Iran's Non-Oil Foreign Trade Exceeds 102 Billion Dollars

The latest monthly statistics from Iran's Customs indicate an approximately 19% increase in Iran's non-oil exports over the past 12 months. The country's imports also grew by more than 5.5% during this period. According to the 205-page report published on Tuesday, April 18, on the official website of Iran's Customs, Iran had a total of 49 billion and 744 million dollars in non-oil exports last year. Iran's imports amounted to 52 billion and 477 million dollars. In total, Iran had more than 102 billion dollars in non-oil trade last year. The report states that gas condensate exports increased by about 36% and petrochemical product exports rose by about 32%, while the growth of other export items was just over 3.5%. Overall, gas condensates and petrochemical products accounted for 67% of Iran's total non-oil exports. Additionally, propane, butane, and bitumen, which are oil products, made up about 10% of Iran's total non-oil exports. Gas condensates are a type of very light and high-quality crude oil obtained from gas wells, and Iran includes them in its non-oil export basket. Among the major imported items, agricultural products have the largest share. Last year, Iran increased its wheat imports by 57%, reaching 2 billion and 289 million dollars. Imports of animal feed corn also grew by nearly 15%, while purchases of rice and meal decreased by approximately 39% and 32%, respectively. China was Iran's largest trading partner last year, increasing its exports to the Islamic Republic by more than 28% to 12 billion and 561 million dollars. This country also increased its non-oil imports from Iran by more than 23%, reaching 9 billion and 159 million dollars. Notably, China is also the largest importer of gas condensates from Iran. Almost a quarter of Iran's total non-oil exports went to China, and similarly, all of Iran's imports from China were at this rate. Among continents, about 92% of Iran's total non-oil exports went to Asia, which also had a share of over 77% in Iran's total imports. What stands out in the Customs report is the more than 33% increase in Iran's exports to Europe last year. Europe had nearly 2 billion dollars in non-oil exports from Iran last year. European exports to Iran also increased by over 8%, reaching about 11 billion dollars. Among European countries, Italy increased its imports from Iran by over 200%, and Spain by 53%. In the fall of 2013, Iran and six world powers reached a temporary nuclear agreement that eased some of the sanctions against Iran, but this had little effect on European exports to Iran. Bilateral trade between some major European economies and Iran, such as the UK, has decreased, while France and Germany show some improvement. Meanwhile, countries like Lithuania, Sweden, and Switzerland have significantly increased bilateral trade with Iran. Regarding the United States, this country increased its exports to Iran by over 16%, but has little share in imports from Iran. In this context, "the volume of smuggled goods in 2013 was twice the total budget for the country's development". "Exaggeration" in non-oil exports, the reduction of China's economic activity and its impact on Iran, the changing battlefield of "proxies"; war against the people in the streets of Iran, the first paragraph; the responsibility of the opposition and the possibility of radicalizing Iranian society, the death of the last Mossad representative in Tehran amid the Iran crisis.