TEHRAN - The 28th meeting of the Tehran Chamber of Commerce, Industries, Mines and Agriculture (TCCIMA)’s Business Environment Improvement Committee was held on Monday during which the negative impacts of smuggling on domestic production and business environment were discussed.

The attendees of the meeting stressed the need for paying attention to the needs in the market in order to prevent the expansion of smuggling, the TCCIMA portal reported.

They mentioned import bans and restrictions, price suppression, multiple forex rates, and the weak competitiveness of domestic products as the major reasons for the increase in smuggling into the country.

Speaking at the gathering, Mohammadreza Najafimanesh, the head of the committee, said the major approach of the country’s anti-smuggling headquarters regarding the smuggling phenomenon has been penalizing and this is not an appropriate way for resolving the issue.

"It seems that dealing with this phenomenon requires more fundamental measures; It is necessary to raise people's awareness about smuggling through culture building so that everyone can be persuaded not to use contraband,” he said.

EF/MA