Decorative Stone Exports Up 35%

Some $270 million worth of decorative stones were exported in the last Iranian year (March 2016-17), registering a 35% increase compared to the year before.

"The production of ornamental and structural stones stood at 15.5 million tons for the same period, up 18% year-on-year," deputy minister of industries, mining and trade, Jafar Sarqeini, was quoted as saying by IRNA.

Iran is ranked third in terms of variety and production volume of ornamental stones after China and India, vice chairman of Iran Stone Association, Malek Rahmati, said.

"There are 1,555 stone mines in Iran, of which 1,165 are active and the rest are in the process of development," Rahmati said.

"The stone industry has great job creation potential and can contribute highly to GDP. Therefore, a fair share of resources should be allocated to this sector so that it can play a role in economic growth."

The Ninth Tehran International Stone Fair opened in Tehran's International Exhibition & Convention Centre on Monday. Stone industry players from Italy, China, Turkey, Germany, India, Spain, Afghanistan and Poland are participating in the four-day event.

Iran is home to 60 billion tons of proven mineral reserves with 68 varieties. The Middle Eastern country is ranked 10th and 15th worldwide in terms of mineral variety and reserve volume respectively.