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Iran, Uzbekistan urged to take serious steps for expansion of ties
President of Iran Chamber of Commerce, Industries, Mines, and Agriculture (ICCIMA) says Iran and Uzbekistan have to give a boost to bilateral relations by taking more serious steps.
Samad Hassanzadeh made the remarks in an Iran-Uzbekistan Business Forum in Tashkent on Thursday.
He stressed the making use of the existing potentials can ensure long-term relations between the economic operators of the two countries.
The Iran Chamber of Commerce president, however, noted that further relations between Iran and Uzbekistan rests upon adjustment of trade tariffs, and preparing the necessary infrastructure in the areas of banking, customs and transportation.
“Our first objective is to increase the current (bilateral) $500 million trade to $1 billion,” Hassanzadeh said, expressing hope to achieve this goal by the yearend.
He complained that Uzbekistan’s tariffs on Iranian goods are higher than those imposed on other countries.
Referring to Iran’s special geographical position which he said provides every country with profitable trade through transit routes, he invited Uzbekistani businesspeople to invest in the North-South corridor and the development of Makran coast in southern Iran.
Chairman of Uzbekistan Chamber of Commerce Vakhabov Davron, also addressed the forum, noting that the volume of trade between Iran and Uzbekistan witnessed 29% growth last year.
Noting that the Iranian products are 20 to 40 percent less costly than those provided by other nations, he highlighted the need for Iran and Uzbekistan to launch joint committees of commerce
Iran seeks investment in Uzbekistan’s Khorezm energy, tourism projects
President of Iran Chamber of Commerce, Industries, Mines, and Agriculture (ICCIMA) says Iran and Uzbekistan can cooperate in infrastructural, energy, and tourism projects.
Speaking during an Iran-Uzbekistan Joint Business Forum in Khiva, west of Khorezm region of Uzbekistan on Friday, Samad Hassanzadeh said that both Iran and Uzbekistan enjoy abundant economic, natural potentials as well as expert manpower.
“We can engage in joint investment projects in the areas of energy, transportation, agriculture and tourism,” he said.
The president of Iran Chamber of Commerce also stressed that Iran and Uzbekistan enjoy huge economic potentials. He added that if the infrastructural obstacles are removed, they will witness significant increase in bilateral exchanges.
He expressed hope that Iran and Uzbekistan will witness further expansion in cooperation in the area of trade, industry and investment.
In another business forum which was held in Tashkent a day earlier, Hassanzadeh said that “our first objective is to increase the current (bilateral) $500 million trade to $1 billion.” He expressing hope that this goal will be achieve by the yearend.
He complained that Uzbekistan’s tariffs on Iranian goods are higher than those imposed on other countries.
Referring to Iran’s special geographical position which he said provides every country with profitable trade through transit routes, he invited Uzbekistani businesspeople to invest in the North-South corridor and the development of Makran coast in southern Iran.
Iran Chamber of Commerce president highlights expansion of ties with Uzbekistan
President of Iran Chamber of Commerce, Industries, Mines, and Agriculture (ICCIMA) has called for more enhanced exchanges between Iran and Uzbekistan.
Samad Hassanzadeh, who is on a visit to Uzbekistan, made the remarks in a meeting on Friday with Tashkent mayor Shavkat Umurzakov.
During the meeting, the two sides stressed that the trade ties between Iran and Uzbekistan is too low compared to the huge potentials of the two countries.
The Iran Chamber of Commerce president said that Iran exports an annual $2 billion worth of food abroad and also exports agricultural equipment, including tractors, to other countries.
He also referred to Iran’s good potentials in providing techno-engineering services and petrochemicals, construction of power plants, roads and bridges which he believed can also be used in economic cooperation with Uzbekistan.
Hassanzadeh added that Iran has invested some $4 billion in power plants and road building projects of Sri Lanka and Tajikistan.
