Economic Reporter :
Mobile handset import through legal channel for the first time crossed three crore pieces in 2016, thanks to rapidly growing demand for smartphones, insiders said.
In 2016, smartphone import increased by 46 per cent to 82 lakh pieces from that of 56.27 lakh pieces in the previous year data available with the Bangladesh Mobile Phone Importers Association (BMPIA) showed.
Total value of the 3.10 crore imported handsets, which included feature phones and smartphones, was Tk 8,000 crore, of which Tk 6,500 crore was the cost of smartphones, said Ruhul Alam Al Mahbub, BMPIA president.
He said that the smartphone imports rose sharply in 2016 because of expansion of internet use after the introduction of 3G service.
