Category: Business

The upcoming realme GT 2 Pro puts realme into a high-end segment with its unique paper-based design and premium specifications

The Mobile World Congress 2022 (MWC) kicked off in Barcelona with an exciting reveal presentation from realme. The tech-trendsetters took part in their first product launch at the MWC by unveiling their most premium flagship series – the realme GT 2 series. The two handsets unveiled at the event include the realme GT 2 and the realme GT 2 Pro. As realme’s most premium flagship line-up ever, the realme GT 2 series is a critical step forward, allowing them to break into the high-end market and bringing new and exciting features to millions of users around the world with their inventive technologies and transformative designs. realme was recently ranked among the top 4 smartphone brands in Europe (Q4 2021, Canalys), as well as being among the top 5 smartphone brands in the world which is a testament to the strength of realme’s market penetration and channel development efforts.

realme has taken various initiatives to promote brand awareness of realme GT 2 series in global expansion, especially in the vast European and Chinese markets. realme has teamed up with major European mobile carriers including Vodafone, Orange, and Deutsche Telecom to bring 5G products to a wider customer group across Europe, starting with the realme GT 2 through Vodafone and Deutsche Telecom’s online and offline channels. The use of special early-bird offers and trendy pop-up store joint initiatives will also be created by realme in collaboration with carriers and other partners to provide customers a tailored and enjoyable experience. The realme GT 2 series will make its debut in India, Middle East, Southeast Asia, and Latin America in the coming months, following the European debut at the MWC.

Embodying the spirit of “Greater Than You See,” the realme GT 2 Series aims to give users a multi-layered experience of excellence. The visible aspects of master design, stunning display, and fastest CPU performance, work with the invisible and relentless innovation behind the product to give users a premium experience. However, now let’s take a moment to break down the various exciting features of the realme GT 2 Pro that were unveiled earlier at the MWC.

Stunning 2K AMOLED Display

The realme GT 2 Pro comes with Super Reality Display which is built to deliver incredibly realistic visuals that feel rich and natural and provide an ultra-high-resolution display with a high refresh rate. As the world’s First 2K AMOLED Flat Display with LTPO 2.0 Technology, the Super Reality display was created using a 6.7-inch E4 AMOLED with a whopping pixel density of 525 pixels per inch. That greater pixel density means that your text will appear sharper, and your images will show incredible details down to individual blades of grass or strands of hair.

The Super Reality Display has outstanding color performance with a 10-bit color depth, being able to produce an impressive 1.07 billion colors overall which is a 64 times increase in color information from a typical 8-bit display. The display can reach a peak outdoor brightness of an impressive 1,400 nits, making it one of the brightest displays in a similar range. It also features a smart display with 10,240 individual levels of brightness that automatically changes for optimal power saving and a comfortable viewing experience.

With LTPO 2.0 technology, the realme GT 2 Pro can automatically adjust the refresh rate of its display to anywhere between 1 to 120 Hz which can improve battery life by 1.7 hours. With GT Mode 3.0 enabled, it can also offer you 1,000 Hz instant touch sampling. The realme GT 2 Pro has received an A+ for screen quality from DisplayMate which is the highest possible score. A good display needs better protection which is why the realme GT 2 Pro features Corning’s Gorilla Glass Victus protection.

First Bio-Based Polymer Smartphone Design Created with Naoto Fukasawa

In development, realme had been looking for ways to create an environmentally friendly smartphone with the realme GT 2 and realme GT 2 Pro. After 12 months of research with 63 prototypes, they were successful in doing so as the realme GT 2 Series has the world’s first smartphone to use a biopolymer for its entire rear panel thus reducing carbon emissions from its manufacturing by 35.5%. This was accomplished in collaboration with world-renowned industrial designer Naoto Fukasawa who has previously worked with realme on the design of the GT Master Edition. The realme GT 2 Pro has also received the TCO 9.0 sustainability certification, which requires a socially-responsible manufacturing process for realme and all of its suppliers, with over 40 sustainability performance indicators being checked. The percentage of plastic used in the phone’s packaging has also been reduced from 21.7% to a miniscule 0.3% of plastic.

