QOM Insufficient demand is the most important obstacle facing domestic producers, said the Industries Ministry's Managing Director for Household and Metals Affairs Mohammad Taqi Moussavi-Pour here Saturday. He told IRNA that currently, the production of some household items is three times their domestic demand. He also pointed to increase in production costs and high retail prices relative to consumers purchasing power as reasons for the prevailing situation.

The official stressed raising the quality of production as a necessity in selling, and added, "to compensate for insufficient domestic demand, the producers have to go for regional markets." He said that currently, there is an excess supply of household items in the country, and added some items have excess production capacity equal to several times the market demand but, due to insufficient demand, they operate far below capacity.

He also predicted that the producers will have an even more accute problem to sell some of their products in the future. He estimated the production of various refrigerators and freezers about two million units and their current production level is at 1.5 million units. "The annual production of washing machines is about 1.5 million and its domestic demand is about 400,000 units", Moussavi-Pour concluded.

(IRNA)