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Stake holders and government have agreed that the mobile phone manufacturers will get 8 pc incentives at mobile phone exports in the new Mobile & Electronic Devices Manufacturing Policy 2026–33.

The policy was finalised in a high-level meeting chaired by Special Assistant to the Prime Minister, Haroon Akhtar Khan and participated by Federal Secretary for Industries and production Saif Anjum and CEO Engineering Development Board (EDB), Hammad Mansoor.

The policy will be forwarded to the Prime Minister, Shehbaz Sharif, for approval, and the meeting noted that there were 37 licensed mobile set manufacturers in the country to produce 40 mn mobile units annually.

Mr Khan announced that leading global companies, including Apple Inc. and Samsung Electronics, will be invited to establish manufacturing plants in Pakistan and the ministry has approached these global players.

Pakistan assembled 30.2 mn phone sets in 2025, but the maximum local consumption could reach to 40 mn sets per annum- therefore export incentives were essential to give boost to the industry.

It was noted that after the upcoming spectrum auction next month, the 4G coverage area in country will increase and the service is likely to improve, paving way for the sale of advanced and 5G compatible sets.

Mr Khan said that the Mobile & Electronics Policy 2026–33 is a milestone initiative for the country’s industrial sector, emphasising that it will significantly enhance exports and strengthen Pakistan’s manufacturing base.

The industry has welcomed the new policy highlighting that with fresh spectrum scheduled next month the demand for new and more advanced phones will increase -including the 5G compatible phonesets.

“The new policy comes at the right time as the telecos will take around 5-6 months to roll out the benefits of new spectrum obtained by them,” said Amir Allawala, senior member of the Pakistan Mobile Phone Manufacturers Association.

“At the same time we will be ready with new sets,” he added     

While, CEO Engineering Development Board (EDB) Hammad Mansoor has highlighted that there was huge market of re-export of refurbished mobile phones, and it has been  projected to generate annual revenues between $300 million and $400 million. 

The policy also recommends the establishment of a dedicated Mobile & Electronics Devices Cell within the EDB to ensure effective implementation and coordination.

It is expected that local production of mobile phone accessories too will take a boost after the policy is approved as currently importing any supportive items including hands-free , chargers , transfer cables etc is cheaper compared to manufacturing them.

Ambassador of Russia to Pakistan, Albert P. Khorev, has said that Moscow is currently prioritising contacts with Islamabad in the field of regional security and the fight against international terrorism, while enhancing coordination in multilateral forums.
The details of his interview with the TASS News Agency released by the Embassy of Russian Federation highlighted that the envoy said, “currently, we are prioritising contacts in the field of regional security and the fight against international terrorism.”
He added that cooperation between Pakistan and Russia were being strengthened primarily at the level of the United Nations and the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO), where both states are active participants.

He said that Russia acknowledges the constructive collaboration with Pakistani partners within the SCO to ensure regional security and combating terrorism and organised transnational crime.
Pakistan and Russia have in recent years sought to broaden cooperation in defence, energy and regional stability, with both sides emphasising the importance of coordinated efforts to address evolving security challenges.
The latest remarks underscore Moscow’s intent to deepen institutional and subnational engagement with Islamabad amid shifting regional dynamics.
The bilateral relations between the two countries have improved significantly in recent years and the advisor to the Prime MInister on Industries and Production Haroon Akhtar Khan has been vying to develop joint ventures with Russian companies to revive the Pakistan Steel Mills (PSM) and establishing ‘Insulin’ production plant in Pakistan.
The Russian envoy too mentioned it in his interview and said that in coming years, it is crucial to promote mutual trade between Russia and Pakistan.
“These projects include the revival of the Pakistan Still Mills, establishing rail connections between Russia and Pakistan, collaborating on hydropower, and creating joint ventures to produce medicines, including insulin,” Mr Khorev added.
However, he also stressed the need to develop reliable alternative payment mechanisms, and implement large-scale joint projects.
“Russia welcomes Pakistan’s interest in joining BRICS.
“One practical step toward integrating Pakistan into BRICS could be Islamabad’s accession to the New Development Bank, which finances infrastructure projects in developing countries,” he said.
The Russian envoy referred to the historic perspective that USSR had helped Pakistan establish the state-owned oil and gas company, Oil and Gas Development Company Limited (OGDCL), in the 1960s, and it assisted in discovering a number of oil and gas fields in Pakistan.
“Currently Pakistan is interested in cooperating with our country in oil exploration and production, Russia is ready to help Pakistan strengthen its energy sovereignty,” he said adding,”We already have positive experience in this area.”
Apart from these sectors the two countries were also paying special attention to strengthening ties in education, science, and culture.
He highlighted that to improve the people to people relations his country was actively working to promote the Russian language in Pakistan.
The ‘Russian Teachers Abroad’ is a federal project of his country in Pakistan in this regard and Mr Khorev added, “ We also facilitate the organisation of joint scientific conferences and cultural and sporting events.”
He noted that bilateral engagement is also expanding beyond federal governments, with growing interest in cooperation between cities and regions of the two countries.
According to the ambassador, Moscow and several Russian regions — including Moscow, Republic of Tatarstan and Primorsky Krai — have expressed interest in developing ties with Pakistan’s provinces of Punjab and Sindh.
He said such regional-level engagement holds promise for strengthening trade, economic interaction and people-to-people contacts.