Following the design philosophy of sustainability, the rear shell of the realme GT 2 Pro is made of SABIC’s LNP ELCRIN bio-based copolymer material, which is certificated by ISCC+. This has various environmental benefits such as offering similar performance to fossil-based alternatives but with a reduction in CO2 emissions per kilogram or being derived from biomass waste or residue that does not compete with the food chains, such as crude tall oil and hydrotreated vegetable oils.

Triple-camera Setup featuring the World’s First 150 ° Ultra-wide Camera and a 40x Micro-lens Camera

realme GT 2 Pro adopts a triple-camera setup featuring the world’s first 150-degrees ultra-wide Camera and a remarkable 40x micro-lens camera. The 50MP primary camera draws into its Sony IMX766 flagship-level sensor with all pixel Omni-directional PDAF and OIS features. The IMX766 comes with both optical image stabilization for photos, and electronic image stabilization for videos. Optical image stabilization means the lens itself physically moves to compensate for your hand movements. The 150-degree ultra-wide Camera gives you the ability to capture extreme panoramas, which gives you a 278% increase in the field of view for your images than most main cameras. To compliment the ultra-wide camera the world’s first fish-eye mode in a smartphone has also been included. The mind-blowing 40X Micro-lens Camera 2.0 allows you to take a closer look and experience the world around you in a whole new way. The new 2.0 version allows you to be 2 times farther away from the subject and increases the depth of field 4-fold, making focusing much easier and gives you much sharper images.

World’s Fastest Android Processor Supercharged by Stainless Steel Vapour Cooling Max

The upcoming realme GT 2 Pro is powered by the latest Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 chipset with advanced 4nm process technology and the world’s first ARM v9 architecture, delivering 30% increased performance and sustained efficiency. The realme GT 2 Pro features the industry’s largest heat dissipation area at a staggering 36761mm² allowing for up to 3 degrees Celsius of cooling to maximize the chip’s performance. The cooling area is constructed with an all-new 9-layer cooling structure with a 4129mm² Stainless Steel VC area, providing sustained peak performance.

realme UI 3.0 with 3 years OS updates

Based on Android 12, realme UI 3.0 comes with newly-designed 3D icons, our Fluid Space Design and Omojis, as well as improved privacy functions like app permission control and location hiding. Designed with functionality and customization in mind, realme UI 3.0 allows you to express yourself with greater freedom and create an experience unique to you. Also, realme is committed to providing you with 3 years of major upcoming Android OS updates and 4 years of upcoming Android security patches for the realme GT 2 series.

Apart from all the exciting features mentioned above, the realme GT 2 Pro is also equipped with lightning fast 65W SuperDart Charge enhanced, a massive 5000mAh Battery, an advanced Antenna Matrix System and Dolby Atmos Dual Stereo Speakers. As the performance flagship, realme GT 2 has the same equipment as realme GT 2 Pro, including design, battery, realme UI 3.0, and RAM. It differs in featuring a 120Hz E4 AMOLED Display, the powerful Snapdragon 888 5G Processor and Stainless-Steel Vapor Cooling Plus, and GT Mode 3.0. Keep an eye out for more upcoming news regarding the release of the realme GT 2 series in your country.

Lahore (Muhammad Yasir) Lahore Central Business District Development Authority (LCBDDA) also known as Central Business District (CBD) Punjab receives 700 million USD investment proposal from an engineering giant, Techno Engineering Services (TES) to build Pakistan’s first LNG based power plant. The captive power plant is an embedded generation of uninterrupted power supply for Pakistan’s most anticipated business hub. The engineering firm tends to install 150 MW LNG plant which will use “waste heat recovery” process by reusing heat energy. CBD Punjab has always backed cost effective and ecofriendly initiatives and LNG power plant fulfills theme of CBD Punjab ecofriendly approach. LNG is considered to be the cleanest fueling source which doesn’t emit soot, dust or fumes and produces insignificant amount of sulfur dioxide making it very environment friendly.

