How the UAE flight cut off will show up on Pakistani store shelves

In 2025, there was a flight between the UAE and Pakistan, on average, every 12 minutes, according to Profit’s analysis of data published by the Pakistan Civil Aviation Authority (PCAA). More than half of those flights were operated by UAE-headquartered airlines: Emirates, flydubai, Etihad, and Air Arabia.

In recent weeks, as Pakistan has sought to mediate the conflict between Iran and the United States, the UAE government has made its displeasure with Islamabad known. At least some Pakistani expats have been expelled from the UAE, economic ties have turned frosty, and sustained disruptions in oil supplies remain a possibility. The effect has also been felt in aviation. Recently, flydubai flights from Dubai to Peshawar, Islamabad, and Lahore have been cancelled. Etihad and Emirates have also significantly reduced schedules to major Pakistani airports.

Considering the UAE is the second largest source of remittances to Pakistan and also its second largest source of oil imports, the economic impact of this diplomatic shift is very real. The macroeconomic consequences will take time to materialise. The most immediate impact, however, will be felt in the most informal aspect of Pakistan’s ties to the UAE: the presence of smuggled imported goods on store shelves across the country, particularly in middle and upper-middle-class neighbourhoods.

You see, over the past 30 years most Pakistanis that belong to these neighbourhoods have become used to certain luxuries. Expensive tech like  iPads and MacBooks, perfumes, designer bags, cosmetics, skincare, chocolates and clothes are all available in Pakistan even if the brands that make them have no retail or distribution presence in the country. This has only been made possible through the intervention of a type of person called a khepia.

A khepia, for those who have not heard the term before, is a professional luggage carrier. These are individuals who, either for a living or some extra cash on the side, bring goods from foreign countries into Pakistan with the express intention of selling them.