Iran’s non-oil exports hit $12b over 4 months

TEHRAN,Aug.5(MNA) - Iran exported some $12 billion worth of non-oil goods in the first four months of this year, which began on March 20, said the head of the Trade Promotion Organization of Iran (TPOI). Hamid Safdel told the Mehr News Agency that the exports grew by 24.6 percent compared to the same period last year. Iraq, China and UAE were the main destinations for the Iranian goods, he noted. TPOI has set the target of $75 billion for non-oil exports for this year, Safdel said in March. Previously, the Customs Administration head announced that Iran had exported around $43.7 billion worth of non-oil goods in the past calendar year and imported some $61.8 billion worth of goods, to hit the unprecedented mark of $105 billion in annual trade. Abbas Memarnejad said non-oil exports rose by 28 percent compared to the year before, while imports declined by four percent. Iran has scaled up its trade with 160 countries this year, despite being embattled with global economic sanctions, Memarnejad said in April.