TEHRAN - Exports from Iran’s mining sector reached $7.537 billion in the first seven months of the current Iranian calendar year (March 21 to October 22, 2024), up one percent from the same period last year.

According to the Iranian Mines and Mining Industries Development and Renovation Organization (IMIDRO), exports from the mining sector, including metals and minerals, increased by two percent in weight over the same period to reach nearly 36.6 million tons.

The company said exports of steel, aluminum, and copper amounted to over 19 million tons worth $5.810 billion in the seven months to late October, IRNA reported.

The figures are a sign that Iranian metals producers have managed to recoup some of the losses they suffered in the earlier months of this year when lower supplies of electricity and natural gas affected their output and exports.

Figures published in mid-October showed that Iran’s steel output had dropped by up to 10 percent in some categories of production because of power cuts ordered for industries over the summer months when demand for cooling hit record highs in the country.

IMIDRO said later that month that aluminum ingot output in four major smelters in Iran had also dropped by four percent year on year in the seven months to late October.

Iran is one of the 10 largest steel producers in the world. The country has reported a steady increase in production and exports of steel in recent years amid a war between Ukraine and Russia that has affected regional supplies.

EF/MA