Iran’s export of products downs in 4 months due to outbreak

Speaking in an interview with FNA on Tue., Hamid Zadboum said, “like other countries, Iran’s export of products decreased in this period due to the outbreak significantly.”

Turning to the main reasons behind considerable decline of country’s exports volume in the first four months of the current year, he said, “Iran’s exports were severely affected by the coronavirus pandemic in the first two months of the current year (from March 21 to May 22), so that country could not export its products following the closure of borders .”

Currently, two land borders, including Iran’s land border with neighboring Turkmenistan, are still closed, he said, adding, “accordingly, reduction of export was completely predictable.”

Elsewhere in his remarks, the deputy minister of industry put the value of the country’s gas export to Turkey in the first three months of the last year at about $2 billion and added, “this year, no gas was exported to neighboring Turkey this year, so that this issue had an impact on reducing Iran’s exports.”

Exports of all countries in the world were severely affected by the coronavirus global pandemic, he said, adding, “even, export of a country like China decreased significantly due to the outbreak.”

Borders have been reopened in recent months one after another but currently, two of 31 land borders are still closed, he added.

Iran’s trade balance in the first four months of the current year (from March 21 to Jul 22) turned -$2.2 billion due to the outbreak. Also, statistics show that country’s non-oil exports has decreased 41 percent as compared to the last year’s corresponding period.