Imran Amin – CEO LCBDDA stated, “Our aim is to provide best possible ecofriendly utilities to residents across CBD Punjab. Acquiring investment proposal from renowned engineering firms like TES is laudable. It is evidently visible that CBD Punjab has paved the road to enlist Pakistan in first world countries. CBD Punjab is dynamic in contributing to country’s economic growth. Keeping insight the deteriorating air index these ecofriendly utilities are a step towards a greener and breathable Punjab’’.

The canvas of CBD Punjab is massive which will be colored by sky scrapers, ultra-high-rise buildings and architectural masterpieces. Considering the weather conditions of Lahore, District Cooling System (DCS) is also proposed in the proposal.

 

Karachi (Muhammad Yasir) Engro Corporation, Pakistan’s premier business conglomerate, has commenced office operations of its wholly owned subsidiary, Engro Eximp FZE, in the Jebel Ali Free Zone, Emirate of Dubai.

Engro Eximp FZE will explore potential trading opportunities in the energy, fertilizers, petrochemicals and food & agriculture sectors.

According to Ghias Khan, President & CEO of Engro Corporation, “With a vision to expand the Group’s footprint outside Pakistan, we have opened our trading company in Dubai. Through its trading activities, Engro Eximp FZE will aim to create more export engines for sustainable economic growth.” 

He added that this business will help leverage the enormous supply potential of Pakistan to tap the rising GCC demand. The Group’s strategic partnerships and global alliances provide Engro Eximp FZE the foundation to grow and establish its brand internationally.

Lahore (Muhammad Yasir) Members of the Male Champions of Change Pakistan held their quarterly meeting at Telenor Pakistan Campus 345 to further their commitment to achieve gender equality and accelerate the advancement of more and diverse women into leadership. Comprising 15 active Members who lead approximately 55,000 employees across the nation, the Male Champions of Change Pakistan includes representatives from sectors including hospitality, consumer goods, telecommunications, retail, textile, financial services, information technology, microfinance, logistics, and media.

Founded in Australia, in 2010, the Champions of Change Coalition was extended internationally to Pakistan in 2018 with CEOs from Telenor Pakistan, Serena Hotels, PepsiCo Pakistan, and EY Ford Rhodes.

The quarterly Champions Meeting was attended by leaders from the private sector committed to the cause, including new Member CEOs from Jazz Pakistan, L’Oreal Pakistan, Interloop Limited, Swyft Logistics, Bank of Khyber and Liberty Mills.

Members expressed their commitment to create a fair, diverse, and inclusive world, shaped by empowered women in every industry. Members from companies including Swyft Logistics and Interloop committed to increase women’s employment rate up to 30% by 2025, and to play a bigger role in countering the challenges faced by women within and outside the workplace. Telenor Pakistan’s Irfan Wahab Khan spoke of his company’s leadership through delivering programs designed specifically for women to get back into the workforce after long breaks, increased representation in all job groups, and a fair, desirable working environment.

The Members endorsed their Action Groups for 2022-23. In addition to continuing specific efforts on flexible work, gender-balanced recruitment and a gender-balanced public image, the leaders committed to new priorities such as addressing sexual harassment, everyday sexism / everyday respect and building champions beyond the CEO level, to create more inclusive workplaces.

Convenor of the Male Champions of Change Pakistan Group, Fiza Farhan commented on the occasion, “The Male Champions of Change Pakistan is a testament to the leadership and commitment of male leaders in the country to support women and create progressive workforces through positive change. I am delighted to see the group expand with promising practices emerging from the Coalition’s work that would enable all members to catalyse their journey towards being more diverse & inclusive organizations”

 Since inception, Male Champions of Change Members have embedded programs and targets which facilitate women’s workforce participation and progression in a number of ways across the country.

