The secretary-general of Iran's Chamber of Cooperatives said Iran will open its first trade center in the northern Iraqi city of Soleimaniyeh by next week.
The Mehr News Agency quoted Hossein Rahmani as saying that all that Iranian businesses, especially cooperatives, can use the trade center as a base for their transactions with Iraqi colleagues.
Meanwhile, the deputy commerce minister called the trade level between the two countries as shameful.
Babak Afqahi stated in a meeting with representatives of Iran's Chamber of Commerce that the current trade trend with Iraq is falling.
"We used to be Iraq's prime trade partner, but in the first four month of the new year (March 21- July 21), we exported $1.2 billion worth of goods to that country which constitutes a small share of that country's market," he said.
The Iranian official pointed out that Turkey is currently the chief exporter to Iraq and Iran's rival in that country, adding that Istanbul has invested vastly there and while Iran is all excited about opening its first trade center, Turkey has inaugurated twelve.