TEHRAN- The value of commodities exported from Iran’s northwestern province of West Azarbaijan stood at $1 billion during the first half of the current Iranian calendar year (March 20-September 21), according to a local customs official.

Tohid Azarbod put the weight of exported goods at 571,817 tons, IRNA reported.

Agricultural products, including watermelon and apple, as well as plastic products were the main items exported from West Azarbaijan during the said period, he stated.

The official also said that 151,868 tons of commodities valued at $264 million were imported to the country via West Azarbaijan Province during the six-month period.

West Azarbaijan Province has some 967 kilometers of joint border with Turkey, Iraq, and the Nakhchivan Autonomous Republic.

As reported by the Islamic Republic of Iran Customs Administration (IRICA), the value of Iran’s non-oil trade during the first six months of the current Iranian calendar year has reached $30.349 billion.

The volume of traded goods was estimated at about 62.842 million tons, of which over 46.318 million tons were related to exports and about 16.524 million tons were imported goods.

Iran's top five non-oil export destinations during this period were China with over $3.709 billion worth of exports, Iraq with $2.971 billion, the United Arab Emirates with over $1.933 billion, and Afghanistan with $1.103 billion as well as Turkey with $731 million.

China accounted for over 27 percent of Iran’s total exports, followed by Iraq, UAE, Afghanistan, and Turkey with 21.9 percent, 14.2 percent, 8.1 percent, and 45.3 percent respectively.

Polyethylene, natural gas, liquefied propane, and other light oils and products were Iran's major exported items.

More than 70 percent of the imported goods were basic goods and the rest were mainly raw materials, machinery and spare parts for production units.

The top five sources of imports during this period were China with $4.295 billion, the UAE with $3.961 billion, Turkey with $1.814 billion, India with $1.097 billion, and Germany with $835 million worth of imports.

China accounted for nearly 26 percent of Iran’s total imports, followed by UAE, Turkey, India, and Germany with 23 percent, 10.8 percent, 6.5 percent, and five percent, respectively.

MA/MA