TEHRAN- The value of export from Markazi province, in the center of Iran, rose 11 percent in the first three months of the current Iranian calendar year (March 21-June 21), from the same period of time in the past year, according to a provincial official.

Esmaeil Hosseini, the director-general of the province’s customs department, said that 363,166 tons of goods worth $306.116 million were exported from Markazi in the first quarter of this year, indicating also three percent rise in weight.

The official said that the products were exported to 67 countries including Turkey, Iraq, Afghanistan, Pakistan and Azerbaijan.

He named heavy and light polyethylene, aluminum ingots, food and beverages, plastic and disposable products, glass and crystal products, steel sections, tissues, tiles and ceramics as the major exported products.

Hosseini further announced that 35,545 tons of products valued at $134.764 million were imported to the province in the first quarter of the present year, with 11 percent and eight percent growth in value and weight, respectively.

He named the United Araba Emirates (UAE), Turkey, China, Hong Gong, and Qatar as the main sources of imports and raw materials for the production of diapers, juice packs, machines, components and parts, edible essence, edible raw materials, steel wire, aluminum coil and sanitary raw materials as the major imported items.

Markazi province is one of the major industrial and agricultural hubs of Iran.

More than 2,800 production units are active in Markazi province, of which 250 units are also active in the field of export.

As previously announced by Ali Jodaki, the acting head of the province’s Industry, Mining and Trade Department, the value of export from Markazi province rose 39 percent in the past Iranian calendar year 1400 (ended on March 20), from its preceding year.

He said that over 917,000 tons of non-oil commodities worth $1.109 billion were exported from the province in the previous year.

He named petrochemical products, aluminum ingots, juices, chemicals, all kinds of glass, casting products, polyester fibers, rebar, flowers and plants, heavy and light polyethylene, and polypropylene as the main products exported from the province in the previous year, and Iraq, Afghanistan, Turkey, Pakistan, and the United Arab Emirates as the major export destinations.

The official further announced that 129,000 tons of products worth $446 million were imported into the province in the past year.

He named alumina powder, carbon anode, aluminum coil, peanuts, juice raw materials, aluminum ingots, steel pipes and rebars, juice bags, and cotton as the major imported items, and China, Turkey, the UAE, India and Germany as the main sources of imports.

As announced by the head of the Islamic Republic of Iran Customs Administration (IRICA), the value of Iran’s non-oil exports reached $13.69 billion in the first three months of the current Iranian calendar year, up 21 percent compared to the last year’s same period.

Alireza Moghadasi said Iran exported 27.7 million tons of non-oil commodities in the mentioned three months.

Meanwhile, some 8.154 million tons of goods valued at $12.464 billion were imported into the country in the said period to register an 18-percent rise in terms of value compared to the last year’s same quarter.

In total, the Islamic Republic traded about 36 million tons of non-oil goods worth $25.5 billion with its trade partners in the first quarter of the current Iranian calendar year, up 19.5 percent in terms of value, Moghadasi said.

According to the official, the country’s trade balance was $605 million positive in the mentioned time span.

Iran's top export destination during this period was China with $4.214 billion worth of imports from the Islamic Republic, followed by Iraq with $1.824 billion, Turkey with $1.737 billion, the United Arab Emirates (UAE) with over $1.645 billion, and India with $424 million.

Meanwhile, the country’s top five sources of imports during these three months were the UAE with $3.426 billion, China with $3.131 billion, Turkey with $1.273 billion, India with $512 million, and Germany with $456 million worth of imports.

MA/MA