Pakistan’s Mobile Phone Imports Rise 26.6% to $1.89 Billion in FY2025-26

Pakistan imported mobile phones worth $1.889 billion during fiscal year 2025-26, marking an increase of 26.55% compared with approximately $1.49 billion in the previous fiscal year, according to official data.

In rupee terms, mobile phone imports rose to Rs 530.492 billion, up 27.24% from Rs 416.937 billion recorded during the corresponding period a year earlier.

The increase reflects a recovery in commercial handset imports after a decline during fiscal year 2024-25, when the country imported mobile phones worth around $1.494 billion, down more than 21% from $1.898 billion in FY2023-24.

Mobile phone imports also increased during the final month of the fiscal year. Imports reached $141.556 million in June 2026, rising 11.88% from $126.527 million in May.

On a year-on-year basis, June imports were 2.62% higher than the $137.941 million recorded in June 2025.

Overall telecom imports, which include mobile phones and other equipment, climbed to $2.690 billion during FY2025-26. This represented growth of 27.97% from $2.102 billion in the previous fiscal year.

The increase in imports came despite the continued expansion of local handset manufacturing and assembly.

Pakistan’s local manufacturing and assembly plants produced 11.17 million mobile handsets during the first five months of 2026, compared with 1.91 million units imported commercially during the same period.

Of the locally assembled devices, 4.92 million were smartphones, while 6.25 million were 2G feature phones.

Local plants also assembled 101,005 5G-enabled smartphones in May 2026, indicating growing domestic production of devices compatible with next-generation mobile networks.

During the full calendar year 2025, local manufacturers assembled 30.21 million mobile handsets, while commercially imported devices stood at 2.37 million.

Pakistan Telecommunication Authority data shows that smartphones now account for 72.3% of devices operating on mobile networks, while 2G phones represent the remaining 27.7%.

The figures suggest that local assembly continues to dominate the market in terms of unit volumes, while commercial imports remain substantial in value, particularly for higher-priced smartphones, components, and devices not produced locally.

The rise in mobile phone and telecom imports may also reflect stronger demand for smartphones ahead of wider 5G adoption, although the pace of future growth will depend on exchange rates, taxes, consumer purchasing power, and the availability of locally assembled models.

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