LONDON -- Iran is on course to increase its trade surplus with the European Union to euros 4 billion ($3.4bn) in 2000 compared with euros 800 million last year, the latest figures from Eurostat indicate.
In the first nine months of this year, Iran increased its surplus to euros 2.7bn from euros 451m in the same period of 1999, mainly due to the high price of crude oil.
Iranian exports to the world's largest trading group almost doubled to euros 6.2bn between January and September, while imports from the 15-nation group also rose by 29 percent to euros 3.5bn.
The improvement in Iran's exports was not all accounted for by higher crude prices as non-oil sales to the EU also showed a 28 percent increase to euros 900m in the first 9 months of 2000, according to the provisional figures.
Italy remains the biggest purchaser of Iranian goods, with an increase in imports of 81 percent to euros 1.7bn, including euro 200m in non-oil products, between January and September.
Iran's biggest supplier, Germany, also recorded a 32 percent increase in exports to euros 1.1bn in the first nine months.