KARACHI: The recent historic cuts in prices of multiple car models were a “marketing stunt” by automakers in Pakistan, experts and dealers said on Friday, attributing it to slow demand in the South Asian country.
Lucky Motor Company, which assembles KIA cars in Pakistan, reduced the price of KIA Stonic by as much as Rs1,500,000, followed by a cut in Swift price by up to Rs710,000.
The rate cuts by Kia and Pak Suzuki Motors came on the heels of a reduction in prices of Toyota Yaris by Rs133,000 and Honda City by Rs140,000 respectively in March.
While KIA and Pak Suzuki Motors have said they received an “overwhelming” to the price drops, experts believe it to be a marketing stunt to help struggling models fare better in the Pakistani market.
“They (LMC) played a game because they had about 300-350 (KIA Stonic) cars lying dead which were not sold,” Hajji Muhammad Shahzad, chairman of All Pakistan Motor Dealers Association (APMDA), told Arab News.
“They threw [them] in the market and stopped the booking.”
Shahzad said the price cut by the LMC generated interest among investors who booked the car instead of “genuine buyers,” noting that the car would come with around Rs500,000 own money as well.
Mashood Ali Khan, an auto industry expert, believed that price plays a key role in the auto sector, because of the current economic situation and prevailing high inflation. He said the LMC wanted to “test” the market.
“The people who have booked, maybe I am wrong, but I think they are mostly the investors,” Khan told Arab News. “It could not reach the end consumers as it was opened for two days.”
Reached for comment, LMC Chief Executive Officer Muhammad Faisal said they corrected the KIA Stonic price to help it compete with sedan cars available in Pakistan and “took the hit” themselves, though the automaker didn’t anticipate the overwhelming response to the price cut.
“We tried to bring it to the price point at which competing sedans are available,” Faisal told Arab News. “When we brought it to this price point, the response from the market was unbelievable and better than our expectations.”
Though a Pak Suzuki Motor official did not respond to Arab News query about the cut in Swift price, the company said in a circular it had received an “overwhelming” response and was now introducing “stylish combinations” of a two-tone exterior.
Shahzad, however, said Swift did not get a “good response” despite the price cut.
A decrease in car prices was already expected as the Pakistani government notified in March it would charge 25 percent sales tax on locally assembled cars, if their invoice price exceeded Rs4 million.
Car sales declined in Pakistan by 38 percent during nine months of the current fiscal year, which began on July 1, amid a declining trend in auto financing, historic high interest rate, soaring prices and shrinking purchasing power of consumers, according to a research report by the Karachi-based Darson Securities.
Asked about the delivery of vehicles to customers, LMC CEO Faisal said the company had not delivered the newly booked Stonic cars and was still filtering buyers.
“We have just made a commitment that we will deliver it now,” he told Arab News. “We have ensured that we will book one car per CNIC (computerized national identity card), we are filtering the investors, we are giving preference to genuine customers, so that we can deliver it soon.”
Faisal said the automaker was evaluating its stock position after the current response and it would resume bookings, however, the company would be giving delivery commitments for October onwards.
Car prices have increased in Pakistan by around 40 percent in the last two years and the costs of vehicles remain high despite the recent cuts, according to car dealers.
Khan, the auto sector expert, called for localization of auto parts and a 10-year policy to promote auto industrialization to make affordable cars in Pakistan.
Historic cuts in Pakistan car prices a ‘marketing stunt’ amid slow demand — experts
https://arab.news/btfuk
Historic cuts in Pakistan car prices a ‘marketing stunt’ amid slow demand — experts
- Lucky Motor Company, which assembles KIA cars in Pakistan, and Pak Suzuki Motors recently reduced Stonic, Swift prices by up to Rs1.5 million
- Experts say the automakers wanted to “test” the market through the stunt and the benefit would not end customers as it was opened for few days
Pakistan court acquits ex-PM Khan, aide in state secrets case
- The case centered around an alleged diplomatic cable that Khan used to claim his ouster in 2022 was part of ‘foreign conspiracy’
- A two-member bench of the Islamabad High Court, Chief Justice Aamer Farooq, acquitted Khan and Shah Mahmood Qureshi in the case
KARACHI: The Islamabad High Court (IHC) on Monday acquitted former prime minister Imran Khan and his close aide, Shah Mehmood Qureshi, in a case relating to the leaking of state secrets, Khan’s lawyer and his party said.
Khan and Qureshi were serving 10 years in prison on charges of making public a classified cable sent to Islamabad by Pakistan’s ambassador in Washington in 2022, in what is commonly known as the cipher case.
Khan has said the cable was proof of a conspiracy by the Pakistan military and the US to topple his government in 2022 after he visited Moscow just before Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Washington and Pakistan’s military deny that accusation.
Khan and Qureshi, who were convicted in the case in January this year, had appealed the decision in the Islamabad High Court, which set aside their convictions on Monday.
“Thank God, the sentence is overturned,” Naeem Panjutha, a member of for legal team of Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party, said on X.
