Giant social media platform, Facebook has joined its rival social media platform, Tiktok. The company created its official account last week which reached more than 18k followers. It is verified now but has not uploaded any videos on the account.
A Facebook spokesperson also confirmed the Facebook account on Tiktok to a news agency Adweek.
He said, “Brands leverage a variety of channels, including some of our social media platforms, to reach and engage with the people using their products and services every day. Our intent with establishing a brand presence and cultivating a community on platforms like Tiktok or others is no different.”
Facebook has an official account on Twitter as well which is also a rival platform.
Metaverse recently introduced reels on Instagram which has an audience from 150 countries. The company has already announced monetisation features for advertisers on the platform.
Tiktok also has a verified account with 26 million followers on Instagram.
Lahore, 4th March, 2022: Select Technologies, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Air link Communication Limited is proud to announce the inauguration of its smartphone manufacturing plant for the production of Xiaomi handsets in Pakistan.
The event took place on the 4th of March at the factory located in Quaid-e- Azam Industrial Estate, Kot Lakhpat. Airlink group is one of the leading manufacturers, retailers and distributors of smartphones, with nearly all major global brands of the industry as their partners. The company holds approx. 20% market share in distribution and is set to enhance its footing by beginning production of Xiaomi handsets.
Mr Muzzaffar Hayat Piracha, CEO Select Technologies, commenting on this auspicious occasion said, “Our partnership with Xiaomi is wonderful news not only for the company but also for Pakistan.
Xiaomi is a global tech giant and market leader in innovative technology which is not only limited to smartphones. This venture will open many avenues as smartphone manufacturing is the first step towards a bigger goal. My aim is to register Pakistan on the global technological map with a vision of par excellence service delivery and product provision to every nook and corner of Pakistan. We will not only be localizing manufacturing; this will consequentially enhance exports of Pakistan and help us play our role in reducing the import bill.”
Companies around the globe consider Pakistan’s mobile market as an emerging market with a plethora of opportunities for businesses. With the emergence of 3G/4G technology, there has been a significant increase subscriber base of mobile operators. Locking on this opportunity, mobile brands are providing consumers with a wider choice of smartphones at more affordable prices in the low tier range.
This initiative is expected to drive a sales volume of 550 million USD in revenue. The huge production size will not only create new job opportunities for the citizens of Pakistan but will also contribute to the reduction in the country’s import bill and enable new possibilities in international business.
Starting at PKR 34,999/-, Redmi Note 11 series once again makes flagship-level specs more accessible, raising industry standard with four all-new devices
Lahore, Pakistan, February 11th 2022 – Xiaomi announced the Redmi Note 11 series for Pakistani markets, pushing forward the legacy of the Redmi Note series with two all-new devices: Redmi Note 11 Pro, and Redmi Note 11. Rising to the challenge to bring even stronger specs and features, Redmi Note 11 series again brings powerful upgrades to its camera system, charging speed, display, and SoC—making flagship-level smartphone performance more accessible than before. Also announced today, the brand-new Xiaomi Smart Air Purifier 4 series.
Flagship-level camera setup to deliver outstanding photography
Raising up the flagship camera experience, Redmi Note 11 Pro 5G, and Redmi Note 11 once again feature 108 & 50MP primary sensors respectively, allowing you to capture and share moments of your life in high resolution and true-to-life details. Utilizing the Samsung HM2 sensor with a large 1/1.52″ sensor size, the main camera leverages 9-in-1 pixel binning technology as well as dual native ISO to deliver incredible images with higher dynamic range and color performance, with excellent results even in dim light. The 8MP ultra-wide angle camera extends your perspective with a 118-degree viewing angle, and the 2MP macro camera captures fine details from up close. Additionally, the depth camera on Redmi Note 11 Pro, and Redmi Note 11 allows you to create a natural bokeh effect for your portrait shots. The front of Redmi Note 11 Pro features a 16MP front camera that can capture clear, natural-looking selfies.
FHD+ AMOLED DotDisplay with up to 120Hz refresh rate & trendy flat-edge body
Boasting a high refresh rate up to 120Hz and a touch sampling rate up to 360Hz, Redmi Note 11 series enhances your screen experience with smoother animations and lag-free transitions, while also registering more precise finger touches. With a screen size of 6.67-inch and 6.43-inch, the series is equipped with a FHD+ AMOLED DotDisplay featuring DCI-P3 wide color gamut, provides more vibrant colors and details, while also reaching as much as 1200 nits to ensure the screen’s clarity even in bright daylight.
