Trade Official: Iran’s Non-Oil Exports Rise despite Sanctions
TEHRAN (Tasnim) – An official at Iran’s Chamber of Commerce predicted a double increase in the value of the country’s non-oil exports compared to the previous Iranian year, a sign that he said reveals the futility of the anti-Iran sanctions.
Head of the Exports Commission of Iran’s Chamber of Commerce Asadollah Asgaroladi said on Sunday that that value of non-oil exports by the end of the current Iranian year (March 20, 2015) will reach $50 billion.
In the previous Iranian year, the country exported a total of $26 billion worth of non-oil goods, weighing 52 million tons, he noted, adding that the volume of exports in only the first eight months of this year (March 21 - November 21) hit 62 million tons.
Asgaroladi added that such a rise in the non-oil exports occurred in spite of a whole host of sanctions the West has slapped on the country.
“The sanctions have had no bearing on the exports and the countries that have imposed sanctions have suffered more damage than Iran,” he explained.
Earlier this month, Iranian President Hassan Rouhani said non-oil exports will boost in 2015 as part of efforts to decrease the country’s dependence on oil revenues.
“We need to increase non-oil exports to make up for the decreases in oil revenues,” Rouhani said, describing the sliding crude prices as a new opportunity for Iran to reduce dependence on oil revenues.
