The Iranian Foreign Ministry on Sunday announced the automatic termination of the United Nations’ arms restrictions and travel ban on Iran as of October 18 in accordance with UN Security Council Resolution 2231.
The Iranian Foreign Ministry on Sunday announced the automatic termination of the United Nations’ arms restrictions and travel ban on Iran as of October 18 in accordance with UN Security Council Resolution 2231.
The World Health Organization delivered $5.5 million worth of medical ventilators and PCR thermal cyclers to Iran to assist the country in tackling the coronavirus pandemic.
A top Afghan authority has called on Iranian officials to cooperate with the South Asian government and support its peace process to ensure sustainable stability in that war-torn country and the region.
The Oil Industries, Engineering and Construction company of Iran has been listed among the top 30 contractors in the Middle East in 2020.
The Oil and Gas Middle East website has shared its annual ranking, naming engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) firms that are making the biggest impact in the Middle East oil and gas industry, the Oil Ministry news agency Shana reported.
Included in this year’s list are EPC contractors ranked as per criteria including financial status, planned and existing projects, corporate social responsibility and contractors’ presence in the strategic Middle East.
The number of electricity meters nationwide in household, agro and industrial sectors has grown 12 times in four decades, the Energy Ministry spokesman for the power department said.
“There were three million electricity consumers in 1980. Now the number is 37 million, up 1000%,” Mostafa Rajabi Mashhadi was quoted as saying by IRNA.
The national electricity transmission and distribution infrastructure is expanding together with growing output and demand that have reached 60 gigawatts and 57 GW respectively.
Referring to data from the state-affiliated Power Generation, Distribution and Transmission Company's (Tavanir), he said transmission lines that supply from the main power stations to substations in and around cities now stretch over 815,000 kilometers, of which 15,000 km were laid last year. The length was 68,000 km in 1980.
The 130-kilometer-long Khaf-Herat railroad connecting Iran and Afghanistan has high potential for transit to the eastern neighboring country, according to the head of the Islamic Republic of Iran Railways.
“The annual transit to Afghanistan from the Commonwealth of Independent States and Turkey amounting to 1.2 million tons and 500,000 tons respectively can be redirected to Khaf-Herat railroad,” Saeed Rasouli was also quoted as saying by the news portal of the Ministry of Roads and Urban Development.
The official noted that the Iranian government hopes the railroad will further strengthen social, economic and cultural ties between the two nations.
“We are counting on Khaf-herat railroad to play a significant role in boosting interactions between Iran and Afghanistan,” he said.
Iran and the Eurasian Economic Union traded a total of about $2.8 billion worth of goods between October 27, 2019, when a preferential trade agreement came into effect between the two sides, and Aug. 21, 2020, according to Elham Hajikarimi, secretary of Trade Promotion Organization of Iran's Eurasia Affairs Bureau.
The traded volume shows a 6% year-on-year rise, the official was quoted as saying by ILNA.
“Iran’s exports to the bloc reached $823.9 million, while imports from the EEU amounted to $1.97 billion, registering a 21% and 1% respective rise year-on-year,” she said.
Spokesperson of the Islamic Republic of Iran Customs Administration Rouhollah Latifi has been quoted as saying by Mehr News Agency that Iran’s main imports from the Eurasian block are essential goods and animal feed raw material.
A total of $7 million worth of unfinished leather and wet-blue (processed raw hide before turning into finished leather) were exported from Iran during the first five months of the current Iranian year (March 20-Aug. 21), according to the head of Hide and Wet-Blue Producers and Exporters Union, who doubles as the head of Iran's Export Confederation.
“Exports have seen a drastic decline over the years due to faulty policies implemented by the government," Mohammad Lahouti was also quoted as saying by Fars News Agency.
Iran had around $200 million worth of unfinished leather and wet-blue exports in the fiscal 2012-13, which figure fell to $35 million last year (March 2019-20).
The “National Export Day” ceremony, held every year on Oct. 20, has been postponed due to the coronavirus pandemic, reads a notice jointly released by Iran Chamber of Commerce, Industries, Mines and Agriculture, and the Trade Promotion Organization of Iran.
The International Monetary Fund expects the inflation rate in Iran to remain at around 30% in 2021 as in this year.
In its latest World Economic Outlook report, IMF had put the rise in consumer prices at 41% in 2019.
Projections for 2020 and 2021 are at 30.5% and 30% respectively.
The Statistical Center of Iran's latest report on inflation shows the average goods and services Consumer Price Index in the 12-month period ending Sept. 21, which marks the end of the sixth Iranian month, increased by 26% compared with the corresponding period of last year.
Stocks in major listed companies closed Sunday’s session under heavy sell-off pressure amid mounting uncertainty among investors about what lies ahead.
The main index of Tehran Stock Exchange, TEDPIX, lost more than 3% and shed 47,171 points. The benchmark closed trade at 1,514,244 points -- the lowest since June 29.
Large-cap stocks in major metal, refinery, banks, auto and petrochemical companies were hit hard as shown by the more than 4.1% decline in the TSE-30 Index. The index tracks performance of 30 TSE-listed companies with the highest market capitalization.
The insurance industry's total premium is expected to fall short of expectations in the current Iranian fiscal year, largely due to the ruinous Covid-19, rising inflation and forex rates at historic highs, the president of the Central Insurance company of Iran (CII) said.
"Insurers' collective premium income was expected to reach 1,000 trillion rials ($3.12 billion) in the current fiscal year (March 2020-21). However, given the financial hardships caused by the pandemic and the high inflation, the amount is not expected to exceed 800 trillion rials ($2.5 billion)," CII website quoted Gholamreza Soleimani as saying.
Insurers are suffering sharp declines in categories like travel and liability insurance, Soleimani said. "Inbound and outbound trips have decreased from eight million last year to less than a million…The persistent stagnation in business performance has further hurt demand for liability coverage."
Gold and dollar prices declined on Sunday after posting new highs a day earlier. The half Azadi coin lost 5.82% or 5 million rials to be sold for 86 million rials. The quarter Azadi coin also lost 3.38% and was quoted at 59 million rials, Eghtesadnews reported.
However, the Emami gold coin gained three million rials or 1.87% and fetched 161 million rials.
In sum, the greenback was the only currency that ended Sunday’s trade lower and lost 0.3% or 1,000 rials to be tagged at 319,000 rials.
Iranian and Indonesian officials in an online conference last week discussed gender justice in information and communication technologies and women’s potential in promoting a digital economy.
Held by Iran’s ICT Ministry on Oct. 13 and 14, the event was attended by Iran’s Vice President for Women and Family Affairs Massoumeh Ebtekar and Indonesia Minister of Women Empowerment and Child Protection Gusti ayu Bintang Darmawati, the government-affiliated website Women.gov.ir reported.
The event’s organizers believed that the two countries have a lot in common in terms of culture and lifestyle, so they can benefit from exchanging experiences and launching joint efforts for increasing women’s share of the digital economy.
Speaking at the online meeting, Ebtekar emphasized the importance of gender equality and bridging the gender gap in the tech industry and access to ICTs.
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