He also said that Iran enjoys good potentials in the area of providing urban infrastructure and waste management which could be used for connections between the municipalities of Tehran and Tashkent.
Tashkent mayor, for his part, said that the ground is prepared for further cooperation between Iran and Uzbekistan’s capital.
Umurzakov referred to a new directive issued by Uzbekistan’s president, noting that new steps can be taken for cooperation with Iranian businesspeople.
Noting that Uzbekistan is the most industrialized country in the Central Asia region, he said that the country can serve as a gateway into this region for Iran.
He added that the trade exchanges between Iran and the city of Tashkent was reported at $100 million which he believed is too insignificant. The Tashkent mayor put his country’s GDP at $100 billion, noting that given Iran’s potentials, bilateral exchanges between the two countries have to further increase.
Businessman urges joint investments in Afghanistan
Mahmoud Siadat, the chairman of Iran-Afghanistan Joint Chamber of Commerce, has stressed the need for Iranian businesspeople to make joint investments in Afghanistan.
In an exclusive interview with Iran Chamber of Commerce newsroom, Siadat said that the situation in Afghanistan has underwent significant changes and many policies have been changed.
He said that the new policies taken by Afghanistan’s Taliban ruling government are hindering Iran from exports of final products to the country, warning about threats that Iran could be removed from the Afghan market or have a less active presence there.
“We have to move towards making investments or joint investments in the Afghan market,” Siadat said, adding that this would be a critical decision to make at this time.
Referring to the decline in Iran’s trade with Afghanistan with the re-emergence of Taliban in 2021, he however said that bilateral trade between the two neighboring countries has been steadily rising over the past three years.
Iran’s exports to Afghanistan stand at $2 billion at present and there is potential for the figure to rise to $10 billion, he said, but did not provide a timeframe for this increase.
Iran, Kazakhstan urged to enforce trade cooperation agreement
President of Iran Chamber of Commerce, Industries, Mines, and Agriculture (ICCIMA) Samad Hassanzadeh has underlined the need for speedy implementation of a trade cooperation agreement between Iran and Kazakhstan.
Hassanzadeh made the remarks in a meeting in Tehran with Kazakhstan’s Ambassador to Iran Ontalap Onalbayev.
Noting that the current $300 million trade between Iran and Kazakhstan is not consistent with the potentials of the two nations, stressing the need for them to make every effort to increase bilateral trade to a target $3 billion.
He also referred to a trilateral logistic agreement between Iran, Kazakhstan, and Russia which he believed could upgrade transportation among regional countries.
Considering that the two countries have solved banking issues which used to impede bilateral cooperation, especially on agricultural and livestock areas, Hassanzadeh said that the ground is now prepared for more joint investment projects.
The Kazakh minister, for his part, said that Iran and Kazakhstan have developed good cooperation on maritime, rail and road transportation, which need to be further expanded.
Noting that almost 70% of the volume of trade between Iran and Kazakhstan are Iran’s exports to the Central Asian country, the ambassador called for more increased exchanges on agricultural, petrochemical and constructional items which he believed could lead to an increase and balance of bilateral trade.
The ambassador added that the private sector operators of the two countries are not well informed about lifting the banking obstacles on the way of bilateral trade and they have to be briefed on this achievement.
Uzbekistan eager to use potentials of Chabahar Port
Uzbekistan’s Ambassador to Iran Fariddin Nasriev says his country is willing to make use of the potentials of the Port of Chabahar in southeastern Iran.
The ambassador made the remarks in a meeting in Tehran with President of Iran Chamber of Commerce, Industries, Mines, and Agriculture (ICCIMA) Samad Hassanzadeh.
Speaking during the meeting, the president of Iran Chamber of Commerce voiced Iran’s readiness to make investments in expansion of Uzbekistan’s infrastructure.
He referred to Iran’s high potentials in producing medicines, noting that the country stands ready to export pharmaceuticals to Uzbekistan and help transfer the technology to the Central Asian country.
