TEHRAN – The Central Bank of Iran has announced that the national economy expanded by 3 percent in the previous Iranian calendar year, which ended on March 20, 2015.

The country’s gross domestic product (GDP) hit 10,807,477 billion rials (about $327 billion), in Iranian calendar year 1393 (March 2014-March 2015), a 3 percent rise year on year.

It should be noted that the Iranian economy had contracted by 1.9 percent in Iranian calendar year 1392 (March 2013-March 2014).

The World Bank has forecasted Iran’s GDP will grow by 1 percent in 2015. 

In its June 2015 Global Economic Prospects report with the theme of The Global Economy in Transition, the World Bank said Iran’s economy expanded by 3.7 percent in 2014. 

It also predicted a 2 percent GDP growth for the country in 2016. 

Meanwhile, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) forecast a 0.6 percent GDP growth for Iran in 2015 in its April World Economic Outlook.  

The IMF report put Iran’s GDP growth at 3 percent in 2014, while predicting a 1.3 percent GDP growth for the country in 2016.  

The report also said Iran maintained its 2013 rank as the World’s 18th largest economy in 2014 based on the purchasing power parity (PPP).  

In April 2014, the IMF said Iran had achieved considerable progress in raising per capita income and living standards in previous decades.