The United Arab Emirates (UAE) flag carrier Emirates Airline has decided to establish a cargo business hub at Karachi’s Jinnah International Airport.

According to reports, Emirates has requested 90,000 square meters of space at the Karachi airport’s cargo terminal. The decision to set up a cargo hub in Karachi comes in response to the growing demand for cargo business.

Currently, Emirates handles the largest cargo business in Karachi, with over 27,000 tonnes of cargo transported from Karachi in 2024 alone.

In contrast, due to lack of awareness and proper planning, PIA (Pakistan International Airlines) was only able to handle 2,000 tonnes of cargo from Karachi by 2024.

Sources indicate that in response to Emirates’ request, the airport authority has started work on allocating space at the cargo terminal.

A month ago, Emirates officially launched its new travel store in Karachi, making it the airline’s first experiential retail concept to launch in West Asia.

The store was inaugurated by Essa Sulaiman Ahmad, Emirates’ Senior Vice President of Commercial Operations, West Asia and Indian Ocean, in the presence of Hamad Obaid Ibrahim Salem Al-Zaabi, Ambassador of the United Arab Emirates (UAE).

Bakheet Ateeq Al-Rumaithi, Consul General of the UAE in Karachi, who was also present at the event, highlighted the strong ties between the UAE and Pakistan.

Speaking about participation in the privatization of Pakistan International Airlines (PIA), Essa Sulaiman Ahmad said: “We are concentrating more on our own airline and are not looking at buying any share or carrier. We have just spent $2 billion on retrofitting our aircraft. We are definitely looking at our own growth.”