TEHRAN- The value of Iran’s non-oil exports increased by 6.5 percent during the first six months of the current Iranian calendar year (March 20-September 21), as compared to the same period of time in the past year, the head of the Islamic Republic of Iran Customs Administration (IRICA) announced.

Mohammad Rezvanifar said that the country exported 70 million tons of non-oil products valued at $25.8 billion during the first half of this year, also indicating 3.5 percent growth in terms of weight, year on year.

According to the IRICA head, Iran also exported $23.2 billion of oil and $600 million of technical and engineering services during the mentioned period, boosting the country's total exports to $49.6 billion.

During this period, the imports reached $32.6 billion, including $2.5 billion of gold bullion.

Stating that the country's total trade exchange during the first half of the current year was $82.2 billion, he added: “During this period, the trade balance of the country without oil and technical and engineering services was 6.8 billion dollars negative, and taking into account oil and technical and engineering services, it was 17 billion dollars positive.”

“The average value per ton of export goods increased by three percent to $366 in the first six months of this year,” he noted.

China with $7.2 billion, Iraq with $5.2 billion, United Arab Emirates with $3.4 billion, Turkey with $2.4 billion, Afghanistan with $1.1 billion, Pakistan with $1.0 billion, and India with $900 million were the main export destinations of Iranian goods during the mentioned period.

These seven countries accounted for 81 percent of the weight and 82 percent of the total value of Iran’s exports, according to Rezvanifar.

The UAE with $10 billion, China with $8.5 billion, Turkey with $5.1 billion, Germany with $1.2 billion, the Russian Federation and India with $800 million each, and Hong Kong with $600 million were also the top sources of imports for Iran in the first half of the current year.

China, UAE, and Turkey were Iran’s top trading partners in the mentioned six months, Rezvanifar said.

EF/MA