Tapping developing economies: Philips deems Pakistan ‘a very important market’
Says business prospects huge due to growing population, CPEC
PHOTO: AFP
KARACHI:
Pakistan is an important market for Philips mainly due to its large population, said Philips Leader Lighting ASEAN & Pacific Market Leader Patricia Yim speaking to reporters at the Philips office in Karachi.
Addressing a question about the Pakistani market, she said, “Sometimes, the size of a country’s population takes precedence over the size of its GDP. In case of Philips, the former is the reason for it coming to Pakistan.”
According to her, the country’s share was in upper single digits in the Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN) region. She further said Pakistan was a fast growing market and due to its growing population, business prospects were huge. “Any country with a population of over a 100 million is hard to ignore.”
“Moreover, the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) is also an opportunity for us,” said Phillips Pakistan Chairman and CEO Asad S Jafar. “Because of CPEC, a lot of Chinese companies want to do business with Pakistan. They want to know more about the country’s domestic market and Philips could help them understand it better as the company has been operating in Pakistan since 1947 and has experience not only of operations in Pakistan but China as well,” added Jafar.
Citing examples of Lahore and Islamabad Metro bus projects, he said Pakistan has recently completed a few big projects very swiftly compared to some developed countries like Singapore. Responding to a question, he said, “China is the hub of all manufacturing facilities of Philips,” he remarked.
Published in The Express Tribune, April 7th, 2016.
Pakistan is an important market for Philips mainly due to its large population, said Philips Leader Lighting ASEAN & Pacific Market Leader Patricia Yim speaking to reporters at the Philips office in Karachi.
Addressing a question about the Pakistani market, she said, “Sometimes, the size of a country’s population takes precedence over the size of its GDP. In case of Philips, the former is the reason for it coming to Pakistan.”
According to her, the country’s share was in upper single digits in the Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN) region. She further said Pakistan was a fast growing market and due to its growing population, business prospects were huge. “Any country with a population of over a 100 million is hard to ignore.”
“Moreover, the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) is also an opportunity for us,” said Phillips Pakistan Chairman and CEO Asad S Jafar. “Because of CPEC, a lot of Chinese companies want to do business with Pakistan. They want to know more about the country’s domestic market and Philips could help them understand it better as the company has been operating in Pakistan since 1947 and has experience not only of operations in Pakistan but China as well,” added Jafar.
Citing examples of Lahore and Islamabad Metro bus projects, he said Pakistan has recently completed a few big projects very swiftly compared to some developed countries like Singapore. Responding to a question, he said, “China is the hub of all manufacturing facilities of Philips,” he remarked.
Published in The Express Tribune, April 7th, 2016.