Sayed Zulfikar Bukhari, a PTI member and a close Khan aide, also confirmed the development on X. “Conviction in Cypher Case set aside by IHC, appeals of IK [Imran Khan] and SMQ [Shah Mehmood Qureshi] allowed,” he said.
But Khan will remain in prison despite the acquittal, having also been convicted in another case relating to his marriage to his third wife, Bushra Khan, contravening Islamic traditions.
Khan, who was ousted in a parliamentary no-trust vote in April, has been in jail since last August after being convicted in multiple cases. Arguably Pakistan’s most popular politician, Khan says all cases against him are politically motivated to keep him out of politics.
In northern Sindh, residents struggle to adopt as Pakistan sizzles under heat wave
- Some laborers migrate to cooler areas, other reduce working hours as temperature in Jacobabad district in Sindh soars to over 50 degrees Celsius
- Health experts and doctors advise people to stay indoors, drink plenty of juices and water as South Asia experiences severe heat wave
JACOBABAD/LARKANA: Raheem Bakhsh, a brick kiln worker in Pakistan’s Jacobabad district, used to work eight hours previously. This year, however, Bakhsh is forced to take a pay cut and reduce his working hours to five or six, as the temperature in Jacobabad district crossed 50° Celsius last week while Pakistan remains in the throes of a severe heat wave.
Throughout May 2024, the temperatures in the northern districts of Pakistan’s southern Sindh province remained 6-8°C higher than their monthly average. Pakistan’s National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) last week warned the heat waves would persist across parts of Sindh and Punjab in June, with temperatures likely to remain above 48 degrees Celsius.
Increased exposure to heat, and more heat waves, have been identified as one of the key impacts of climate change in Pakistan, with people experiencing extreme heat and seeing some of the highest temperatures in the world in recent years. The South Asian country of more than 241 million, one of the ten most vulnerable nations to climate change impacts, has also witnessed untimely downpours, flash floods and droughts in recent years.
Jacobabad and other northern districts of Sindh are known for their sweltering temperatures every summer. This year around, as the weather gets warmer and harsher, residents of the district are making some necessary changes to their daily routine.
Bakhsh, who has been laboring as a brick kiln worker for the past 40-45 years, told Arab News last year was very hot but this year “is even hotter.”
“The extreme heat has slowed down our work,” he lamented. “Previously we worked for eight hours, but now we work for only five to six hours. The hot weather is causing us losses every day. Our health is also deteriorating as we become weaker with each passing day. We are laborers, where will we go?“
The same is the case for Mahjabeen Shabbir Abro, a social worker for a non-governmental organization (NGO) in Jacobabad. As the mercury soars in the district, Abro has increased her water intake and rescheduled her job timings to avoid the peak sun hours.
Previously, she used to work from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. The intense heat has forced her to change her timings from 07:00 a.m. To 11:00 p.m.
“Previously as a field-based worker, we didn’t feel the need for water that much nor did we feel unconscious,” Abro told Arab News. “However, this heat is making us feel unconscious and we have to use ORS [Oral Rehydration Solution] as much as possible. If we used to have just one sachet of ORS, we now take two to three ORS sachets per day.”
Abdul Riaz, a 20-year-old laborer, said he would spend the upcoming Eid-Al-Adha festival in Balochistan’s cooler pastures searching for work without his family, and away from his one-year-old son.
“Here in Jacobabad, it is too hot, and there is too much joblessness,” Riaz said. “I am going to Balochistan for work in grape farming. I will spend four to five months there so that I can earn and send money back home to my children,” he added.
According to him, Ibrahimzai area in Balochistan is a cooler place where he can find work at grape gardens.
“I often go there in different seasons to work in grape gardens,” Riaz said.
Dr. Ram Chand, the Sindh government’s focal person for heat stroke response centers in Jacobabad, noted that while the temperature had soared past 50 degrees Celsius in May, no deaths from heat stroke had taken place. While the district headquarters civil hospital has increased its heat stroke response centers from one last year to four this year, people were taking more precautions against the heat wave, he said.
“Due to mass awareness, people are taking necessary precautions, such as drinking more liquids, juices, ORS, and water,” Chand told Arab News. “And we’ve seen no heat stroke deaths this year or last year.”
But while that may be a silver lining for Chand, it isn’t necessarily for others. Khadim Hussain, a farmer at Mohenjo Daro in the neighboring Larkana district in Dhandh village, says the harsh climate won’t let him plant seeds.
“In the past, we used to sow rice seeds in June,” Hussain told Arab News. “Now it is so hot, with hot winds blowing, that if we start sowing seeds now, they will burn out, and we would face a huge loss.”
Gunmen kill police officer assigned to protect polio workers in Pakistan’s northwest
- The gunmen fired at a team working in the Wargari area of Lakki Marwat district, said police official Sajid Khan
- At least 11 police have died this year while on security duty for vaccination campaigns in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa
PESHAWAR: Gunmen fatally shot a police officer assigned to protect polio workers in Pakistan’s northwest, an official said Monday.