Speaking about the organisation’s efforts to date, Telenor Pakistan’s CEO, Irfan Wahab Khan said; “We are focused more than ever towards an inclusive culture that helps us draw strengths from our differences, increase creativity and be more productive. Our flagship Naya Aghaz program started with an aim to provide employment to women on career break, but our ambition now is to prioritise targeted recruitment, development and advancement of women as part of this program. Our renewed and intense diversity agenda is supported through our partnership with GSMA Connected Women to increase the proportion of our women’s customer base from 23% to 30% by 2023. We are ensuring focus towards women’s participation and empowerment through various programs like Open Mind, Khushhal Aangan, Girls Learn Women Earn, Safe Internet and digital learning.”

In November 2021 L’Oreal Pakistan introduced ‘Best of Both Worlds’,  a 3 days onsite, 2 days offsite policy to provide employees a healthy work-life balance especially focusing on young mothers and women employees. In September 2021, Swyft Technologies set a rousing precedent in their industry by launching “The Monthlies” for women which are paid period leave days. Jazz’s “She’s Back” program introduced in January 2022 welcomes female employees back to work after periods of hiatus for any reason.

From 2020-2021 EY Ford Rhodes saw total female employees rise by 17% to 23% due to various D&I interventions including effort towards gender balanced recruitment.  Their next challenge is to have more women in leadership positions. In Pakistan’s textile sector, in July 2021 Interloop announced an ambitious target of growing its women’s employee base from 8% to 30% by 2025.

Speaking about L’Oreal Pakistan’s commitment towards creating an inclusive and progressive workforce, CEO Junaid Murtaza said; “At L’Oreal Pakistan, a conscious effort of improving the inclusion ecosystem is underway, both in structural and behavioural design. Be it through fundamentals like improving our parental leave policy, providing day-care and mental health support, to organisation wide upskilling and appreciation of DE&I or focusing on the entire spectrum of how we recruit, retain and help our women employees advance to leadership.  We remain committed to create an impact, and our membership of MCC will further help accelerate the progress of like-minded companies to be the change agents in Pakistan.”

 

Lahore (Muhammad Yasir) Fatima Group, one of the fastest-growing industrial conglomerates in Pakistan, has signed two MoUs of over USD1 billion with two key global agriculture stakeholders – China Machinery Engineering Company (CMEC) from China and Sarh Attaqnia Co. (SAC) from the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.

A formal signing of the business partnership was held at the Pakistan Pavilion in line with the ongoing Agriculture Week at Expo 2020 Dubai. Fatima Group is leading the initiative of transforming Pakistan’s agriculture to serve as the world’s food basket. They’ve been known as Pakistan’s fastest-growing industrial conglomerate with more than $1 billion in revenue in industries like fertilizers, energy, textiles, sugar, cement, and venture capital investments.

“As chairman of a leading Pakistani conglomerate, it is my vision to bring modern precision farming to Pakistan. We as a country are blessed with immense potential and I strongly believe that with the right partners we can create a big difference not just for Pakistan’s food security but the entire region’s. We are grateful to our Chinese and Saudi counterparts who have put their trust and faith in us. I am hopeful that this landmark will lead to many more such partnerships and investment opportunities for future,” said Mian Fawad Ahmed Mukhtar, Chairman of Fatima Group and CEO of Fatima Fertilizer Company Limited.

CMEC as a technology partner, will help with the adaption of climate-smart precision agriculture farm machinery, improved high-yielding seeds, and other crop inputs in Pakistan. In addition, Sarh Attaqnia Company is a key partner that will invest in developing a state-of-the-art agriculture value chain encompassing sustainable production, processing, warehousing, and export marketing of grain crops to help ensure regional food security.

Pakistan has over 20% of its GDP linked with agriculture and about 64% of the human resource associated with it. This collaboration will potentially unlock a tremendous amount of untapped land resources of Pakistan by bringing fallow lands under cultivation for sustainable production of crops like rice, barley, oats, silage bales for livestock, and dairy industry under the Corporate Agriculture Farming initiative. Fatima Group, along with the Trade Development Authority of Pakistan, is at the Pakistan Pavilion in Expo 2020 Dubai over the next four days, holding a range of events showcasing its commitment to help ensure regional food security, agricultural innovation, and women empowerment in the agriculture sector of Pakistan.

