Almost 2.8 million mobile phones were sold in the GCC and Pakistan markets in March and April, signifying the sharpest increase in offtake during the recent past, according to latest figures revealed by Samsung.

Coupled with the 1.83 million handsets sold during January and February, the latest numbers confirm that the sector continues to record strong growth numbers. The research was conducted by GfK, an European research group.

While the UAE continued to set the pace with strong domestic and re-export volumes, bulk buyers from Iraq represented another window of opportunity for GSM handset vendors, as did the entry of a new telecom operator in Pakistan during the first quarter which led to more demand from that market.

Buyers for the Iraqi market are essentially sourcing entry level and mid priced handsets, and this demand looks to sustain during the rest of the year as well. There has also been market talk that the telecom operators in Iraq could sign up with the handset vendors to develop that market from within.

"Another market that has been growing aggressively is Qatar where Q-Tel has signed up with the leading handset vendors to offer special packages," said Ramdas Rajamani, Samsung's marketing manager, telecommunications division, Middle East and Africa.

"Bahrain is another to have seen notable growth during the most recent period, with both operators showing good growth in the mobile subscriber base," he added.

It is estimated that the UAE would have accounted for around 30 per cent of the overall volumes during the first four months, with Pakistan making up 10 per cent.

Samsung has introduced the SGH-E600 and SGH-E310, billed as the world's smallest camera phones. The models are priced at Dh1,000 and up.

Meanwhile replacement demand — estimated at over 20 per cent of the overall market — has been providing a big boost to the UAE numbers.

The second half of the year could have more good news for the industry. Saudi Arabia should be announcing its second GSM operator, and it is expected that the winner would launch services during the early part of 2005.

"Saudi Arabia is the Big Bang waiting to happen for handset manufacturers," said Rajamani. "While the GSM subscriber base is already pretty sizeable (5 million plus), a second operator will have plenty of opportunities to develop it further."