TEHRAN- Iranian carmakers manufactured 420,000 vehicles in the first four months of the current Iranian calendar year (March 21-July 22), a 20 percent rise year on year, the industry minister Mohammadreza Nematzadeh announced.

The country’s car output had also witnessed 12.5 percent growth in the first quarter of the current year compared to the same period last year, as 306,545 cars were manufactured in the country during the three-month period.

Nematzadeh expressed hope that the annual car output will reach 1.6 million by the end of the current calendar year (March 20, 2018), IRNA reported.

The share of Iran’s auto industry in the country’s gross domestic product (GDP) is projected to rise by 70 percent in the current Iranian year.

Iran manufactured 1.3 million cars in the past calendar year.

Producing more than one million of automobiles in 2016, Iran could rank first among the world countries regarding the growth in its car production, according to the report released by the International Organization of Motor Vehicle Manufacturers in March 2017.

MA/MG