The government is likely to receive between $300 and $ 700 million from the upcoming spectrum auction scheduled for March 10 and the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) has announced that no changes are likely to be made in the auction schedule.

The PTA is offering 597 megahertz (MHz) across several bands in the upcoming auction, and the three existing telecom operators have been mandated to obtain a minimum of 100 MHz.

“With the prescribed rate, even if 300 MHz is obtained by the telcos without any competitive bidding, the government will get $300 million,” PTA Director General Licensing, Aamir Shahzad explained.

“And if all the 597 MHz is sold at auction at a slightly competitive rate, $700m will be available for the government, but this scenario is less likely to happen,” he added.

Media was informed that the auction will be conducted using a multi-round electronic clock auction format, with the main allocation stage starting on March 10, and the 2600 MHz and 3500 MHz bands will be offered during the first round.

He added that after the auction process 5G service rollout will take between 3-6 months as installation of infrastructure is needed for fresh spectrum.

Meanwhile PTA Chairman Hafeez-ur-Rehman said that the auction will follow improved quality of service in both telephony and data speed.

“Around 50m new users have been added in the system during the last five years, but only 10MHz was increased in the 2021 spectrum auction,” Chairman of PTA said, adding, “Improved data service and enhanced coverage will also increase average revenue per user (ARPU).”

“We started with $0.7 and now ARPU has reached to $1.3, therefore it is likely to increase as more data is consumed by the subscribers,” the PTA chairman said, adding that he expects mobile broadband speeds to improve by around 25 per cent following the auction.”

He said that the government has offered many incentives to the telcos in the new spectrum auction, but obligations to improve the quality of service as well as coverage area have been increased.

“This will help the country to embrace further upgradations in the technology, like 6G service, not like 5G, where we have been delayed,” he said.

The government has eliminated the right-of-way fee that used to be around Rs36,000 per km annually; this move will encourage fiberisation projects.

The chairman also said that telecom operators have already placed orders for 5G equipment, while local manufacturing of 5G-enabled smartphones has commenced, with 500,000 to 600,000 units produced so far.

The other measures taken to facilitate the faster rollout of services after the auction include options for spectrum sharing, relaxation of certain regulatory terms, and incentives for network expansion. “Operators have been given one year to make necessary capital investments without upfront spectrum payments, allowing them to focus on improving service quality,” he added.

However, the operators will have to expand 5G coverage to additional cities beyond Islamabad, Karachi, Lahore, Peshawar and Quetta, while fibre-to-the-site (FTTS) ratios will increase from 20 to 35pc by 2035.

Besides, the minimum download speeds for 4G service have been increased from 4 megabits per second (Mbpc) to 20 Mbps in 2026-27 and to 50 Mbps by 2030-35.

For 5G, minimum download speeds will rise from 50 Mbps initially to 100 Mbps by 2030-35, with latency targets reduced to 35 milliseconds. Upload speeds are benchmarked at 20pc of download speeds across both technologies.

Chairman Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA), Hafeez Ur Rehman assured that the federal government would ensure the auction of 5G spectrum in Gilgit-Baltistan (GB) and Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) within a few months after the 5G spectrum auction in the rest of country.

Gilgit-Baltistan Caretaker Minister for Information Technology, Ghulam Abbas, held a meeting with Chairman Pakistan Telecommunication Authority, Hafeez Ur Rehman, in Islamabad on Thursday to discuss the 5G spectrum auction in GB and key connectivity issues in the region.

