TEHRAN – The value of Iran’s exports to its Arab trade partners in the region reached $2.5 billion in the first five months of the current Iranian calendar year (March 20-August 21), Farzad Piltan, the director-general of Iran's Trade Promotion Organization (TPO)’s Office of Arabian and African Countries, said.

According to Piltan, the mentioned trade partners include Iraq, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Oman, Qatar, Kuwait, Syria, Qatar, Jordan, Lebanon, and Bahrain.

Among Iran’s top trade partners, Iraq was ranked the second export destination with about $1.834 billion worth of goods exported to the country, followed by UAE, Oman, Kuwait, Syria, and Qatar.

As reported, the exports to the mentioned Arab partners decreased by about $3.5 billion in the mentioned period compared to the previous year following the outbreak of Coronavirus and the closure of Iran's borders with neighboring countries.

However, this decline is expected to be partially compensated by the end of this year (March 2021) following the reopening of borders and the resumption of international trade.

The value of Iran’s total non-oil trade during the first five months of the current stood at $24.6 billion, about $5 billion more than the figure for the first four months.

According to the Head of the Islamic Republic of Iran Customs Administration (IRICA) Mehdi Mirashrafi, the significant increase in the value of trade was an indication that the negative impact of the Covid-19 outbreak on Iran's foreign trade has alleviated.

Iran's top five non-oil export destinations during this period were China with over $3 billion worth of exports, Iraq with $2.406 billion, the United Arab Emirates (UAE) with over $1.554 billion, and Afghanistan with $871 million as well as Turkey with $513 million.

EF/MA