KFC PARTNERS WITH RECKITT BENCKISER PAKISTAN LIMITED FOR DETTOL TO MAKE DINING SPACES SAFE FOR ITS CUSTOMERS

Lahore (Muhammad Yasir) As Coronavirus-related restrictions ease out in most cities with a positivity rate lower than 10%, KFC Pakistan joins hands with Reckitt Benckiser Pakistan Limited (the “RBPL”) to make restaurant spaces safe for customers as dine-in reopens. An MOU was signed between the two, with representation by CMO KFC, Noor Alam and Director Marketing RBPL, Humayun Farooq.

As part of the corporate and social responsibility, KFC has kept the safety of their customers as their topmost priority by partnering up with RBPL for its brand, Dettol, the most trusted disinfectant and antiseptic brand, in a bid to make restaurant spaces safe for their customers.

Commenting on the partnership, Director Marketing at RBPL, Humayun Farooq said, “The partnership between RBPL and KFC is a unique opportunity to excite & protect customers, while Dettol continues to educate them about the high standards of hygiene and reassure them that they can now eat at their favorite restaurant with utmost trust and protection.”

Addressing the importance of such collaborations, Chief Marketing Officer at KFC, Noor Alam said, “Dettol has always been at the front line when it comes to germ protection. We are proud to partner with RBPL to ensure that customers enjoy the original fried chicken experience in a cleaner and safer environment.”

The collaboration comes under Dettol’s award-winning purpose-led program called “Hoga Saaf Pakistan” which is a commitment to Pakistan to educate and instill responsibility amongst all Pakistanis to work towards a cleaner, healthier and safer Pakistan. Under this initiative, Dettol is providing sanitizer units for dine-in customers, which will be placed at all KFC outlets nationwide to encourage good hygiene habits and bring back a sense of normalcy to the dine-in experience.

Lahore (Muhammad Yasir) Lahore Chamber of Commerce & Industry (LCCI) Executive Committee member and Senior Executive Guard Group Momin Ali Malik has severely criticised the government for repeatedly increasing the fuel and electricity prices and withdrawing sales tax exemption on various inputs being used especially in the agricultural sector.

In a statement issued here on Friday, Momin Ali Malik said that time and again increase in the prices of petroleum products and electricity is making our industry incompetitive not only in the domestic market against the imported items but also rendering our export oriented industries incompetitive in the international market. He said that it has become impossible for the industries and businesses to make some long term planning as they do not know when the prices of fuel or electricity increase making their financial feasibilities impracticable.

Similarly, he said that agriculture which is our backbone and main supplier of raw material for our export oriented sectors is in dire stress due to non availability of quality seeds especially in cotton sector. It is unfortunate that the government has slapped sales tax on import of quality seed of different crops. It may be worth mentioning that imported hybrid seed of rice and corn is a success story. He said the government has also slapped the sales tax even on those companies which are involved in research & development of hybrid seed locally.

This will discourage the development activities in the country depriving us from producing indigenous seeds and give a free hand to those importing hybrid seed as they will pass it on to the end consumers.

Momin Malik suggested that the government should sit across the table with all the leading chambers and associations to draft some policy measures for easing the situation for businesses and earning enough for development and prosperity of the country and the nation.

Lahore (Nut Desk) The Skolkovo Foundation and STZA Sign Letter of Intent to Cooperate on Civilian Technology Sector The historic visit of the Prime Minister of Pakistan, H.E. Mr. Imran Khan, to the Russian Federation, has paved the way for both nations to undertake cooperation in many areas including technology. Skolkovo Foundation and the Special Technology Zones Authority (STZA) of Pakistan have signed a Letter of Intent (LOI) to boost cooperation in the technology sector, establish closer business relations and foster strategic cooperation and exchanges between the Russian and Pakistani scientific and technological institutions and enterprises.

