Baku, Azerbaijan, April 30
Trend:
More than 60,000 tons of non-oil goods, worth $32 million, were exported through customs in Iran’s northwestern city of Astara in the last Iranian calendar month that ended April 20, Rasoul Omidi, head of Astara Customs Administration, said.
Iran’s exports via Astara registered a significant rise by 154 percent in terms of volume and 132 percent in terms of value, year-on-year, he added.
Omidi said that agriculture and food products, cement, plaster, chemicals, detergents, handicrafts, textile, shoes, bags, carpet, construction materials, mineral products, metals and plastic products were the main export items, IRNA news agency reported.
Azerbaijan, Georgia and Russia were the main destinations for the exported items, the official added.
Omidi further said Iran imported about 12,000 tons of goods, worth $8 million, via the Astara customs during the 1-month period.
Over 5,000 tons of goods, worth $8 million, were transited through Astara into Iran in the calendar month, he said.
Goods including wooden and oil products, cotton, synthetic fibers, iron ingots, copper, fiberglass and iron sheets were transited from Azerbaijan, Russia, Georgia and Ukraine to Turkey, Iraq and the UAE, Omidi said.
Also 13,000 tons of goods, worth $52 million, including electrical appliances, cars, furniture, machinery, medical equipment, construction materials, textile products, chemicals, glass containers and agricultural products were transited via the Astara checkpoint to Azerbaijan, Russia, Georgia and Ukraine, the official said.
The Islamic Republic also exported 19 tons of goods, including agricultural and food products as well as plastic materials, worth $12,000, to Azerbaijan via the suitcase trade from the Astara customs during the 1-month period, Omidi added.
More than 93,944 people crossed the border checkpoint in Astara during the last calendar month, he said.
He added that the passenger traffic into Azerbaijan from Iran via Astara and vice versa registered a 30 percent increase in the period.
Iranian Astara Customs' total income reached 37.3 billion rials (each USD makes 42,000 rials based on official rate) during the same span of time, which is 134 percent more compared to the same month of the preceding year.