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According to recent statistics, mobile phone imports across the country have seen a 6.2% growth this year. These imports have ended up costing the national exchequer $260.412 million this year whereas the figure was $245.208 million last fiscal year. These figures were released by the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics for the 4 months span from July to October.
Around $61.189 million worth of mobile phone imports were made in October alone this year, which is a staggering 11% growth from last year. Telecom imports, however, saw a general decline of 0.35%. The telecom apparatus imports amounted to $188.129 million in costs which is down 8.19% from last year. If we go on a month vs month comparison, telecom imports went up in October with an approximate growth of 16% and the cost figure standing at $58.5 million. Total imports cost $448.541 million during this fiscal period whereas last year they were $450.113 million, almost a million dollar decline.
If we analyze the 6.2% growth in mobile phone imports, the mobile phone market segment is seeing a rise in demand whereas telecom services may see an even greater decline. It could be that more and more people in Pakistan are now inclined towards using smartphones than feature phones, which are naturally more expensive and hence the higher costs of imports.
What are your thoughts on the increase in mobile phone imports?