The beautiful display is packed into a trendy flat-edge body design. Plus, with dual super linear speakers located at the top and bottom of the phone, Redmi Note 11 series offers a complete entertainment experience with immersive stereo sound for gaming or watching videos.
Speedy and powerful performance at all fonts
Redmi Note 11 Pro rises to the challenge with an advanced octa-core MediaTek Helio G96 processor and up to 8GB of RAM. Redmi Note 11 is equipped with a Snapdragon® 680 processor built using flagship-level 6nm process to deliver superior performance while conserving power. Additionally, all Redmi Note 11 series devices equip you with a 5,000mAh large-capacity battery. Alongside this exceptional battery capacity is Xiaomi flagship-level 67W fast charging in Redmi Note 11 Pro, which take as little as 15 minutes to fill 50% of battery*. Redmi Note 11 features 33W Pro fast charging, allowing you to charge to100% in around an hour.
Brand-Ambassador & Team 11
Xiaomi onboarded the nation’s heartthrob actor Ahad Raza Mir to become the face for the brand. Responsible for raising engagement and creating awareness for the brand, while also heading Team 11 which is a pool of handpicked top notch influencers in the country. Picked across categories, names like Dananeer, Saheefa Jabbar, Shamoon Ismail etc come up for they along with others are an active part of this year’s awareness campaign.
Market availability:
Redmi Note 11 comes in two variants – 4GB+128GB and 6GB+128GB and are available at top distributor partners such as Phonezo, Airlink, Smartlink etc. For those looking to purchase these online, we’ve news for you too as these are also available on MiStore and Daraz.
Redmi Note 11
4GB+128GB: PKR 34,999/-
6GB+128GB: PKR 37,999/-
Redmi Note 11 Quick Specs:
Redmi Note 11
Display
90Hz 6.43” FHD+ AMOLED DotDisplay
Rear Camera
50MP main camera 8MP ultra-wide camera 2MP macro camera 2MP depth camera
Front Camera
13MP in-display front camera
Dimension & Weight
159.87mm x 73.87mm x 8.09mm 179g
Processor
Snapdragon® 680
Charging
5,000mAh (typ) battery Supports 33W wired Pro fast charging
Variant
4GB+128GB, 6GB+128GB
Available Colour
Graphite Gray, Twilight Blue, Star Blue
Breathe clean, breathe healthy: Xiaomi Smart Air Purifier 4 Series
Celebrating over 16 million shipments worldwide, Xiaomi upgraded its widely-acclaimed Xiaomi Smart Air Purifier Series with new variants – Xiaomi Smart Air Purifier 4 Pro, 4, and 4 Lite. The brand-new series promises Xiaomi Fans a healthier, cleaner, and reduced-allergen indoor air environment year-round, with options for different home spaces and family needs.
The top variant, Xiaomi Smart Air Purifier 4 Pro, features a 3-in-1 filtration system that combines electrostatic charge and mechanical filtration technologies to trap 99.97% of air pollutants as small as 0.3 microns. So whether its pet dander, cotton fiber, or other pollutants, Xiaomi Smart Air Purifier 4 Pro will have you covered.
To ensure maximized filtration efficiency, the Pro model newly integrates both PM2.5 and PM10 sensors to precisely detect inhalable particles of different sizes. An ionizer has been added to help capture floating pollutants.
On top of powerful filtering performance, Xiaomi Smart Air Purifier 4 Pro also offers a largely enhanced user experience. its sleek design and low-noise running mode at night make sure it blends perfectly into users’ modern homes and life. A crystal-clear OLED touch display allows for quick viewing of AQI, temperature, and humidity statistics at a glance, and quick adjustments in just a few taps. Users can also remotely control the device using Xiaomi Home App, effortlessly scheduling purification routines and behavior, setting up automation with other IoT devices, viewing filter usage status, and more. Voice commands are also supported with Google Assistant and Amazon Alexa.
About Xiaomi Corporation
Xiaomi Corporation was founded in April 2010 and listed on the Main Board of the Hong Kong Stock Exchange on July 9, 2018 (1810.HK). Xiaomi is a consumer electronics and smart manufacturing company with smartphones and smart hardware connected by an IoT platform at its core.
Embracing our vision of “Make friends with users and be the coolest company in the users’ hearts”, Xiaomi continuously pursues innovations, high-quality user experience and operational efficiency. The company relentlessly builds amazing products with honest prices to let everyone in the world enjoy a better life through innovative technology.
