TEHRAN- The value of trade between Iran and the European Union member states reached €4.44 billion in the first seven months of 2015, a nine percent rise from €4.067 billion in the same period of time in 2014, according to the EU statistics agency Eurostat. 

The European Union countries’ worth of imports from Iran had a growth four times more than the growth of their worth of exports from the country during the first seven months of this year, the Tasnim News Agency reported on Sunday. 

The worth of EU states’ imports from Iran amounted to €730 million during January-July of 2015, showing 28 percent rise from €567 million in the seven-month period last year.

It is while the value of European Union countries’ exports to the Islamic Republic rose 6 percent to €3.71 billion in the first seven months of this year from €3.5 billion in the same period of time in 2014. 

The value of trade between Iran and the EU countries rose 20 percent in 2014 compared to its previous year. 

Iran’s annual trade amounted to $150 billion in the previous Iranian calendar year, which ended on March 20. 

On April 5, Iranian Deputy Industry, Mining, and Trade Minister Mojtaba Khosrotaj said the country’s value of annual non-oil exports is planned to rise by 20 percent and reach $60 billion in the current Iranian calendar year. 

In December 2014, Iranian President Hassan Rouhani said the government aimed to increase non-oil exports to $50 billion by the next calendar year. 

MA/