The secretary of Iran-Turkey joint trade commission has announced the list of goods included in a recently signed preferential trade agreement (PTA), ISNA reported on Tuesday. Some of the goods named in this agreement include: medical supplements, health care products, tires, washing machines, ventilation systems, caviar, textile products, furniture among others, Jalal Ebrahimi said.
The official underlined that the signed PTA with Turkey can pave the way for Iran to join the World Trade Organization (WTO).
Mohammadreza Nematzadeh, minister of industry, mine and trade, and the visiting Turkish economy minister Nihat Zeybekci signed a preferential trade agreement (PTA) on December 31, decreasing the customs clearance tariffs on 265 items of good.
According to this agreement, the tariffs on 125 items of Iranian goods are decreased in Turkey’s favor and those of 140 Turkish goods reduced in favor of Iran. The preferential tariff system, which compels both countries to levy lower rates of duty on imports from each other than they do on imports from other countries, is expected to further ease transaction of goods and services between Iran and other countries.
The PTA was signed on January 29, 2014 when the then Turkish Prime Minister (now President of Turkey), Recep Tayyip Erdogan, paid an official visit to Tehran. The value of trade between Iran and Turkey in the first half of 2014 stood at $6.5 billion, according to data released by the Turkish Statistical Institute.
Trade between Turkey and Iran stood at $22 billion in 2012 before dipping to $14.5 billion in the following year due to the economic sanctions imposed on Tehran by the West.
Iran is also set to sign PTA with Russia in the near future.