Xiaomi is one of the world’s leading smartphone companies. The company’s market share in terms of smartphone shipments ranked no. 3 globally in the third quarter of 2021. The company has also established the world’s leading consumer AIoT (AI+IoT) platform, more than 400 million smart devices connected to its platform as of September 30, 2021, excluding smartphones and laptops. Xiaomi products are present in more than 100 countries and regions around the world. In August 2021, the company made the Fortune Global 500 list for the third time, ranking 338th, up 84 places compared to 2020.
Xiaomi is a constituent of the Hang Seng Index, Hang Seng China Enterprises Index, Hang Seng TECH Index and Hang Seng China 50 Index.
India’s central bank plans to launch the digital version of the rupee in the coming fiscal year, according to Indian finance minister. The 2022-2023 financial year of India will begin on April 1.
“Introduction of a central bank digital currency will give a boost, a big boost to the digital economy,” Nirmala Sitharaman said while delivering India’s annual budget. “Digital currency will also lead to a more efficient and cheaper currency management system.”
The minister did not give any technical details about the currency but said it will involve block chain and other technologies.
If India launches its digital currency, it will become one of the world’s largest economies to implement Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC).
India’s decision comes after China began CBDC experiments in different cities. The United States and the Bank of England are exploring the prospects for their own economies.
Nirmala Sitharaman also said that India will impose a tax of 30% on income from cryptocurrencies and other digital assets.
If you are thinking of asking your relative or a friend to bring you iPhone 13 Pro Max 1TB from abroad, think again. The government has yet again increased taxes on luxury phones.
Let’s suppose you buy the highest-end iPhone from abroad. The 1TB phone will cost you $1,730.92 which is 305,068.94 PKR, for the highest-end iPhone.
If you will a buy a 128GB phone it will cost you $1,189.67 which is 208,571.16 PKR. Similarly, the price for a 256GB phone will be $1,297.92 which is 227,549.39 PKR.
The price of a 512GB phone is 1514.42$ which is 265,505.84PKR.
A government source has informed The Current that phones from abroad are now being subjected to 17% sales tax instead of a fixed sales tax. The total tax will also include customs tax.
Earlier, the fixed sales tax on the iPhone13 Pro max was Rs. 10,000 but if you now calculate a 17 per cent tax on 305,068.94 PKR in our case, the tax will be 51,861.7198. The customs tax is Rs 34,000 on the iPhone.
If you now want to buy an iPhone 13 Pro max in Pakistan, the total tax will be 51,861.7198+34,000=85,861.17 for the 1TB Phone.
If you have a passport on which you came back with the phone, it will cost you a little less, 51,861.7198+26,000=77,861.7198.
Government sources while talking to The Current said, “If a person can afford a phone worth almost 300k, then he can pay 78k too. These phones have inelastic demands.”
“Most smartphones sold in Pakistan (more than 80%) and mid category (between $150-200). 70% of these are now made in Pakistan and have very little tax on them. The ones in the range that are imported have a tax of around Rs 5-8k on them,” the source added.
The phone PTA tax went up from 44K to 78K? Are you kidding me..
The World Bank has released its Global Economic Prospects report 2022. In the report The World Bank analysed the effects of the coronavirus pandemic on economies around the world. The World Bank said it was surprised by Pakistan’s growth in the year 2021, citing record-high remittances and an accommodative monetary policy as the main reasons.
“Growth in Pakistan surprised on the upside last year supported by improving domestic demand, record-high remittance inflows, a narrow targeting of lockdowns, and accommodative monetary policy — real interest rates dropped precipitously during 2020 and remained negative throughout most of 2021,” the report read.
According to the report, Pakistan’s economy will grow by 3.4 per cent this fiscal year and by 4 per cent in 2022-23, owing to structural reforms that will improve export competitiveness and the financial viability of the power sector.
However, the report stated that global economic growth will slow down to 4.1 per cent in 2022 from an estimated 5.5 per cent in 2021. The report also added a warning that “Omicron-related economic disruptions could substantially reduce growth” to as low as 3.4 per cent.
The State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) and the federal government have come together to make a decision to ban the usage of all types of cryptocurrencies.
The 38-page report has been submitted by the SBP Deputy Governor Seema Kamil to the Sindh High Court to declare it illegal.
On October 20, 2021, the provincial high court directed the government to form a committee presided by the federal secretary of finance to determine cryptocurrency’s legal status and submit a detailed report.
The submitted report has stated that digital currency is based on virtual business that could be used for terrorism financing and money laundering.
It also listed eleven countries that banned digital currency including Saudi Arabia and China and urged the court to impose high penalties over unauthorised usage as these countries have implemented.