Hassanzadeh also highlighted Iran’s transit routes which he said provide Uzbekistan with access to Europe.
The Uzbek minister, for his part, said that his country will soon be hosting a major investment forum, calling on the Iranian business actors to participate in the event.
Noting that Uzbekistan imports some $900 million worth of medicine each year, Nasriev called on Iranian companies to launch medicine production lines in Uzbekistan.
The ambassador said that his country has signed a contract with a major Iranian pharmaceutical company and also plans to give a boost to this cooperation.
Iran becomes 4th largest oil exporter in OPEC: Report
Iran has risen to become the fourth largest oil exporter within the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) due to a surge in oil production and sales.
Iran's oil and gas condensate exports have now reached their highest level since 2018, when the United States withdrew from the Iran nuclear deal and introduced tough economic sanctions against the country, targeting its oil sales in particular, according to a report by Vortexa, which provides data on the global energy sector.
The report emphasized that Iran's oil and gas condensate exports now account for 9% of OPEC's total crude oil and gas condensate exports.
Iran exported 1.56 million barrels of oil per day from January to May of this year, 250,000 bpd more than Kuwait and Nigeria. This has elevated Iran's ranking to the fourth spot among OPEC's largest crude oil exporters.
Despite Western sanctions, Iran managed to increase its crude oil and gas exports to 1.7 million bpd in May, the highest level in the past five years.
The report cited the rise in Chinese oil demand and the expansion of Iran's oil tanker fleet as the main factors contributing to the surge in Iran's oil exports.
Iran’s five-month trade with Turkey hits $2.3 billion
A recent report by the Turkish Statistical Institute (TURKSTAT) suggests that Iran’s trade exchanges with Turkey reached $2.3 billion over the first five months of 2024.
The five-month trade between the two neighbors shows a 5 percent increase compared to last year’s corresponding period when the figure stood at $2.189 billion.
Turkey exported some $1.340 billion worth of goods to Iran from January to May 2024, marking a 16% year-on-year rise, according to the report.
Turkey’s exports to Iran stood at $1.151 billion during the same period of 2023.
Iran’s exports to the eastern neighbor was also reported at $960 million in the period under review, 7% down from $1.038 billion reported in January-May 2023.
Iran, Pakistan urged to exercise free trade
President of Iran Chamber of Commerce, Industries, Mines, and Agriculture (ICCIMA) Samad Hassanzadeh has stressed the need for Iran and Pakistan to exercise barter trade and free trade so as to materialize a target for increasing bilateral exchanges to $10 billion.
Hassanzadeh made the remarks in a meeting in Tehran on Sunday with Pakistani Ambassador to Iran Muhammad Mudassir Tipu.
Noting that Tehran and Islamabad can cooperate on different areas including pharmaceuticals, petrochemicals, energy, auto parts, techno-engineering services and electronics, he said that the ground is also prepared for cooperation on health tourism.
Hassanzadeh further stressed that an agreement for activating a joint trade council between the two neighboring countries is still in place.
The Iran Chamber of Commerce president said that the two countries have had many talks on the launch a barter trade system while no practical step has been taken.
He called on the Pakistani government to ease visa requirements for Iranian businesspeople.
The Pakistani ambassador, for his part, referred to his country’s agreement with the late Iranian president Ebrahim Raisi for increasing bilateral trade to $10 billion, adding that Islamabad continues to pursue this agreement.
The Pakistani government has decided for the joint border customs to work round the clock, the ambassador said, adding that it would be very effective if Iran also decides to do so.
He noted that the trade balance is one of the main obstacles on the way of trade between the two neighbors, as he said Iran’s exports to Pakistan stand at $1.6 billion while Pakistan’s exports to Iran are so insignificant.
He believed that the exercise of free trade rests upon win-win connections.
The ambassador added that if the Iran Chamber of Commerce recommends businesspersons to the embassy, there would be no problem for issuance of visa.
