TEHRAN – The secretary of Iranian Auto Parts Makers Association said 40,000 workers who were dismissed by the country’s auto parts makers have been re-employed following a boom in the auto industry, ISNA reported on Saturday.

Maziar Beyglou noted that if the current production trend continues, “we will expect an increase in the automotive industry’s production next year.”

Mentioning the industry ministry’s strategies for promoting domestic production, Beyglou said: “Following the current policies, we will see the production of a number of new vehicles from domestic automakers in the coming years.”

Domestic parts suppliers are able to play a key role in creating a boom in the country's manufacturing and employment industries, in addition to playing their leading role as the auto industry’s intermediates, he stressed.

Beyglou pointed to relying on foreign sources, as the main reason for the decline in the country’s car production after the re-imposition of the U.S. sanctions, saying “With the new policies adopted, if we provide funding for the country’s auto parts industry, we will definitely witness the production of high-quality and up-to-date vehicles by domestic manufacturers.”

In mid-May 2019, the Iranian Industry, Mining and Trade Minister Reza Rahmani issued a directive on “strengthening domestic manufacturing of imported auto parts”.

Addressing two of his deputies, Farshad Moqimi, deputy for industrial affairs, and Mohammad-Baqer Ali, the board chairman of Iran’s Industrial Development and Renovation Organization (IDRO), the minister put emphasis on using the highest potential of human resources for strengthening domestic manufacturing of auto parts which are currently imported to the country.

Also in December 2019, the Specialized Manufactures of Auto Parts Association announced that Iranian carmakers have prepared some incentive packages to encourage investment making by the auto parts manufacturers.

Given that 1.25 million vehicles have been anticipated to be manufactured in the country during the current Iranian calendar year (ends on March 19, 2020), the part manufacturers need 150 trillion rials of working capital (about $3.571 billion) for the purchase of raw materials and other required items.

EF/MA