The court ordered that the report should be submitted to the finance and law ministries for a final decision on its legal status. They will decide if a ban would be within constitutional jurisdiction.
The hearing was heard by the two-bench judge headed by Justice Karim Khan Agha. The next hearing will be held on April 12 this year.
Meanwhile, a TV host and crypto entrepreneur, Waqar Zaka pleaded to make digital currency legal. In his view, it would benefit the economy of the country.
It was reported previously that Pakistanis have lost almost 18 crores in a cryptocurrency-related scam. Almost 55,000 people have become victims of the scam. In total, 11 mobile applications have been identified as part of the fraud.
As per FIA Cyber Crime Reporting Sindh chief Imran Riaz, the applications that are involved include, MCX, HFC, HTFOX, FXCOPY, OKIMINI, BB001, AVG86C, BX66, UG, TASKTOK, 91fp.
Pakistanis have lost almost 18 crore in a crypto currency related scam. Almost 55,000 people have become the victim of the scam, Samaa has reported. In total, 11 mobile applications have been identified as part of the fraud.
As per FIA Cyber Crime Reporting Sindh chief Imran Riaz the applications that are involved include, MCX, HFC, HTFOX, FXCOPY, OKIMINI, BB001, AVG86C, BX66, UG, TASKTOK, 91fp.
The victims of the scam were promised excessively large returns on their investments by the companies involved, in exchange for bringing in additional investors.
“They used to give assurance that you won’t lose your money,” said one of the victims. “Some of the users even went all the way to level-8 and when they lost their money, they [the scammers] refunded them.”
However, on December 19, the apps went down, and everybody who put money into them lost it all. (FIA) has written to international company Binance, requesting an explanation of how money was transferred from Binance accounts to other apps.
On January 12, 2022, Hamza Khan, the general manager of Binance in Pakistan, has been summoned to appear before the agency.
Pakistan has lost $250m worth of textile exports in December 2021 when the gas supply was suspended for 15 days in the Punjab textile sector.
Executive Director of All Pakistan Textile Mills Association (APTMA), Shahid Sattar also confirmed the loss of millions of dollars by saying that it will “never be recovered.”
The government restored gas supply on December 29 with the supply of 75 million cubic feet per day (mmcfd) by mid-January and ensured that the supply would be increased up to the finest level after the extreme winter season was over.
On the other hand, the sources said that the gas being supplied to the export sector is less than the government announced despite the industry purchasing gas at $9 per Metric Million British Thermal Unit (MMBTU), instead of $6.5 mmcfd during the winters.
The ministry of Commerce sources also revealed that the smooth supply of electricity was not received by the textile mills in Punjab from the national grid due to interruptions. They further added that it is causing huge losses to the industry, which may go up to $250-400 million per month.
The textile mills association also sent the letter to the Advisor to Prime Minister on Commerce and Textiles Abdul Razak Dawood on January 7, in which they expressed their serious concern over the interruptions in the supply of electricity.
The letter said, “Each interruption wastes half an hour and up to two hours in restarting the machinery, resulting in losing material and rendering capacity grossly underutilized.”
It further added that mills were currently running on 80% capacity, which signifies a 20% loss of exports. “And this adds up to losses between $250-$400 million in exports lost every month”.
The iPhone manufacturing company, Apple, has put the Indian plant of one of its main suppliers ‘on probation’ after mass food poisoning cases surged among their female factory workers.
Earlier this month, around 250 female workers working in the iPhone manufacturing plant of Foxconn company located in Chennai city had been treated for food poisoning as out-patients while more than 150 were hospitalised.
This was followed by a massive protest demonstration against living conditions at hostels for factory workers. It led to the closure of its supplier factory at Sriperumbudur near Chennai, which is closed since December 18.
Apple stated that it has placed the plant “on probation” after the company found that factory dormitories and dining rooms used for employees did not meet the standardised requirements for food. The company further added that they are currently working with the supplier to enforce “a comprehensive set of corrective actions”.
Currently, the Indian plant unit employs about 17,000 people. It manufactures iPhones for the Indian market and for exports, and other gadgets as well.
Foxconn said it was “very sorry for the issue our employees experienced and are taking immediate steps to enhance the facilities and services we provide at the remote dormitory accommodations.”
“We are also restructuring our local management team and our management systems to ensure we can achieve and maintain the high standards that are needed,” the company further added.
Foxconn assured that salary would continue to be provided among employees while necessary improvements would be made before the operation restarts.
