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Iran more than mere consumer market for South Korea

Business Materials 1 May 2016 16:54 (UTC +04:00)

Baku, Azerbaijan, May 1

By Fatih Karimov - Trend:

South Korean firms should not consider Iran as mere consumer market, Valiollah Afkhami Rad, the Iranian deputy industry minister, warned.

He said that the South Korean companies should also make investment and transfer technology to the country, Mehr news agency reported May 1.

Afkhami Rad made the remarks in a meeting with South Korean trade delegation in Tehran.

Iran has decreased its reliance on oil revenues, the Iranian official said, adding the country exported $60 billion worth of non-oil products as well as engineering service last fiscal year (ended March 20).

Iran's economy's dependency on oil incomes is about 40 percent, Afkhami Rad said.

The South Korean firms can see Iran as a regional hub for producing and exporting joint products to regional markets, he said, underlining that the two sides can enjoy long-term cooperation under this approach.

South Korean President Park Geun-hye is scheduled to travel to Iran on May 1, heading a 236-member big trade delegation.

The business delegation, which is the largest ever, includes representatives from 38 big companies including Samsung Electronics and Hyundai Motor as well as heads of 146 medium and small companies and institutions.

It is expected that during the visit, the two countries will sign contracts worth $13 to $17 billion for cooperation in various fields including the construction of hospitals, dams, railways and power plants as well as petrochemical, crude oil, infrastructure and industrial projects.

Iran-South Korea trade turnover stood at $6.1 billion in 2015. The figure was $17.4 in 2011, Before Western countries imposed sanctions against Iran.

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