Despite experiencing a 16% YoY growth in local currency, Jazz saw a decline of 20.4% in its revenue in USD terms in the first quarter of 2023. The devaluation of the PKR by 47% YoY was the main cause of this decline.
A rise in operating expenses, including an 8.3 p.p. YoY increase in interest rates, as well as increases of about 80% and 32% YoY in fuel and electricity costs, respectively, had an impact on the company’s margins. Despite these obstacles, Jazz invested PKR 3.7 billion in Pakistan in the first quarter of 2023, primarily as part of its “4G for all” initiative, bringing its overall investment to USD 10.4 billion.
Jazz concentrated on growing its 4G network by adding more than 1,000 new 4G locations. As a result, its 4G subscriber base increased by 17.4% YoY to 43.1 million, while its overall subscriber base increased to 73.7 million.
Aamir Ibrahim, the company’s CEO, expressed concerns about the telecom sector’s financial stability due to rising operational costs like fuel, electricity, interest rates, and currency exchange rates. Jazz continues to be dedicated to promoting digital inclusion in Pakistan despite these obstacles by investing in and growing its 4G network.
The company has urged policymakers to take action by implementing measures like delinking the spectrum price from the US dollar, spreading license payments over ten annual installments rather than five, and encouraging controlled inflationary pricing.
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