Iran and the European Union’s 27 member states traded €3.44 billion worth of goods during the first eight months of 2022, registering a 14.82% rise compared with last year's corresponding period.
New data released by Eurostat show Germany was the top trading partner of Iran in the EU region during the period, as the two countries exchanged over €1.21 billion worth of goods, 8.11% more than in the similar period of the year before.
Germany was followed by Italy with €431.79 million worth of trade with Iran to register an 8.73% year-on-year rise and the Netherlands with €280.15 million (down 10.68%).
Croatia registered the highest growth of 65.43% in trade with Iran during the period under review and was followed by Bulgaria with 57.87%.
Bilateral trade grew by 9.62% in August to hit €444.04 million.
Germany with €156.65 million, Italy with €50.11 million, the Netherlands with €38.79 million, Romania with €37.29 million and Spain with €36.28 million were Iran’s top trading partners in August.
A directorate of the European Commission located in Luxembourg, Eurostat’s main responsibilities are to provide statistical information to EU institutions and promote the harmonization of statistical methods across its member states and candidates for accession.
Organizations in different countries that cooperate with Eurostat are summarized under the concept of European Statistical System.
Iran exported €732.36 million worth of goods to the EU in the eight months of 2022, indicating a 29.7% year-on-year rise.
Germany was the top trading partner of Iran in the EU region during the period, as the two countries exchanged over €1.21 billion worth of goods, 8.11% year-on-year
Germany with €192.48 million, Italy with €112.35 million, Spain with €97.93 million, Romania with €66.91 million and Bulgaria with €62.29 million were Iran’s main export destinations.
Iran exported €91.95 million worth of goods to EU partners in August, up 4.39% YOY.
The main export destinations included Germany (€189.61 million), Spain (€20.08 million), Italy (€9.97 million), Bulgaria (€8.37 million) and Belgium (€7.98 million).
Iran’s imports from the EU member states during the eight months grew by 11.37% YOY to €2.7billion. Germany accounted for the largest share of exports with €1.02 billion, up 8.74% YOY, followed by Italy (€319.44 million), the Netherlands (€236.89 million) and France (€225.12 million).
Imports from the EU grew by 11,08% YOY to €352.08 million in August.
Iran and the European states traded €4.86 billion worth of goods in 2021, registering a 9.09% growth compared with the year before. Iran exported €922.04 million worth of commodities to EU last year, indicating a 29.32% rise. Its imports from the EU member states grew by 5.24% YOY to €3.94 billion.
Bilateral trade stood at €4.24 billion in 2020 to register a 13.35% decline compared with €4.89 billion in 2019. Iran exported €618.03 million worth of commodities to EU, indicating a 7.18% fall compared with €665.8 million in 2019. Its imports from EU dropped by 14.32% to reach €3.62 billion.
Two-way trade gained momentum after Tehran signed the nuclear deal with six world powers in 2015. The deal, formally known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, saw years of international sanctions against the Islamic Republic lifted. In exchange, the country agreed to limit the scope of its nuclear program. JCPOA was implemented in 2016.
However, in 2018, Washington unilaterally quit JCPOA that it had signed with five other countries and Iran. The US then reimposed sanctions against Tehran, leading to a decline in Iran’s foreign trade, including with the EU.
As the government of US President Joe Biden worked to revive JCPOA, the deal appeared near revival in March. But indirect talks between Tehran and Washington then broke down over several issues.
EU foreign policy chief, Josep Borrell, said on Monday he currently did not expect progress in negotiations over reviving a 2015 nuclear deal with Iran.
"I don't expect any move; that's a pity because we were very, very close," Borrell told reporters on arriving to a meeting of EU foreign ministers in Luxembourg on Monday, noting that international talks with Tehran had been stalled over the last few weeks.