The LOI was signed between Mr. Igor Drozdov, Chairman of the Board, Skolkovo Foundation and Mr. Amer Ahmed Hashmi, Chairman, Special Technology Zones Authority and was witnessed by the Prime Minister. The Skolkovo Foundation is a non-commercial organization, founded in Moscow, in 2010. The goal of the Foundation is to support technological entrepreneurship in Russia and to commercialize the results of scientific research activities.

The number of Skolkovo residents already exceeds 3,200 and the Foundation provides them with an array of services that are necessary to roll out developments into international markets. Located at Skolkovo Innovation Center is the Skolkovo Institute of Science and Technology (Skoltech), which is listed in the Nature Index “Top-100 Young Universities” list. The Skolkovo – STZA collaboration is the latest addition to STZA’s portfolio of strategic partnerships, intended to collaborate on opening new doors for the leading Russian technology companies and organizations seeking to operate in Pakistan’s Special Technology Zones. STZA was enacted in 2021 with a national mandate of creating technological ecosystems across the country and offers access to wide-ranging fiscal and forex incentives, regulatory support, highly trained human capital, and soft landing through its one window framework to support the growth of enterprises in the zones.

The Skolkovo Foundation and STZA intend to cooperate in developing centers of innovation as well as research and development institutions which will facilitate the national development strategy 2024 and 2030 of the Russian Federation and will help Pakistan in achieving its goal of becoming a technology leader in the region, especially in the areas of circular economy, low carbon development projects, clean energy, and digital transformation. It will also aid in establishing linkages among academic institutions, promote online and offline technology activities and practical exchanges in all sectors of technology.

Meezan Bank disburses Rs. 1 billion under Prime Minister’s Kamyab Jawan – Youth Entrepreneurship Scheme (PMKJ-YES) to facilitate the Youth of Pakistan in setting up new or growing established businesses

Karachi (Muhammad Yasir) Meezan Bank, Pakistan’s leading Islamic bank, also became the first and only Islamic bank to disburse Rs. 1 billion under Prime Minister’s Kamyab Jawan – Youth Entrepreneurship Scheme (PMKJ-YES) for Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs)

Mr. Usman Dar, Special Assistant to the Prime Minister on Youth Affairs and Mr. Haleem Adil Sheikh, Member of the Provincial Assembly of Sindh graced the ceremony hosted by Mr. Irfan Siddiqui, Founding President & CEO – Meezan Bank and Mr. Ariful Islam, Deputy CEO – Meezan Bank at the Bank’s Head Office located in Karachi. The event was also attended by the PMKJ-YES teams and senior management of the Bank.

PMKJ – YES will allow access to Islamic finance to those SMEs who, despite being credit-worthy, are unable to avail financing due to various documentary and collateral related issues. Under this scheme, Meezan Bank will extend Shariah-compliant financing facilities of up to PKR 25 million to eligible customers at subsidized rates.

Mr. Irfan Siddiqui reiterated that Meezan Bank, following its Vision of establishing ‘Islamic banking as banking of first choice…’ stands committed to the Government of Pakistan and State Bank of Pakistan in playing a key role in the success of Prime Minister’s Kamyab Jawan Youth Entrepreneurship Scheme and other schemes to promote financial inclusion, by providing Shariah-compliant financing products and solutions.

 

Lahore (Muhammad Yasir)  National Bank of Pakistan has reached agreements with The Federal Reserve Board and Federal Reserve Bank of New York and the New York State Department of Financial Services, the US regulators of NBP’s New York branch. The agreements include fines totaling US $55.4 million focused on historical compliance program weaknesses and delays in making compliance-related enhancements.  There were no findings of improper transactions or willful misconduct. 

The New York branch has been under new management since May 2020 and has substantially enhanced its Compliance Program.  U.S. regulators have recognized the many positive changes resulting from new management.  The National Bank of Pakistan and the New York branch are fully committed to satisfying the regulators’ expectations.