Baku, Azerbaijan, Dec. 2
By Khalid Kazimov - Trend:
An Iranian official has denied that Tehran has granted any companies with a permission to register an agent for the American multinational automaker, Ford Motor Company, in the country.
Chairman of Iran's Chamber of Guilds Ali Fazeli has said that his organization has not received any request for granting permission to establish a representative office for the American giant automaker in Iran.
Earlier on November 24 Iranian media reported that a company named "Artman Motor Caspian" has claimed that it registered an agent for Ford Motor Company in Iran.
Over the past few months several rumors regarding various American brands' decision to enter Iranian markets have been published. However most of them have been later denied. For instance following the July nuclear agreement between Tehran and the World powers, Iranian media claimed that the US-based Microsoft Company entered Iran's mobile phone market in mid-September. However the validity of the report still remains unclear.
In July, The Wall Street Journal reported that the US company Apple is in talks with Iranian distributors to potentially sell products in the country. However Mojtaba Khosrotaj Iranian deputy industry, mining, and trade minister rejected the report saying Apple has no official representative in Iran.
There were also some speculations that the US fast-food giant McDonald's, which is the world's largest fast-food chain by market value, is trying to obtain the license to open branches across Iran. However Iranian officials have rejected those claims as well.
Iran's car output during the eighth calendar month of Aban (Oct. 22-Nov. 22) stood at 55,493, 43.2 percent less compared to the same month of preceding year.
Iranian carmakers produced 50,808 sedans in the one-month period, indicating a 37.6 percent fall year on year.
Iran produced 989,110 cars in 2012, which made the country Asia's eighth largest car manufacturer. Iran also stood at the world's 18th place in the mentioned year.
The Islamic Republic's car output faced a 40 percent decrease in 2012 due to the sanctions. The country was Asia's fifth largest car manufacturer in 2011, with a total output of 1,648,505.
The Ford Motor Company is an American multinational automaker headquartered in Dearborn, Michigan, a suburb of Detroit. It was founded by Henry Ford and incorporated on June 16, 1903.