Handmade Carpet Shipments Decline to Decades Low

A total of $50 million worth of hand-woven carpets were exported in the last Iranian year (March 2019-20), registering a 90% decline compared with the previous year. 
In fact, last year was the worst in decades for Iranian carpet industry, according to the CEO of the National Association for Handmade Carpet Producers Cooperatives.
“This decrease in exports has many reasons, the main ones being US sanctions as well as the obligation set by the Central Bank of Iran for traders to repatriate the foreign currency gained from exports, which in turn significantly increases the risk of trade and discourages exporters,” Abdollah Bahrami was quoted as saying by Fars News Agency.