At least 11 police have died this year while on security duty for vaccination campaigns in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province.
The gunmen fired at a team working in the Wargari area of Lakki Marwat district, said police official Sajid Khan. One of the attackers also died, while the remaining assailants fled.
No one immediately claimed responsibility for the assault.
Anti-polio campaigns in Pakistan are regularly marred by violence. Militants target vaccination teams and police assigned to protect them, falsely claiming that the campaigns are a Western conspiracy to sterilize children.
A five-day anti-polio campaign started Monday in nine high-risk districts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. Health workers are tasked with administering vaccines to some 3.28 million children under age 5. More than 26,000 police are protecting the teams.
Pakistan and neighboring Afghanistan are the only countries where the spread of polio has never been stopped.
The potentially fatal, paralyzing disease mostly strikes children under age 5 and typically spreads through contaminated water.
Pakistan to participate in this year’s Beautyworld Middle East global trade fair
- Beautyworld Middle East 2024 is one of the world’s most influential and visited beauty trade shows
- This year’s Beautyworld Middle East 2024 exhibition is scheduled to take place from Oct. 28-30
ISLAMABAD: The Trade Development Authority of Pakistan (TDAP) said on Monday it would participate in this year’s Beautyworld Middle East 2024 to promote the country’s products at what is arguably the largest international exhibition for beauty products in the Middle East.
The Beautyworld Middle East 2024 event is taking place from Oct. 28-30 at the Dubai World Trade Center this year. Beautyworld Middle East is counted among the world’s most influential and visited beauty trade shows, offering over 65,000 trade visitors an engaging platform to meet over 1,800 exhibitors from across 60 countries.
In a statement on Monday, TDAP said 36 exhibitors from Pakistan showcased their products at the global fair last year. Out of these, it said 20 exhibitors such as Bonanza Satrangi, Face Fresh, and Faiza Beauty Cream participated directly while the remaining 16 exhibitors did so under the TDAP’s umbrella.
The exhibition has played a vital role in the growth and development of the industry, with a solid representation of global products and brands.
“Beautyworld Middle East covers the key product groups of Hair, Nails & Salon Supplies, Cosmetics & Skincare, Machinery, Packaging, Raw Materials & Contract Manufacturing, Fragrance Compounds & Finished Fragrances, and Personal Care & Hygiene,” the TDAP said.
“To promote the export of beauty products, TDAP is again providing subsidized stalls in Beautyworld Middle East 2024.”
The authority said after subsidies, each stall is available for Rs950,000 [$3,415.80], adding that the cost of a stand without subsidy is around Rs. 2,100,000 [$7,550.72]. It said that the last date to apply for the stalls is June 28, 2024.
Last year’s event featured pavilions from Pakistan, China, Italy, Japan, Korea, Turkiye, the United Kingdom, the United States, and others countries that showcased fragrances, cosmetics and skincare, beauty tech, personal care and hygiene, hair, nail and other products.
Forest fires in Islamabad’s Margalla Hills caused by ‘mischief, negligence,’ says official
- Fire erupted at various locations throughout Islamabad’s picturesque Margalla Hills last week
- There are no species in Islamabad’s wildlife that can catch fire by themselves, says government official
ISLAMABAD: The recent forest fires in Islamabad’s Margalla Hills were caused by “negligence and mischief,” a government official said on Monday, days after authorities spent hours dousing flames that erupted in different locations of the picturesque mountains in the city’s capital.
The Margalla range, part of the Himalayan foothills, has often experienced bushfires in the summer months. The mountain range has caught fire different times this month as various parts of the country remain in the grip of a severe heat wave.
“There are no species in Islamabad’s forests that can catch fire by themselves,” Irfan Niazi, the director-general of the Capital Development Authority (CDA) told Geo News. “This is either the result of someone’s negligence or mischief which is done deliberately and then it spreads.”
The official explained that high temperature, high-speed winds, and “fuel” were the main ingredients of a forest fire. He added that fuel was already present at Margalla Hills in the form of dry leaves and fallen tree trunks.
“As soon as the temperature rises, the wind turns warm and rises upwards,” he said. “However, the cold wind that comes along to take its place results in high-speed winds. Now all these things are conducive for a forest fire. Then when anyone engages in mischief, it causes the fire to rise and spread.”
Niazi said no loss of life or damage to property due to the fires have been reported so far. He said whenever a fire erupts, the CDA prioritizes dousing the flames nearest to the areas where people reside.
Niazi said during the previous years, the CDA hired 300-350 additional personnel for three months to battle forest fires. However, the authority has increased this number to 450 to ensure the forest fires remained contained.
In response to a question, he said it was difficult to transport heavy machinery or trucks to mountainous terrains where fires often erupt.
“We transport firefighters in vehicles but then they have to walk miles to reach the fire site,” Niazi said. “We use conventional techniques like beating bushes and also cutting them to douse the fire.”
