A total of 5.92 quadrillion rials ($23.89 billion) worth of investments were made in industrial units for which establishment permits were issued, while projects with operating licenses are estimated to have received o 1.79 quadrillion rials ($7.22 billion) during the first 11 months of last Iranian year (March 20, 2020-Feb. 18).
Investment volumes in units with establishment permits and operating licenses show a respective growth rate of 72.8% and 235.1% compared with the similar period of the previous year, the latest report released by the Ministry of Industries, Mining and Trade shows.
Establishment Permits
A total of 36,162 establishment permits were issued over the 11 months under review, registering a 40% year-on-year growth. These projects created 810,178 jobs – 40.6% more compared with the corresponding period of the year before.
Khorasan Razavi Province with 3,421, Yazd Province with 3,233 and Fars Province with 2,406 had the largest share of the establishment permits issued during the period.
Khorasan Razavi, with 552.44 trillion rials ($2.22 billion) worth of investments in 3,421 projects with establishment permits, has attracted the highest volume of investments. This amount registers a 326.4% upsurge compared with the corresponding period of last year.
The number of establishment permits issued for industrial units located in free trade and special economic zones decreased by 59.6% to 129.
Investments worth 99.01 trillion rials ($399.23 million) were made in these projects to generate 8,427 jobs, registering an 85% and 49% YOY plunge respectively.
The field of “other non-metal minerals” saw the highest number of establishment permits (4,585) while chemical production generated the highest number of jobs (86,435).
The highest volume of investment amounting to 983.6 trillion rials ($3.96 billion) was made in projects related to basic metal production. The volume accounts for 16.9% of all investments made in projects for which establishment permits were issued over the 11-month period.
Operating Licenses
A total of 6,491 operating licenses were issued during the period under review, which shows a 7% YOY increase. These projects are expected to create 121,248 jobs, indicating a 22.6% rise compared with the corresponding period of last year.
East Azarbaijan Province with 485, Khorasan Razavi Province with 447 and Isfahan Province with 441 had the largest share of all operating licenses issued during the 11 months.
The southern Khuzestan Province, with more than 576.98 trillion rials ($2.32 billion), attracted the highest volume of investment in projects with operating licenses. The figure shows a whopping 6,633.2% upsurge compared with the similar period of last year and accounts for 37.9% of total investments made in projects with operating licenses.
The number of such licenses issued for industrial projects located in free trade and special economic zones stood at 422, indicating a decline of 6.4% YOY. Close to 270.03 trillion rials ($1.1 billion) worth of investments were made in projects to create 19,175 jobs, registering a 350.2% and 20.6% hike compared with the corresponding period of last year.
The field of chemical production saw the highest number of operating licenses, namely 902. The field of food and beverages production created the highest number of jobs (13,285) over the 11-month period.
The highest volume of investments in this regard were made in projects related to the production of coke and oil derivatives (709.13 trillion rials or $2.86 million), accounting for 46.6% of all investments made in industrial units for which operating licenses were issued.
The number of greenfield projects for which operating licenses were issued stood at 3,153, some 213 of which were for those located in free trade and special economic zones, indicating a 11.3% rise and a 24.2% decline respectively YOY.
A total of 2,916 permits were issued for the operation of brownfield projects, 209 of which were located in FTZs and special economic zones showing a YOY increase of 4.7% and 22.9% YOY, respectively.
Mineral Production Permits
A total of 566 mineral production permits were issued during the period, registering a modest 7.6% increase compared with the similar period of last year.
These permits are expected to create 4,563 jobs, which indicate a 3.3% rise compared with the same period of last year.
The nominal mineral extraction capacity of the projects stands at 40.18 million tons, which shows an 84.1% surge compared with last year’s corresponding period.
The provinces of Khorasan Razavi with 60, Isfahan with 48, Fars with 46, Markazi with 40, Yazd with 34 and Qazvin with 32 had the largest share of mineral production permits issued during the period.
Mineral production permits issued over the 11 months under review are expected to create the largest number of jobs in Khorasan Razavi (489), Fars (451), Kerman (359), Isfahan (323), Yazd (270), South Khorasan (247) and East Azarbaijan (236).
The provinces of South Khorasan, Hormozgan and Khuzestan, with a total of 15.52 million tons, 3.13 million tons and 3 million tons respectively had the highest volume of nominal extraction capacities.
A total of 470 exploration permits were issued during the 11 months ending Feb. 18, 2021. The figure shows a paltry rise of 2.4% compared with the corresponding period of last year.
Exploration costs stood at 1.3 trillion rials ($5.25 million), registering a YOY increase of 8.4%.
Industrial PMI at 8-Month High
According to a report by the Statistics and Economic Analysis Center of Iran Chamber of Commerce, Industries, Mines and Agriculture, the Purchasing Managers’ Index for Iranian industries stood at an eight-month high in the 11th month of last fiscal year (Jan. 20-Feb. 18).
The index settled at 58.34 during the period from 49.79 in the preceding month (Dec. 21, 2020-Jan. 19), indicating an 8.55-point or a 17.17% increase.
The center has been measuring PMI, known by its Farsi acronym Shamekh, in Iran for the past 29 months.
PMI is an indicator of economic health for manufacturing and services sectors. It provides information about current business conditions to companies’ decision-makers, analysts and purchasing managers.
The headline PMI is a number from 0 to 100. A PMI above 50 represents an expansion when compared with the previous month. A PMI reading under 50 represents a contraction and a reading at 50 indicates no change. The further away from 50, the greater the level of change.
PMI is based on a monthly survey sent to senior executives of more than 400 companies. It is based on five major survey areas: “new orders” (30%), “raw material inventory” (10%), “production” (25%), “supplier deliveries” (15%) and “employment” (20%).
The survey poses 12 questions about business conditions and any changes, whether it is improving, no changes or deteriorating.
Wood, paper and furniture industries posted the highest PMI with a reading of 67.03 while industries categorized as “others” registered the lowest PMI reading with 43.
