TEHRAN – The value of export from Markazi province, in the center of Iran, rose nine percent in the first five months of the current Iranian calendar year (March 21-August 22), as compared to the same period of time in the past year, a provincial official announced.

Esmaeil Hosseini, the director-general of the province’s customs department, said that over 650,457 tons of commodities worth more than $508.543 million were exported from the province in the five-month period, indicating also seven percent rise in weight.

The products were exported to 71 countries, among them Turkey, Iraq, Afghanistan, Pakistan and Russia were the major export destinations, the official said.

He named aluminum ingots, types of hydrocarbons, chemical products, tiles, glass containers, plastic products, and foodstuffs as the major exported goods during the said time.

The official also announced that 59,690 tons of products worth $217.425 million were imported to the province in the first five months of the present year, showing 19 percent rise year on year.

He named aluminum ingot, gas generator, raw sunflower seeds, various edible powders, juice packets, empty gelatin capsules, raw peanuts, steel sheet, and juice cans as the main imported items.

The products were imported from 36 countries, among them the Unites Araba Emirates (UAE), Turkey, China, and Hong Kong were the main sources of imports, he stated.

As previously announced by Ali Jodaki, the acting head of the province’s Industry, Mining and Trade Department, the value of export from Markazi province rose 39 percent in the past Iranian calendar year 1400 (ended on March 20), from its preceding year.

He said that over 917,000 tons of non-oil commodities worth $1.109 billion were exported from the province in the previous year.

He named petrochemical products, aluminum ingots, juices, chemicals, all kinds of glass, casting products, polyester fibers, rebar, flowers and plants, heavy and light polyethylene, and polypropylene as the main products exported from the province in the previous year, and Iraq, Afghanistan, Turkey, Pakistan, and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) as the major export destinations.

The official further announced that 129,000 tons of products worth $446 million were imported into the province in the past year.

He named alumina powder, carbon anode, aluminum coil, peanuts, juice raw materials, aluminum ingots, steel pipes and rebars, juice bags, and cotton as the major imported items, and China, Turkey, the UAE, India and Germany as the main sources of imports.

More than 2,800 production units are active in Markazi province, of which 250 units are also active in the field of export.

The head of the Islamic Republic of Iran Customs Administration (IRICA) has announced that the value of Iran’s non-oil exports reached $20.924 billion in the first five months of the current Iranian calendar year, up 21 percent compared to the last year’s same period.

According to Alireza Moghadasi, Iran exported 44 million tons of non-oil commodities in the mentioned five months which was 3.5 percent less than the figure for the previous year’s same period.

Meanwhile, some 14 million tons of goods valued at $21.665 billion were imported into the country, indicating a 19-percent rise in terms of value compared to the last year’s same time span, he said.

The weight of the imported goods declined by 8.5 percent, year on year, the official added.

In total, the Islamic Republic traded about 58 million tons of non-oil goods worth $42.589 billion with its trade partners in the first five months of the current Iranian calendar year, up about 23 percent in terms of value.

Iran's top export destinations during this period were China, Iraq, United Arab Emirates (UAE), Turkey, and India, according to Moghadasi.

Liquid propane, methanol, liquefied natural gas, polyethylene, iron, and steel ingots were among the top exported items in the said five months.

The country’s top five sources of imports during these five months were the UAE, China, Turkey, India, and Russia.

MA/MA