TEHRAN- The value of export from Golestan province, in the northeast of Iran, rose 50 percent in the first five months of the current Iranian calendar year (March 21-August 22), as compared to the same period of time in the past year, a provincial official announced.

Ebrahim Hosseini, the director-general of the province’s customs department, said that commodities worth $85 million were exported from the province in the said five-month period.

He named polystyrene, cheese, dates, aquatic food, metal structures and milk powder as the main exported items, and said that the products were exported to 89 countries among them Turkmenistan, Iraq, Afghanistan, and Kazakhstan were the main export destinations.

The official further announced that commodities worth $15 million were imported to the province in the first five months of the present year, showing nine percent fall year on year.

Production line machinery and raw materials were the main imported items, he said.

As previously announced by the official, the value of export from Golestan rose 58 percent in the first quarter of the present year, as compared to the first quarter of the past year.

The official said that about 95,591 tons of commodities worth $55.62 million were exported from the province in the first quarter of this year, indicating also 27 percent growth in terms of weight.

Polystyrene, cheese, various types of pipes, iodine, dates, compressed wood chipboard, copper wire, ceiling metal structure, aquatic feed and tomato paste were the main exported commodities during the first three months of this year, the official said, and named Turkmenistan, Iraq, Romania, Bulgaria, Kazakhstan, Afghanistan, Poland, Armenia, UAE, Pakistan, Uzbekistan, Turkey and Kyrgyzstan as the major export destinations.

He further announced that 3,006 tons of products worth $6.454 million were imported to the province in the first quarter of the present year, indicating 38 percent rise in worth and 10 percent growth in value year on year.

He named various types of cloth, and diesel generator as the main goods imported to Golestan during the first three months of this year and Turkmenistan, China, UAE, India, England, Turkey, Kazakhstan, Vietnam, Tajikistan, Italy, Uzbekistan and Germany as the sources of imports.

As also announced by the official, the value of export from Golestan province rose 63 percent in the past Iranian calendar year 1400 (ended on March 20), from its preceding year.

Hosseini said that over 402,000 tons of commodities worth $183.6 million were exported from the province in the previous year, indicating also 51 percent growth in terms of weight.

He named polystyrene, dairy products, dates, pistachios, cement, ceramic and tiles, and tomato paste as the major exported products, and Kazakhstan, Iraq, Turkmenistan, Bulgaria, Afghanistan and Romania as the main export destinations.

MA/MA