Iran and the Eurasian Economic Union traded more than $1.48 billion worth of goods from Oct. 27, 2019, when a preferential trade agreement between the two sides came into effect, till March 25.
According to the Spokesman of the Islamic Republic of Iran Customs Administration Rouhollah Latifi, Iran's exports under the preferential trade agreement stood at 123,960 tons worth $136.26 million while EEU exported 2.38 million tons of goods worth $749 million in return.
“Iran’s total exports to the bloc reached 1.16 million tons worth $489.93 million, accounting for 33% of the total trade value. Imports from the five EEU member states hit 2.95 million tons worth more than $999.3 million, which accounts for 67% of Iran-EEU’s overall trade value over the five-month period,” he was quoted as saying by IRNA.
The above figures show more than 27.81% of Iran's export to EEU and 75.03% of imports from the bloc into Iran were carried out under the trade agreement during the period.
“Iran exported a total of 481,668 tons of goods worth $248.55 million to Russia during the five months under review, making it the country’s main export destination from among the five EEU member states. This accounts for around 50% of Iran’s exports to EEU. Russia was followed by Armenia and Kazakhstan,” Latifi said.
Russia was also EEU’s biggest exporter to Iran with more than 2 million tons worth $713.7 million that accounts for 71.4% of Iran’s imports from the bloc. It was followed by Kazakhstan and Belarus.
Latifian added that Iran’s main exported commodities over the period under review included apples, fresh and dried pistachios, kiwis, cucumbers and pickles, raisins, cabbage, cauliflower, broccoli and liquefied natural gas.
Imports, he said, mainly included barley, seeds, field corn, sunflower oil, meat and paper.
Iran and the Eurasian Economic Union signed a three-year provisional agreement in Astana on May 17, 2018, for the bloc to welcome Iran into EEU. The arrangement, which lowers or abolishes customs duties, is the first step toward implementing free trade between Iran and the five members of the union.
The average tariff set by EEU on Iranian goods as part of a preferential trade agreement stands at 3.1%, while the figure is 12.9% for EEU goods exported to Iran.
Iran and EEU have listed 862 types of commodities in their three-year provisional trade agreement. As per the deal, Iran will enjoy easier export terms and lower customs duties on 502 items and the same goes for 360 items from EEU member states.
Russia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Armenia and Belarus comprise EEU member states. The union is an international organization that encourages regional economic integration through the free movement of goods, services and people within the union.
The union has an integrated single market of 183 million people and a gross domestic product of over $4 trillion.
The Iran-EEU agreement is deemed especially important considering unilateral US economic sanctions against Iran since President Donald Trump walked out of the nuclear deal the world powers signed with Tehran in 2015. The sanctions have been aimed at restricting Iran's trade with other countries in a bid to cripple the Iranian economy, in what Iranian officials have termed as "economic war".
Hossein Selahvarzi, the deputy head of Iran Chamber of Commerce, Industries, Mines and Agriculture, says that the trade deal is more of a practice in free trade for Iran rather than a short-lived escape from the US-imposed economic sanctions.
The official says free trade is the “rescue route” for Iran’s economy.
“If by joining EEU, Iran can identify its points of weakness and strength in free trade, we can say it has made the most out of the agreement,” he was quoted as saying by Donya-e-Eqtesad Persian daily.
“The level of trade exchanges between Iran and Eurasia could exceed $30 billion [per year],” said Deputy Minister of Industries, Mining and Trade for Commercial Affairs Hossein Modarres Khiyabani at the Iran-Eurasia Trade Forum hosted in Tehran earlier this month.
Khiyabani put the current volume of Eurasia’s trade exchange with other countries at $900 billion.
