TEHRAN (ISNA) – Trade balance between Iran and United Arab Emirates has constantly been in favor of the Persian Gulf Arab state during the past 10 years, reported the Persian daily Qods.

It further said that the UAE has turned into Iran’s largest trading partner, adding that bilateral trade stood at $9.6 billion in the year to March 2006.

It further noted that Iran is the UAE’s largest re-export market, stressing that Tehran imported 19.6% of its total goods from the tiny Arab state last year.

A major portion of Iran’s exports to the international markets is also handled by the UAE. Iran’s exports via UAE stood at 17.6% last year.

Iran’s imports from UAE jumped from $1.1 billion in 2000 to $7.7 billion in 2005 while its exports via UAE also increased from $444 million to $1.8 billion in the same period.

Iran chiefly imported gasoline, light oils, cigarettes, machinery parts, telecoms and radio equipment, mobile phones, heavy machinery, automated teller machines and bananas in the past three years.

Iran’s imports from UAE have shown an average growth of 37.9% in the past 10 years. Its exports via the UAE chiefly include foodstuffs and agricultural products as well as raw materials.

Large quantities of goods are also smuggled into Iran from the UAE.