Business

Food delivery firm invests in third-party restaurants

Published

2 months ago

October 11, 2023

Admin

KARACHI:

The international online food delivery company, foodpanda, is investing in third-party restaurants and supporting home-based chefs in Pakistan in a bid to expand operations beyond main cities to all over the country.

It expresses confidence that the growing number of tech-savvy people will continue to fuel its ride to deliver food to a large number of customers in the existing 35 and new cities in the country.

In an interview with The Express Tribune, foodpanda APAC (Asia-Pacific) CEO Jakob Sebastian Angele said “Pakistan is one of very important countries for foodpanda.”

“One challenge we see is that while we have a lot of customers who want to order foodpanda, very often there are not so many restaurants actually available because in smaller cities the restaurant density is quite low,” he said.

Angele said the number of restaurants in Pakistan remained low compared to Thailand, Hong Kong and Italy, for example. “So, we are working with a lot of restaurants like how can we enable them to expand.”

“We give them payment. We give them loan or help them to get a loan from bank. We form partnership with them, (give them) market insight…helping restaurants to expand to other cities and to different neighbouhoods in the same cities.”

More than 20,000 restaurants and food outlets are registered with the foodpanda app across Pakistan.

Online food orders, both within the industry and for foodpanda specifically, are growing consistently. The compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of the industry is expected to be around 18% in five years (2023-2027).

The CEO, however, did not share the amount of investment they plan to invest to expand its operations, saying “this is confidential”. It also remains unknown whether the company is running in profit or not. Earlier, the company projected to hit breakeven in 2023.

The app-based food delivery business, which is now part of Germany-based Delivery Hero, is also working with home-based female chefs “to open their own online kitchen and offer home-cooked food,” Angele said.

The company launched the HomeChef initiative in Pakistan in 2021 and is said to have registered over 10,000 so far.

During his recent visit to Pakistan, the CEO said he met one of the biggest home chefs. She started out all by herself in her kitchen, started delivering five to 10 orders a day and now she is operating on three locations and delivering 300-plus orders every single day.

“It is amazing to enable those highly intelligent and motivated female entrepreneurs and at the same time of course good for customers, for our riders and of course for foodpanda as a company.”

Geographically, the company is operating in 35 major cities in Pakistan. “I see a lot of potential in customers who are very technology-savvy, who have also some disposable income.”

“Pakistan is really exciting because it is such a large and powerful country. Some 240 million inhabitants and the population keeps increasing and we really think…a lot of potential in Pakistan.”

At the moment, the economic situation is very difficult in Pakistan. “We need to stick to our strategy, we stay committed to Pakistan,” he said. He revealed that foodpanda had increased compensation for its 50,000 riders after petrol prices spiked in Pakistan.

Published in The Express Tribune, October 11^th, 2023.

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Business

PSX crosses 60,000 points milestone

Published

15 mins ago

November 28, 2023

Admin

Segregation of client assets is critical as brokers have been penalised for using client money illegally. PHOTO: AFP

KARACHI:

The Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) smoothly crossed the psychological barrier of 60,000 points during the early trading hours of Tuesday.

The gains came due to rich individuals and institutional investors making significant new investments in expectation of deep cuts in interest rates and the availability of stocks at low prices.

The PSX benchmark KSE-100 Index hit a new all-time high level of 60,745 points, rising by 1.56% or 934 points before mid-day from Monday’s close at 59,811 points. Penny stocks were the volume leader in the rally including textile, technology, food, bank and steel stocks.

Speaking to The Express Tribune, Arif Habib Limited Head of Research Tahir Abbas said: “The high expectation for a deep 7% cut in the key policy rate (interest rate) by the State Bank of Pakistan over the one-year agreed investors to take new possessions”.

“The central bank is expected to cut its key policy rate to 15% by December 2024 from record high 22% at present…ahead of a potential deceleration in inflation reading next year,” he added

Abbas mentioned that the interest rate cut expectations have made rich individuals and institutional investors relocate their investments to the stock market from fixed-income instruments these days.

Topline Securities CEO Muhammad Sohail said in a comment on X (formerly Twitter) that the PSX is breaking records and the development is “still not surprising.”

