Pakistan’s mobile industry witnessed a massive shift in 2025. Local mobile assembly and manufacturing plants produced a staggering 30.21 million mobile handsets during the calendar year (January-December 2025). In contrast, commercial imports for the same period stood at just 2.37 million units. This data, released officially this week, highlights the dominance of "Made in Pakistan" devices over imported alternatives. Local Mobile Assembly: Smartphones Lead Local Production The local industry isn't just assembling basic phones. Out of the 30.21 million units produced, 15.64 million were smartphones. Meanwhile, 2G phones accounted for 14.57 million units. This aligns with broader network trends. According to Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) data, 71% of mobile devices on the Pakistan network are now smartphones. Only 29% remain on 2G technology. December 2025 alone saw significant activity. Plants manufactured 2.61 million handsets in the final month of the year. Conversely, commercial imports for December were limited to just 0.33 million. Import Bills Surge in Fiscal Year 2025-26 While local volume is high, the cost of imports has also risen sharply. During the first five months of the current fiscal year (July-November 2025-26), Pakistan imported mobile phones worth $801.139 million. This represents a growth of 40.51% compared to $570.184 million during the same period last year. In PKR terms, imports reached Rs. 226.133 billion, marking a 42.65% increase from Rs. 158.518 billion previously. However, month-on-month trends show fluctuation. November 2025 imports totalled $156.565 million, an 8.30% increase from October. Yet, on a year-on-year basis, November imports witnessed a negative growth of 4.81% compared to November 2024. Historical Context: A Look at FY 2024-25 The current surge follows a period of decline. In the last fiscal year (2024-25), mobile phone imports fell to $1.494 billion. This was a 21.31% drop from $1.898 billion in 2023-24. Overall telecom imports also shrank during that period. The total stood at $2.099 billion for FY 2024-25, reflecting a negative growth of 11.30% compared to the previous year.