Qatar is working to de-escalate tension in the region by advocating for a return to the 2015 Iran nuclear agreement, its foreign minister said.
Qatar is working to de-escalate tension in the region by advocating for a return to the 2015 Iran nuclear agreement, its foreign minister said.
Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif dismissed the three European countries’ call on Iran to stop taking new steps beyond the limits of the 2015 nuclear agreement, stressing that Tehran’s position in this regard is in line with the deal’s provisions.
The main policy of the Biden administration is returning to the 2015 Iran nuclear deal as the first step prelude to any diplomatic breakthrough, but the public disputes between the two sides are detrimental to efforts to advance diplomacy, a US-based political expert said.
The National Coronavirus Taskforce placed nine cities on red alert on Saturday and announced the resurgence of the deadly pandemic in a number of provinces across the country.
Eight dams are in different stages of construction in Lorestan Province, managing director of the provincial Regional Water Company said.
The first privately-run compressed natural gas cylinder manufacturing plant opened in Alborz Industrial Town in Qazvin Province on Saturday, the provincial governor general said.
"Annual production capacity of the factory that was built with the help of a private firm [Tose Andishan Atlas Company] is 250,000 tanks, which will accelerate the ongoing plan for converting gasoline-powered vehicles to CNG hybrids across the country," Hedayatollah Jamalipour was quoted as saying by ISNA.
Cylinder sizes range from 10 liters and 130 liters, he said, and added that unlike liquid fuel, which maintains the same volume across a broad range of temperatures, CNG expands and contract significantly depending on weather conditions.
The amount of CNG that can be stored in a vehicle's tank varies due to multiple factors, two of which are ambient temperature and tank type.
It is often reported that use of mazut in power plants including the Besat facility is a major source of air pollution in Tehran. However, the managing director of the plant says it has not burnt mazut since 2013 and gas is the main feedstock.
“The facility is designed to use both gas and mazut. But according to a court order, the plant is banned from using mazut,” the Energy Ministry news website quoted Masoud Sheikh as saying.
“We are banned from burning mazut for electricity generation for the past eight years due to environmental concerns. The Department of Environmental regularly monitors the plant's chimneys and measures pollution levels so that it does not exceed the allowable limit,” Sheikh said.
A total of 20,000 tons of commodities worth $22.15 million were exported from Hamedan Province’s Malayer County to during the first nine months of the current Iranian year (March 20-Dec. 20, 2020).
Mobarakeh Steel Company produced 8.24 million tons of semi-finished steel products during the first 10 months of the current fiscal year (March 2020-January 2021), latest data released by IMIDRO show.
The mill's semi-finished output was 5% higher than the first 10 months of the previous fiscal year.
The company’s output during the 10th month of the current fiscal year (Dec. 21-Jan. 19) decreased by 7% to reach 682,544 tons.
MSC and its subsidiary Saba Steel produced 6.7 million tons of finished steel during the period and maintained its position as the largest Iranian steelmaker.
Iran’s commercial exchanges with the US amounted to $40.2 million in 2020, posting a 48.53% decline compared with 2019.
A new shipping line will connect Bandar Abbas in the southern Hormozgan Province to Latakia, the main port city of Syria.
According to the chairman of Iran-Syria Chamber of Commerce, monthly shipping services will become available for exports to Syria.
“The first consignment will be sent to Latakia on March 10. Vessels might be scheduled to carry freight to Syria twice monthly if need be,” Kayvan Kashefi was also quoted as saying by IRIB News.
Noting that previously, Iran’s exports had to be stored in Bandar Abbas to reach a certain amount before being forwarded to Syria, Kashefi said, “There isn’t any limit regarding the export volume, as both container ships and bulk carriers will be used on this route.”
The average Producer Price Index of the electricity sector during the four-quarter period ending Dec. 20, which marks the end of the third quarter of the current Iranian year, increased by 29.3% compared with the same period of the year before.
Exports from the southeastern port of Chabahar has increased by 381% so far in the current Iranian year (started March 20, 2020) compared with last year’s corresponding period, the head of Sistan-Baluchestan’s Ports and Maritime Organization said.
“Agricultural products, livestock and meat exports registered a growth of 100% and exports of building materials increased by 748%,” Behrouz Aqaei was also quoted as saying by the Ministry of Roads and Urban Development’s news portal, without mentioning the volume or value of exports.