The market has gained 50% in only five months to over 60,000 points from 40,000 points. “This is the fastest 50% rise in a few months after 2004,” he wrote.

Read PSX hits fresh record, nears 60k milestone

“When you have an unbelievably low valuation, a price-to-earnings ratio of 3-4%, such recovery is not at all surprising,” Sohail further commented.

Abbas further said the listed companies have booked record high growth in profit of 46% in the first nine months ending September 2023 and added that “accordingly, dividend payments by them rose robustly by 42% in the same period. This is another factor that has attracted new investment at PSX”.

The market is expecting foreign currency inflows worth around $1.5-2 billion from multilateral creditors like the World Bank and Asian Development Bank soon after the IMF executive board approves the release of its second tranche of $700 million to Pakistan in December 2023.

This is another factor for the record-buying spree at PSX.

He anticipated the market reaching 75,000-80,000 points by the end of December 2024 considering all goes well including political stability in the country, economic growth, and global commodity prices remaining stable.

“The next six months seem stable at least”, he maintained.

Business

Completion of key projects increases water storage

Published

1 hour ago

November 28, 2023

Admin

LAHORE:

The completion of eight ongoing water and hydropower projects by Water and Power Development Authority (WAPDA) is set to significantly enhance Pakistan’s water storage capacity and hydel power generation. The carry-over water capacity in the country will increase from 30 to 45 days, with an additional 9.7 MAF water storage.

During a visit to WAPDA House, a delegation from PAF Air War College Karachi, led by Air Commodore Raja Imran Asghar, received a comprehensive briefing. The delegation comprised officers from Pakistan and allied nations.

Read: Water projects presented to Turkish consultants

The delegation learned about the climate change threats and water security challenges faced by Pakistan. WAPDA’s ongoing projects, such as Diamer Basha Dam, Mohmand Dam, and others, were highlighted as crucial for the water, food, and energy security of the country.

Published in The Express Tribune, November 28^th, 2023.

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Business

Pakistan, China forge textile ties

Published

2 hours ago

November 28, 2023

Admin

SUZHOU:

A Pakistani delegation, led by Hussain Haider, Pakistan’s Consul General in Shanghai, visited Shengze Oriental Textile City in Suzhou, China, and met with representatives from local textile enterprises.

During the meeting, Haider introduced the trade and investment environment of Pakistan and China, with a particular focus on the preferential policies available to Chinese investors in Pakistan. “Currently, Pakistan’s textile exports to China mainly consist of cotton yarn, apparel, cotton fabrics, and home textiles, with cotton yarn accounting for 73% of the total,” he stated.

Expressing a strong desire for deep cooperation with Shengze’s silk and textile industry cluster, he extended an invitation to Shengze’s enterprises to visit Pakistan and gain first-hand knowledge of the trade and investment policies.

Shengze is renowned for its robust silk and textile industry with a rich history. To gain insights into the dynamics of the textile sector and explore potential collaborations, the delegation toured several textile enterprises in Shengze Oriental Textile City and reached preliminary cooperation intentions. Haider said, “We hope to further communicate and connect with Shengze Oriental Textile City. We sincerely invite Shengze’s enterprises to invest and establish factories in Pakistan, aiming to achieve mutual benefits and contribute to the deepening of China-Pakistan cooperation.”

Read: Chinese manufacturers to help textile industry

Agro-forestry Economy

The third Science and Technology Exchange Conference on China-Pakistan Tropical Arid Non-wood Forest is being held both online and offline from November 26 to 28 in Zhengzhou, China, and Gwadar, Pakistan, simultaneously.

The exchange conference aims to showcase achievements and research progress of both nations in the field of economic forestry. It also seeks to facilitate academic exchanges of woody medicinal herbs and active substances between China and Pakistan.

The event, co-hosted by the Chinese Society of Forestry (CSF) and Central South University of Forestry and Technology (CSUFT), drew over 220 officials, scholars, students, and business representatives from both countries.

In 2021, CSUFT, China Overseas Port Holding Company, and Yulin Holdings collaborated to establish an Engineering Research Centre for Tropical Arid Non-wood Forest.

THE ARTICLE ORIGINALLY APPEARED ON THE CHINA ECONOMIC NET

Published in The Express Tribune, November 28^th, 2023.

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