Tehran, Bishkek to see ten fold boost in trade

TEHRAN,July 10 (MNA) - Iran and Kyrgyzstan have agreed to significantly increase their annual trade by a factor of ten to $5 billion over the long term. Iranian Industry, Mine and Trade Minister Mehdi Ghazanfari and Kyrgyz Finance Minister Akylbek Japarov held the tenth meeting of Iran-Kyrgyzstan Joint Economic Committee in Tehran on Monday, calling for the bilateral trade to rise to $2 billion within three years. Iran mainly exports clothing, nuts, paints and flooring to Kyrgyzstan and imports meat, grain and steel scraps, Ghazanfari said. He also said that the previously signed preferential trade agreement could be turned into a free trade agreement by the two sides to enhance the two-way trade. Kyrgyz Ambassador to Iran Medetkhan Sherimkulov has called on Iranian companies to play a greater role in different economic, agriculture, industrial and cultural fields in Kyrgyzstan. He said 180 industrial units are currently operating in Kyrgyzstan, adding that both Iranian and Kyrgyz traders have established these units through joint ventures, with the Iranian companies accounting for 70 percent of the investment, according to Press TV.