Non-oil exports set new record while Iran trade deficit reaches $14.6 billion
Iran’s non-oil exports soared to new heights in the past Iranian year (began on March 20, 2024 -1403), reaching a remarkable value of $57.8 billion, according to official data.
Abolfazl Akbarpour, the deputy for planning and international affairs at the Iranian customs office (IRICA), who provided insights into the country’s robust trade performance made the announcement, IRNA reported.
Akbarpour revealed that the total value of imports also witnessed a substantial increase, amounting to $72.4 billion, with a notable contribution of over $8 billion in raw gold bullion imports.
In an interview with IRNA regarding Iran’s non-oil foreign trade statistics for the 12-month period of the last Iranian year, Akbarpour said, “Last year, we exported over 152 million tons of non-oil goods worth $57.8 billion, marking a 10% increase in weight and a 15.62% rise in dollar terms compared to the previous year (began on March 20, 2023).”
Last year, “39.3 million tons of goods valued at $72.4 billion were imported, representing a 0.77% decrease in weight and an 8.22% increase in dollar value compared to the previous year – 1402,” he added.
Akbarpour identified Iran’s top non-oil export commodities in 1403 as “natural gas, liquefied propane, liquefied butane, methanol, petroleum gases, liquefied gaseous hydrocarbons, and gas condensates.”
“Natural gas was the most significant export commodity in 1403, with an average customs value of $314 per ton,” he said.
The official also highlighted, “Other major export items included petroleum bitumen, urea, unalloyed iron and steel ingots, iron or steel bars, and polyethylene.”
China, Iraq and UAE: Iran’s top export destinations
According to Akbarpour, Iran’s primary non-oil export destinations in 1403 were China ($14.8 billion), Iraq ($11.9 billion), UAE ($7.2 billion), Turkey ($6.8 billion), Pakistan and Afghanistan (each $2.4 billion), and India ($1.9 billion).
“Together, these countries accounted for $47.6 billion, or 82.3% of Iran’s total non-oil export value,” he said.
Regarding imports in 1403, he stated, “Gold equivalent to 10 million tons, valued at over $8 billion, constituted one of Iran’s key import items, representing 11.12% of total import value. Essential goods — including animal feed corn, soybean meal, genetically modified soybeans, rice, sunflower seed oil — as well as smartphones, tractors, and vehicle spare parts were among the top imported commodities.”
UAE leads exporters to Iran
The deputy for Planning and International Affairs at IRICA identified the UAE ($21.9 billion), China ($19.3 billion), Turkey ($12.4 billion), Germany ($2.4 billion), India ($1.7 billion), Hong Kong (approximately $14 billion), and Russia ($1.3 billion) as Iran’s main source countries for imports in 1403.
“These eight countries, with a combined $60.7 million, accounted for 83.8% of the total dollar value of Iran’s imports,” Akbarpour said.
The official concluded that, “Despite Iran’s non-oil trade deficit reaching $-14.6 billion last year, over $8 billion of this deficit was attributed to imports of raw gold bullion.”