Baku, Azerbaijan, Nov.18
By Fatih Karimov - Trend:
Iran is ready to sign $5 billion worth of economic contracts with Turkmenistan.
Mohammad-Taqi Amanpour, special envoy and representative of the Iranian oil minister, said many plans, amounting to $5 billion in value, are being studied to invest in Turkmenistan, Iran's Fars news agency reported on November 18.
Yahya Nikdel, director of North Khorasan province's department of industry, mining, and trade, said that Iran will hold an exclusive trade fair in Turkmenistan.
The trade fair will be held in mid-January 2015 in the city of Ashgabat.
Traders and businessmen from across the country will participate in the exhibition, Nikdel said.
North Khorasan province has joint border with Turkmenistan.
In August, Trade Promotion Organization of Iran official Abdolhamid Asadian said Iran has increased exports to Turkmenistan by tenfolds over the past decade.
Iran exported $94 million goods to Turkmenistan in 2004, while the figure surged to $858 million last year, he added.
He referred to construction materials as well as technical and engineering services as the main export items to Turkmenistan.
Trade between Iran and Turkmenistan amounted to $994.5 million in the previous Iranian calendar year, which ended on March 20, 2014, according to the Iran Customs Administration.
Iran exported $859.4 million worth of non-oil goods to Turkmenistan and imported $135.08 million worth of non-oil goods from Turkmenistan.
A recent report by the Trade Promotion Organization of Iran on Iran-Turkmenistan trade relations shows that the two countries held six cooperation meetings between 2001 and 2012.
The most important documents exchanged between the two countries were trade agreements on encouraging and supporting investment, agreements on avoidance of double taxation, and memorandum of understanding on business cooperation.
Iran is reportedly Turkmenistan's second largest trade partner after Russia.
The Islamic Republic exports machinery, construction materials, sedans, buses, food stuff, agricultural and petrochemical products, electrical products and home appliances to Turkmenistan, and imports natural gas, electricity, textiles and agricultural products from its northern neighbor.
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