China being Pakistan’s favorite country, friend and now a favorite investor after the opening of the economic corridor of Pakistan. I’m actually talking about the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) project that China has started in Pakistan. Pakistan has always knocked the Chinese doors for any sorts of help and China being the best friend is always there to help. China has expressed the desire to invest $1 billion in initial phase in various sectors, including automotive, textiles, agriculture related industries, and IT and telecom industries under the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC).
China has acknowledged the significance of Pakistan’s strategic location and the immense investment opportunities in the country. Chinese also highlighted the potential role of the BoI in contributing to the economic and social development of Pakistan and further exploring the avenues of collaboration in technological innovation and up-gradation, job creation, e-commerce and development of human resource capabilities through industrial cooperation between both the countries.
Pakistani e-commerce describes how widely e-commerce is used, the primary sectors that sell through e-commerce, and how much product/service in each sector is sold through e-commerce versus brick-and-mortar retail. Includes what a company needs to know to take advantages of e-commerce in the local market and reputable, prominent B2B websites.
Pakistan is still largely a cash-based, informal economy. The majority of transactions are conducted in cash, except for those that are very large and require a bank draft or pay order. Several studies suggest that up to 60 percent of the economy is informal, with the majority of local companies, particularly SMEs, undocumented and outside the tax net.
A number of government departments have started to offer services via the internet. In the private sector, four Pakistani airlines now offer e-ticketing and almost all local banks offer online banking services. Pakistan has one of the highest rates of smartphone penetration in South Asia at nearly 34 percent, and mobile banking is an area with some promise.
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The current market trends in Pakistan are the e-commerce sector has focused mainly on consumer products. Online customers in Pakistan search for and purchase consumer electronics and mobile phones, employment queries, online education and counseling, sale/purchase and information gathering about vehicles, computers and accessories, financial services, laptops and notebooks, motor vehicles by brand, test preparation and tutoring, and apparel and accessories. Consumer choices and the records they generate also produce a trove of data.
Popular e-commerce websites in Pakistan is OLX, Daraz.pk, Pakwheels, Zameen.com, Kaymu. China can definitely invest in such companies in Pakistan. China claims to invest in the e-commerce sectors of Pakistan, all these being one of those. Buying and selling textile, phones, makeup, clothing brands and everything else. Pakistan has progressed in the e-commerce industry of mobile payments with the introduction of Easypaisa, JazzCash, and UPaisa which are mobile banks — still available today, none of them has high market penetration. This, coupled with the fact that only 24 percent of the country’s population has a bank account, vastly raises the cost of doing business for e-commerce companies. China can invest in these. With the introduction of 3G and 4G services in Pakistan, China has greater opportunities to invest in the mobile e-commerce in Pakistan. With the emergence of App-based taxi services, China can definitely invest in the new local taxi app’s which Pakistan is going to offer in the near future. This will be a major getaway for Pakistan. E-commerce entrepreneurs enjoy heavy traffic on Pakistani holidays and event season such as Eid-ul-Fitr (June), Eid-ul-Azha (September), Black Friday, New Year and Wedding Season (October through April). Major sporting events can also drive purchases of related equipment and apparel which can benefit both China and Pakistan through sales. Apart from all these Chinese investors can also invest in our very own e-commerce based company Timesaco, which serves like Uber and Careem in Pakistan. As it is our own local business, Chinese investment would make it better and bigger for Pakistan. Its taxi service would definitely leave Uber and Careem behind with the Chinese brain. THIS IS A TOP OF THE NOTCH SERVICE FOR CHINESE INVESTMENT.
China tends to find big investment opportunities in Pakistan giving a sheer hope to all the Pakistani entrepreneurs that one day Pakistan’s e-commerce industry will flourish as well. Long live Pakistan-China Friendship!
[box type=”note” align=”” class=”” width=””]The author is a Manager in Timesaco[/box]