Iran's non-oil exports surpass $27bn
Customs Administration Director Abbas Memarnejad said on Tuesday that the value of Iran's non-oil exports reached $27.46 billion in the eight-month period, IRNA reported. Memarnejad, who is also a deputy economy minister, noted that the figure indicates a 33.9-percent increase compared to the corresponding period of the previous year. He added that about 49.5 million tons of goods have been exported from the Islamic Republic between March and November, showing an 8.5-percent rise compared to the previous year. China bought $3.673 billion worth of non-oil products from Iran during the eight-month period, making it the leading importer of Iranian non-oil goods, followed by the United Arab Emirates ($3.106 billion), Iraq ($2.936 billion), India ($1.824 billion), and Afghanistan ($1.232 billion), he explained. Iran's main non-oil exports are petroleum gases, liquefied gas hydrocarbons, liquefied propane, methanol, mineral fuels, chemical products, plastics, fruits, nuts, fertilizers, and carpets.
Memarnejad also stated that 23.812 tons of goods worth $39.75 billion were imported to the Islamic Republic, indicating a 21.4-percent decrease in weight and a 6.1-percent reduction in value.
The Central Bank of Iran governor Mahmoud Bahmani has predicted that inflation rate would remain below 20 percent for the eighth calendar month of Aban (ended November 21), saying that the inflation rate will be officially announced by December 1, the Pana news agency reported. The country's inflation rate increased by 0.8 percent to stand at 19.1 percent in the end of the seventh Iranian month of Mehr, Bahmani said, according to Press TV. The CBI chief further said that the country's inflation growth rate will decline in the coming months. He put last year's inflation rate at 12.4 percent.