In September, mobile phone production in Bangladesh saw a decline of 1,66,000 units compared to the previous month, according to data from the Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulatory Commission.
The total production of mobile phones for September was 2.2 million units, down from 2.3 million units in August 2023.
However, the manufacturing of 5G technology-enabled smartphones increased by 28,600 units in September compared to the previous month. The total production of 5G-enabled mobile phones reached 29,000 units in September, a significant jump from the 400 units recorded in August 2023.
Out of the total units manufactured in September, 1.7 million units featured 2G technology, 4,51,000 units had 4G technology, and 29,000 units were 5G technology-enabled. Feature phones, also known as 2nd generation phones, dominated the production, making up 77.84% of the total units manufactured in September, while smartphones constituted 22.16%.
Comparatively, in August, out of the 2.3 million units manufactured, 1.4 million units had 2G technology, 931,000 units featured 4G technology, and 400 units were 5G capable.
In September, feature phones accounted for 77.84% of the total production, with smartphones making up 22.16%.
Since April, there has been a consistent increase in feature phone manufacturing, except for August when it dropped to 60.08%. In April, feature phones represented 54.67% of production, rising to 56.52 % in May and 57.03% in June.
Notably, there was a significant increase in mobile phone imports in September 2023. During that month, a total of 19,107 mobile phones were imported, marking the highest figure in the past 13 months since September 2022. Of these 19,107 units, 78.91% were feature phones, while 21.49% were smartphones.
According to BTRC data, there has been no production of 3G mobile phones since January 2023.
