Baku, Azerbaijan, March 10
By Khalid Kazimov - Trend:
Customs statistics reveal that in the eleven months leading to the Iranian-calendar month of Bahman (from March 21, 2014 to Feb. 19, 2015), Iran imported $3.196 billion worth of automobiles and related parts.
The number shows a 34 percent growth compared to the same period of the preceding year.
In the preceding Iranian calendar year (March 21, 2013 to March 20, 2014) Iran imported a total of $2.375 billion worth of cars and parts, Fars news agency reported March 10.
The import in the first 11 months of the current Iranian year was 34.57 percent higher than the whole of the preceding year.
A glance at the imported products invoice reveals that Iran is unable to produce parts as simple as hub caps, engine under-trays, water tanks, gaskets, vents, and mirrors for Pride and Peugeot 405, two of the most widely used sedans in the country.
The Iranian car part makers union has proposed a plan to Iran's industry ministry according to which imports of car from countries that imposed sanctions against Iran's car industry will be banned.
Currently, the highest numbers of car are imported from Germany, Japan, and South Korea to Iran. The three countries had joined the U.S-led sanctions against the Iranian car industry.
Sanctions against the Iranian car industry were lifted in the wake of an interim nuclear deal that took effect in January 2014. Iran was permitted to import materials for its auto-manufacturing sector as a result of the nuclear deal implementation, which has led to a sharp increase in the country's auto output in recent months.
The Islamic Republic's automobile 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.
Edited by CN