Iran govt. sold $392m stocks in 2006

March 17, 2007 - 0:0
TEHRAN -- Iran’s Privatization Organization has offered Rls.3.647 trillion ($392 million) worth of stocks at Tehran Stock Exchange (TSE) since the current Iranian calendar year (started March 21, 2006), the organization said on Friday.

The Privatization Organization has managed to sell the shares of its companies and firms to the private sector at the TSE, Ebrahim Soleimani-Khoshru said adding that the sales will continue next Saturday and Monday.

Overall, the IPO has offered 1,225,518,084 shares during the period, he announced, adding that most of the stocks belonged to the Industrial Development and Renovation Organization (IDRO).

With the sale of Mobarakeh Steel Co., Iran’s major steel producer near Isfahan, coming to an end, the steel maker’s stockholders have queued up to sell their newly purchased shares because they will need cash for new transactions in the upcoming year, he added.

Khoshru predicted that the next Iranian year will be a prosperous year for the Tehran Stock Exchange.

Based on a recent amendment made to the Article 44 of the Constitution, 80 percent of the government stakes in a range of state-run factories, basic industries, and major companies will be sold to the private sector.