The caretaker minister stressed that like other parts of Pakistan, Gilgit-Baltistan also requires access to high-speed internet through the new spectrum auction to meet the growing demands of digital connectivity, e-governance, online education, telemedicine, and IT-based business activities.
Ghulam Abbas highlighted that improved internet services are essential for socio-economic development in GB, particularly for youth, students, entrepreneurs, and the tourism sector.
He said the region has immense potential in the IT and digital services domain, but limited bandwidth and connectivity challenges have hindered progress.
The PTA chairman informed the minister that the process for auction of additional spectrum has already been initiated.
PTA has written letters to the GB Council as well as the AJK council and other relevant stakeholders including the ministry of IT & Telecom to facilitate the necessary groundwork for the spectrum auction framework in those areas.
He added due to technical testing, regulatory review, and spectrum-related arrangements, the process of spectrum auction Gilgit-Baltistan and AJK requires additional time.
”There will be a separate auction for those areas and our preference as regulator is that spectrum should be given free of cost in GB and AJK so that the operators may utilise capital expenditure on technical side,” Mr Rehman said.
Chairman PTA assured that the federal government would ensure the auction of 5G spectrum in Gilgit-Baltistan and Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) within a few months after the 5G spectrum auction in rest of the country.
Director General licensing PTA, Amir Shahzad suggested that like AJK government the government of GB too should follow the policy directives of Pakistan by abolishing the Right of Way charges.
The government of Pakistan has directed all its departments and ministries to give free access to IT and telecom fibre networks.
The AJK government has recently issued a notification accelerating the development of IT infrastructure and fiberisation across the region.
Under the new measures, Right of Way (RoW) charges for IT-related infrastructure have been waived. The waiver applies to multiple departments, including Communication & Works, Local Government (Municipal Authorities), Physical Planning & Housing, Energy & Water Resources, Board of Revenue (for government/Khalsa lands), and the Forest Department. In addition, the AJK government has introduced a one-window facility for the grant of NOC for BTS (telecom towers) installation and fiber deployment.
Applications will now be processed through the office of the concerned Deputy Commissioner with a maximum time frame of 15 days for issuance of the NOC.
If departments fail to submit objections within the stipulated time, it will be treated as deemed approval. Restoration costs for damaged infrastructure will be determined under the Market Rate System and paid in advance by telecom operators before commencement of work.
The decision is expected to significantly reduce procedural delays and financial barriers for telecom operators, encouraging rapid expansion of digital connectivity and broadband infrastructure across Azad Jammu & Kashmir.
The GB caretaker IT minister too has asked the GB law department to appraise him over the policy of the GB government in this regard.
Mr Abbas said that he favoured the idea of abolishing ROW for IT and telecom infrastructure as the move will help faster prevalence of internet in the region.

Mashreq, one of the leading financial institutions in the MENA region, has delivered exceptional results for the full year 2025, marked by transformational international expansion, record loan and deposit growth, and a strategic repositioning as the connector bank for emerging trade corridors spanning Asia, the Middle East, Europe and North America.

Operating income reached AED 12.6 billion, while net profit before tax totaled AED 8.3 billion, reflecting resilient performance and disciplined execution in a softer rate and higher-tax environment.

Performance in 2025 was driven by strong balance-sheet expansion, with customer loans growing 32% year-on-year, customer deposits increasing 27%, and total assets rising 25% to AED 335 billion, as Mashreq scaled its digital-first operating model and captured increased trade and capital flows across key global corridors.

Mashreq maintained strong efficiency, with a cost-to-income ratio of 31%, supported by a structurally strong funding profile underpinned by a CASA ratio of 62%. Asset quality remained industry-leading, with a non-performing loan ratio of 1.0% and a coverage ratio of 263%, underpinned by strong portfolio performance and sustained credit discipline across geographies.

The year also marked a milestone in Mashreq’s institutional standing, with its designation as a Domestic Systemically Important Bank (D-SIB) by the Central Bank of the UAE, reflecting the Bank’s scale, systemic relevance and robust risk governance as it continues to expand its global footprint.

H.E. Abdul Aziz Al Ghurair, Chairman, Mashreq said, “As we reflect on 2025, Mashreq’s progress is defined by resilience, disciplined growth, and a clear commitment to our purpose as a trusted enabler of financial advancement across borders. In a year that tested global markets and accelerated the shift toward a digital-first economy, Mashreq delivered a strong performance, achieving a net profit before tax of AED 8.3 billion.

This outcome reflects the strength of our strategy, the trust of our clients, and the enduring relevance of our role in the UAE’s evolving financial landscape. Being recognised as a Domestic Systemically Important Bank by the Central Bank of the UAE is not only an honor but also a responsibility, one that underscores our position as a foundational pillar in the country’s continued rise as a regional and global financial hub.”

Ahmed Abdelaal, Group Chief Executive Officer, Mashreq said, “2025 marked another pivotal year in Mashreq’s journey as a digitally advanced, globally connected bank serving clients across some of the world’s most dynamic trade and investment corridors. In a year of continued transformation and growth, we delivered operating income of AED 12.6 billion, expanded our total assets by 25% to AED 335 billion, and achieved a return on equity of 20%, all while maintaining a cost-to-income ratio of 31%, among the best in the industry.