KERMANSHAH -- An exclusive trade fair kicked off in this western Iranian city on Saturday in an attempt to define strategies that can help broader presence of Iranian businessmen in the Iraqi market as well as in the war-torn country’s reconstruction program.

According to IRNA, some 150 companies from different sectors, including oil and gas, steel, petrochemical, agricultural, foodstuff, and textile, have displayed their products and services in 250 pavilions. The exhibition, which covers around 5,500 square meters of land, hosts Iraqi businessmen and experts as well as Iranian visitors.

There is also a trade office in the exhibition center for businessmen to sign their contracts in three languages: Persian, Kurdish and Arabic.

Ilami-made gelims, carpets to shine at Milan handicraft fair

ILAM – Gelims and carpets from this western Iranian province are to be put on display at the international handicraft fair (L' Artigiano in Fiera 2006) in the Italian business capital Milan.

This is the first time that such products woven by the hands of poor Ilami gelim and carpet weavers shine at the fair. “We will exhibit our products in seven pavilions,” said an official with the provincial Cultural Heritage and Tourism Department. Masud Eskandari added that, with taking part in this exhibition, they have targeted a five-million-dollar sale at the international market.

The Milan City fair opened on Saturday and will run until December 10.

Intl. livestock, poultry fair to kick off in Tehran mid-Dec.

TEHRAN -- The Sixth International Exhibition on Poultry, Livestock and Relevant Industries will be held in Tehran's International Fairground from December 14-17.

The agriculture ministry announced on Saturday that 200 companies will showcase their products and achievements in an area of 18,000 square meters at the Tehran Permanent International Fairground. The exhibition will be held in cooperation with nine national institutes in the fields of livestock, poultry and relevant industries.

About three million people are engaged in producing livestock products in Iran and there are 16,000 poultry farms with a total capacity of raising one billion chickens across the country.

A seminar on ‘Chicken Farming Industry and National Economy’ will be held on the sidelines of the event.

Seafood production exceeds 1,200 tons in central province

ARAK, Markazi Prov. – Annual seafood production in this central province has surpassed 1,200 tons, ISNA reported.

Cold-water fish production in Markazi Province reaches 20 kilograms per square meters while some 3.2 tons per hectare of warm-water fish is collected from the province’s fish farms every year.

In 1997, seafood production in this province had hardly attained 50 tons and the per capita fish consumption was at 200 grams. Now, the provincial fisheries department puts the latter at 3 kilograms.

Goods transport via Sarakhs Intl. Railway up 30%

MASHHAD, Khorasan Razavi Prov. – Sarakhs International Railway carried one million tons of goods between Iran and the CIS during the first seven months of the current Iranian year (March 21-October 22, 2006).

Exports from Iran comprised 250,000 tons of the volume that totally corroborated 30 percent increase compared to the same period last year. The railway also accounted for import of 630,000 tons of goods in the said period.

Sarakhs is located 180 kilometers northeast of the provincial capital Mashhad on the border between Iran and Turkmenistan.