1.17 million units imported for commercial use during the same time. Domestic production of mobile phones reached 2.15 million in September, outpacing commercial imports of only 0.07 million.

Just 8.73 million of the 22.59 million cell phones made in the country were 2G devices, while 13.86 million were smartphones.

According to statistics provided by the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA), 46% of mobile devices connected to Pakistani networks are 2G devices, while 64% are smartphones.

Pakistan spent $1.898 billion on mobile phones in FY23-24, up from $570.071 million in FY22-23. The most recent trends show that people are relying more on local production as import numbers in the telecom industry change.