Azerbaijan, Baku, Oct. 8 /Trend N. Umid/
Production halt at two Iranian auto manufacturing companies including Rayen and Kerman Motor continued during last Iranian calendar month (August 23- September 22), ISNA news agency reported citing statistics of the Industry, Mining and Trade Ministry.
According to the report, it is the second month that these auto makers have been experiencing a shut down.
Production at the Modiran, Pars Khodro and Bahman companies decreased by 66.3, 50.7 and 50 percent respectively during the last Iranian calendar month (July 23- August 22), compared to the same month of the last solar year, the report said.
The companies' production reached 1690, 5153 and 45 respectively during the period.
During this period the car production at Iran Khodro and Saipa companies increased by 86.0 and 20.2 percent respectively, compared to the same month of the last solar year.
Production at these two major auto companies reached 30,472 and 16,380 respectively during the period.
On September 4, Iranian media outlets quoted the secretary of the Iranian Carmakers Association, Sasan Ghorbani as saying Iranian auto industry will be completely stopped if the current "several domestic and foreign problems" to continue.
He went on to note that, Iranian automakers work with 30 percent of the capacity, adding that car parts manufacturers' production decreased to 15-20 percent of the capacity.
Iran produced 224,927 cars in the first five months of the current solar year which indicates a fall by 44.5 percent compared to the same period of the last solar year.
Some 190,394 sedan cars, 31,597 pickup trucks, 2,750 trucks, 161 buses, and 25 minibuses were produced in the country in the aforementioned period.
Iran produced 989,110 cars in 2012 which made the country Asia's eighth largest car manufacturer.
The country also stood at 18th place in the world, the ISNA News Agency reported.
China, Japan, South Korea, India, Thailand, Turkey and Indonesia are Asia's seven largest car manufacturers.
Iran's automobile output faced a 40 percent decrease in 2012. The country was Asia's fifth largest car manufacturer in 2011, with a total output of 1,648,505.
Increasing prices of raw materials and foreign currencies are the main problems the car manufacturers are facing.
It should be recalled that on July 1, the U.S. imposed a new round of sanctions against anyone involved in Iran's auto industry and anyone caught using Iran's currency, the rial, for 'significant transactions'.
Some leading auto production companies including Renault have limited their activities in Iran.
South Korean companies also officially announced they will not accept orders from Iran for selling car parts to them.
According to projections, the sanctions will lead to a 40 percent rise in production costs in the Iranian car-making companies as Korean suppliers used to provide Iranian companies with 60 percent of their needs.
In February 2012, Europe's second largest automaker, PSA Peugeot Citroen, also ceased business with Iran after the enforcement of U.S. sanctions against the Islamic Republic.
According to the statistics, about 69 automobile manufacturer units have been closed and 115,000 people lost their jobs in the automobile sector of Iran during the past two years.
Iran's auto sector hopes to neutralize U.S. sanctions effects with Chinese companies' help, while experts argued that cooperation with Chinese auto production companies is a short term solution and will not be effective in the long term.