First Vice President Esha’q Jahangiri lauded on Thursday the government’s overall economic performance, saying that the dynamic foreign policy adopted by the administration has convinced many countries to seek economic rapprochement with Iran, IRNA reported.
“Many countries are now keen to broaden their economic ties with Iran, and the administration will study the proposals sent by foreign companies according to its priorities,” Jahangiri said.
President Hassan Rouhani has on several occasions vowed to open a new chapter in relations with the West to stimulate the economy that has been battered by several rounds of sanctions imposed over the country’s nuclear energy program.
Many political and economic delegations from the EU countries have visited Iran since President Rouhani took office in June 2013. With a population of about 80 million – the majority of whom below 30 years of age and highly educated – the Iranian market offers great potential to foreign investors.
The Iranian government sees investment, both by foreign and domestic investors, as an opportunity that can inject extra money into the economy at a time when the country is grappling with a high rate of inflation, which economists widely believe is a legacy of the economic mismanagement of the previous administration.
“The administration is trying to remove the existing obstacles on the way of investment,” Jahangiri said, adding that it is determined to further cut the inflation rate below 17%.
According to a report released by the CBI, inflation fell to 17.2% in the month of Azar (ending December 21).
The first vice president said falling global oil prices, which he described as a “conspiracy orchestrated by some neighboring states”, made Iran lose a good portion of its annual revenues.
