Tehran, Iran, Nov.16
Trend:
The sanctions on banks of Iran complicate transfers of assets earned from exports, Bisotun Steel Co. CEO Jahandar Shokri said in an interview with Trend.
According to Shokri, steel industry is one of the forex-based export sectors in Iran which can face numerous challenges as a result of sanctions, regarding transfers of assets made from exports.
He further spoke about the impact of sanctions on Iran' steel industry.
“Steel provides a large portion of foreign exchange income, so our biggest challenge and problem under the present circumstances is the transfer of this money. Restrictions imposed on banks due to sanctions exacerbate these complications,” he said.
Shokri further said that exporting companies have gained their target markets through hard work and huge investments; so, Iran is not willing to lose these markets easily; supply will be affected nonetheless.
"Under the present circumstances, the government is setting barriers in front of exporters, while it should be providing them with pragmatic solutions. One of these decisions is signing forward exchange contracts, though unfortunately the government is reluctant to admit the real free market rate and obligates exporters to deliver their earnings to the NIMA platform,” he explained.
Shokri believes that government should give exporters the opportunity to use every possible path and channel for doing their business as the yielded foreign funds will enter the country’s economic cycle.
"So, if the state is not giving solutions, the least it can do is not to make problems so that the private sector may help the economy just like it did in the previous round of sanctions," he said.
“We have always been objecting to the overnight acts ratified by the former administration, though the current one has done the exact same thing. In the past, we experienced three counts of forward exchange contracts each of which failed. So, the government should allow the private sector to go on with its business as their independence was proven through time,” Shokri said.
While exporting companies are obliged to use the forex rate determined by NIMA platform when supplying goods to the market, importers receive the same rate and provide goods with the free market rate, just like the exported spare parts of are provided, he said.