Noting that Chabahar accounts for 9% of Iran’s total imports of essential goods since March 20, the official said, “Imports of essential goods, including wheat, barley, corn, rice, sugar and vegetable oils, from the country’s only oceanic port jumped by 71% year-on-year. The transit of agricultural commodities, food and machinery through Chabahar increased by 95%.”
Iran and Armenia traded 1.09 million tons of commodities worth $264 million during the first nine months of the current Iranian year (March 20, 2020-Jan. 19), registering a 29% decline in value compared with the similar period of last year, according to the co-chair of Iran-Armenia Chamber of Commerce.
“Iran’s exports amounted to 1.08 million tons worth $251.63 million, registering a 26% year-on-year fall,” Hervik Yarijanian was also quoted as saying by Fars News Agency.
The official added that imports stood at 5,619 tons worth $12.36 million.
Noting that Iran has ample capacity to boost trade with Armenia, the official said, “Trade expansion with Armenia facilitates our presence in the markets of the Commonwealth of Independent States, the Eurasian Economic Union and Europe.”
The Purchasing Managers’ Index for Iran’s retail sector stood at 54 in the month leading to Jan. 19, which marks the end of the 10th month of the current Iranian year, to signal a 19.68% rise compared with the previous month’s reading of 45.12.
The announcement was made by the Economy and Planning Department of Iran Chamber of Guilds. The department has been measuring retail PMI, known by its Farsi acronym Shamekh, since the month ending May 20, 2020.
A reading above 50 indicates expansion in the sector; below 50 indicates contraction. Traders watch these surveys closely as purchasing managers usually have early access to data about their company’s performance, which can be a leading indicator of overall economic performance.
A higher than expected reading should be taken as a positive sign for businesspeople while a lower than expected reading marks a negative performance.
Foreign exchange rates continued to rise on Saturday, with the US dollar entering the 26,000-rial channel, the highest in the past four weeks.
New estimations indicate banks and credit institutions affiliated to the government own non-banking assets worth 900 trillion rials ($3.6 billion), the deputy economy minister for banking, insurance and state-owned companies said.
"The value of state-owned lenders' assets is assessed at a regular interval of six months," Abbas Memarnejad was also quoted as saying by IRIB News.
The government-controlled banks and credit institutions sold shares and non-financial assets worth 110 trillion rials ($440 million) since the beginning of the current fiscal year in March up until January.
According to Memarnejad, of the total ceded assets, 31 trillion rials ($124 million) pertain to shares of state banks listed in the stock market and 79 trillion rials ($316 million) constitute non-financial assets of banks, namely real-estate properties.
Tehran's stock market opened on a strong note at the opening of trading week on Saturday, posting a daily growth unseen in the past three months.
The main index of Tehran Stock Exchange, TEDPIX, gained 47,837 points and jumped 3.94% to finish trade at 1,262,253.
The rally swept through both the large and small caps with the former having the upper hand as shown by a 5% daily hike in the TSE-30 Index, which tracks the performance of top 30 TSE-listed companies in terms of market cap.
Giving a better perspective of small caps, the equal-weighted index also soared by 3%.
The Central Bank of Iran has recently rolled out various retail payment instruments, or developed guidelines for payment companies in recent months.
"The effort is in line with the policy to enable bank customers' access to a variety of payment services," Davoud Mohammad-Beigi, the head of CBI's Department of Payment Systems, was quoted as saying by CBI's public relations website.
The most important payment services recently unveiled are contactless payment using smartphones and electronic wallets.
No 1816
The scheme to streamline Iran’s public transportation will be launched soon, based on a deal to overhaul age-old buses and taxis in metropolises, a deputy interior minister said.
During a press conference held in Tehran on Friday, Mehdi Jamalinejad added that the deal for overhauling 5,000 buses was signed by Plan and Budget Organization, mayors of 68 cities and Omid Entrepreneurship Fund in November 2020, IRNA reported.
“In the first step, Iran Khodro [IKCO] has agreed to overhaul 3,000 buses and supply spare parts for the transportation sector,” he said.
As per the deal, OEF will pay cheap loans worth 2.24 billion rials ($8,500) to each owner of a dilapidated bus with a 4% interest rate and a repayment period of five years.
The remaining expenses are to be covered by municipalities and owners. Further details are expected to be announced later.
“Municipalities can also receive fiscal aid from a total of 900 billion rials [$3.4 million] specified for the restoration of public transportation in the 2019-20 budget bill,” Jamalinejad said.
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