Ceramic, Tile Industry in Dire Straits

More than 150 million square meters of tiles and ceramics in excess of demand are currently piled up in warehouses across the country, according to chairman of Iran Ceramic Producers Syndicate, Behnam Aziz-Zadeh. “The local market is in recession and producers are operating at less than half their production capacity,” he was quoted by Minews as saying. According to the official, the two main factors causing the market recession include the ongoing stagnation in the construction sector as well as the ceramic and tile industry’s overproduction due to unrestrained issuance of factory licenses during the 90s. Aziz-Zadeh ruled out the possibility of any improvement in market conditions by the yearend. The upcoming new Iranian year will begin on March 21, 2017.