The Pakistani start-ups raised approximately US $ 375 million last year, nearly doubling their total investment over six years. Foreign investors continue to flood into Pakistani companies following the pandemic. According to startup investment advisory platform Alpha Beta Core, Pakistani startups are leading the way in logistics finance at 32%, followed by e-commerce at 27%, fintech at 25%, and health tech at 4%.
The world’s largest manufacturer of mobile phones, Samsung, has finally started production in Pakistan. The government and industry hope that this will result in a reduction in imports in the months to come. The development was revealed during the company’s top managers meeting with senators on Tuesday. The officials visited the production site to understand the challenges facing the cellphone manufacturing industry in Pakistan.
Abdul Razak Dawood, Advisor to the PM on Commerce and Investment, claims Pakistan produced 18.87 million mobile phones in its first 10 months of 2021. The “Make in Pakistan” philosophy of MOC is showing results. Xiaomi, the Beijing-based smartphone manufacturer, announced earlier this month that it will manufacture smartphones in Pakistan with a local distributor.
Pakistan sports exports increased by 20.73% in the first four months of this fiscal year compared to the same period last year. Sporting equipment exports in FY 2021-22 reached $105.120 million, according to data released by Pakistan’s Bureau of Statistics. During the same period in FY 2020-21, Pakistan exported sports goods worth $87.070 million.
The international media reported that Pakistan has surpassed China in denim apparel exports to the United States (US). Pakistan’s cotton-made clothing exports to the US reached $276 million from January to September 2021. The amount exceeded China’s $274.63 million worth of exports. Comparatively, Pakistan exported $168.85 million to the US last year against $238.75 million to China during the same period.
Lahore-based B2B social commerce platform, Zarya, has raised $1.7 million in a pre-seed round. The pre-seed round was led by Raed Ventures including Fatima Gobi Ventures, Class 5 Global, and Global Founders Capital. The seed round was also joined by Taager, an Egyptian social commerce startup that raised $6.4 million earlier this year.
The Prime Minister’s advisor on Investment and Commerce Abdul Razak Dawood disclosed on Thursday that Jordan had granted permission for three Pakistani slaughterhouses to export meat to the Middle Eastern nation. In addition, he urged exporters to take advantage of this non-traditional meat market. To diversify exports from Pakistan, he advised exporters to explore other sectors, such as potatoes, mango, kinnows, and onions.
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The early nine months of 2021 have seen Pakistani startups attract investors from around the world, raising a record amount in direct and advanced investments of $305 million. A typical deal size increased fivefold in 2021 to $5.9 million compared to $1.2 million in 2020, with greater foreign participation. A total of 52 startups raised $305 million, including ventures in health, logistics, e-commerce, fintech, and e-commerce.
Information Minister Fawad Chaudhry congratulated the Ministry of Science and Technology on the inauguration of Pakistan’s first hemp (Bhang) farm. The farm was established to increase the production of industrial hemp to tap into the multi-billion dollar cannabidiol market. The federal cabinet granted the first medical and industrial license for hemp leaves in Sept last year.