Tehran, Iran, Aug. 5
By Mehdi Sepahvand -- Trend:
Italy will try to increase its volume of trade with Iran back up to €7 billion, Italian Minister of Economic Development Federica Guidi said.
In a meeting with Chairman of Iran Chamber of Commerce Mohsen Jalalpour in Tehran, Guidi said her country is not trying to sell its products to Iran, but seeks joint, long-term investments, Fars news agency reported August 5.
"In the new circumstances we think Iran's stance in the world has changed and in the meantime the country's economic and developmental needs have altered as well," she added.
Guidi is in Tehran along a high-ranking delegation headed by Italian Foreign Minister Paolo Gentiloni as part of efforts to rebuild ties with Tehran in the wake of a recent nuclear deal which is expected to remove international economic sanctions on the Islamic Republic.
Jalalpour for his part said the Iranian economy has started to change from an oil-based, government-bound economy to a privately-directed one.
He said Iran is ready to boost economic relations with Italy, announcing that a trade delegation from Tehran will travel to Rome in the near future.
Earlier the day, Gentiloni said in a meeting with Iranian President Hassan Rouhani in Tehran that his country is in talks with Iran to boost mutual economic ties.
The talks will lead to the transfer of technology and capital to Iran and the expansion of its communication and road networks, as well as its oil and gas industries, Gentiloni said.
Iran-Italy's trade turnover is about $1.5 billion right now.
Italy was the 9th leading importer of Iranian non-oil goods during the first quarter of the current Iranian year (March 21-June 21), according to the Iran Customs Administration.
Iran exported $124.605 million of non-oil goods to Italy and imported $205.856 million of non-oil goods from the country during the three-month period.
On the same day, Iran signed its first economic memorandum of understanding with a European country after the nuclear agreement.
The deal was signed in Tehran between the Trade Promotion Organization of Iran and the Italian Institute for Foreign Trade, after a meeting between Iranian Industry Minister Mohammad Reza Nematzadeh and Italy's Guidi.
The MOU envisages exchanging of commercial and trade information, as well as sending commercial and educational delegations.
Edited by CN
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