Iranian Rial

[pokerplayer]

2 hours ago, screwball said:

Bs....total bs....so many things wrong with this article..

I certainly hope so........

pp

[blueskyline]

Recent agreements. The usage of Russia's and Iran's own currencies to do business. Outside Investors using Bitcoin to bypass sanctions. And then exchanging the Bitcoin for Rial to invest in Iran's markets . Those alone will add urgency to lift the rials value . 

[blueskyline]

Russia has made major agreements in the use of trade , currencies and banking with China , Iran and Iraq since Friday and this past week . I believe that is setting the stage for some sort of major move in the near future . Russia seems to be the common denominator because if I remember correctly. They are the lead country to have the first 5 years of major BRICS banking in their country followed by the other BRICS . I think there is something to that 

[screwball]

Executing currency revaluation in Iran by removing one or more zeroes from the rial will require conditions that will not materialize for at least another two years, the governor of the Central Bank of Iran said.

“We have had no directives in the Cabinet to remove a zero from the currency and that is not on our agenda,” Valiollah Seif also said in a talk with Mehr News Agency’s website.

He elaborated that CBI has sent a bill to the government, which is still under review and questioned the official use of rial known to the people as toman (minus one zero).

“Therefore, it was stated in the bill that the monetary unit be changed to toman, which is not yet definitive and must be sent to the parliament. So we have had no plan to remove one zero,” he said.

In early December, while ratifying the CBI bill during a Cabinet meeting presided over by President Hassan Rouhani, the government approved changing Iran’s monetary unit from rial to toman, which meant lopping off one zero from the current national currency.

As a result of a multitude of sanctions imposed in the past, the CBI chief said the removal of zeroes from the national currency will only be possible when the stability of the inflation rate–currently in single digit after more than two decades–becomes a sure thing.

In view of the current agreeable trend of inflation rate and provided that it endures, “conditions required to remove a zero will be established in the next two to three years”.

[screwball]

The investment treaty between Iran and Japan will come into force as of April 26, a statement released by the Embassy of Japan in Iran on March 27 reads.

The two countries signed the treaty designed to protect investments by Japanese companies across various sectors of the Iranian economy in February 2016.

The treaty is seen as a tailwind for Japanese companies considering investments, including midstream petroleum businesses, in the Islamic Republic, a source at the Japanese Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry said earlier.

Possible Japanese investment in Iran could include petroleum, natural gas resource development, refinery and petrochemical projects, according to industry sources.

[screwball]

 

The Central Bank of Iran has announced that it will continue to pursue plans to sideline the US dollar.

The bank said in a statement that the country, in line with previous measures, will gradually reduce the role of greenback in its foreign exchange basket.   

"Beginning from years ago and concurrent with the intensification of US sanctions against Iran, CBI strived to reduce the role of the US dollar in its currency basket, pursuing this goal gradually but steadily," read the statement published on CBI's official website in the early days of the Iranian New Year that began on March 21.

The reaction came on the heels of news last week that a Luxembourg judge has denied a request from Iran to annul claims by families of victims of the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks on $1.6 billion of Iranian assets in Luxembourg, saying a court had to rule on the fundamentals of the case first.

The assets Iran held with Luxembourg-based clearing house Clearstream were frozen as part of international sanctions over Iran's nuclear program and had in theory become available to Iran when those sanctions were lifted after a deal in 2015.

Stressing that this policy is still being pursued diligently, CBI noted that because oil revenues are priced in the US dollar, a sudden breakup with the greenback was not feasible.

However, adds the bank, a declining and the eventual ditching of the US dollar, whether "from the currency basket or as the currency of choice in financial reports", will not only reduce risks emanating from the [US] sanctions and international restrictions, but will also entail "significant financial and economic benefits".

Iran had sought an injunction to annul the seizure of the assets by the families of 9/11 victims who had won court cases against Iran in the United States.

In line with curbing the use of the greenback, Iran announced in late January that it will stop using the US dollar as its currency of choice in its financial and foreign exchange reports from the new fiscal year (which began on March 21).

Noting that Iran faces no limitations regarding other currencies, CBI Governor Valiollah Seif had hinted at the time that the country may opt for euro in releasing its key economic reports.

Again on Sunday, Seif commented on the fact that Iran's currency of choice for financial reports is to be changed from the US dollar to euro, but refused to officially confirm it.

"The currency that is to be replaced [with the greenback] must play a vital role in our country's exports and imports, and must have the necessary stability," he was quoted as saying by Mehr News Agency.

The CBI chief said the issue is still being reviewed by experts.

Not Binding Yet

In its latest announcement, the central bank emphasized that the judge's decision in the Luxembourg case is in no way an official recognition and adherence to US demands.

 [The court ruling] is only "preliminary" and several provisions exist under Luxembourg laws to counter it such as "appealing to higher tribunals", the statement said, adding that CBI will employ them to a maximum extent with the assistance of the International Legal Department of the Presidential Office.

As a result of international sanctions, these assets "were practically blocked for years" and it was not possible to move them prior to this particular incident.

As CBI reiterates in its statement, these assets were purchased in the form of dollar-denominated bonds mainly during 1999-2007 under previous administrations. Since then, the bank has not purchased any of these instruments because "as a result of sanctions and the prohibition on U-turn transactions, CBI and other Iranian banks were not able to safeguard these bonds and even if this was possible, doing so would not have been advisable due to restrictions and risks associated with keeping dollar-denominated assets."

Echoing the views of Iranian officials such as Seif and Economy Minister Ali Tayyebnia on the Luxembourg case, CBI also decries the case against Iran as "a contravention of international rights and practices".

[markb57]

SMH.................

[Freedomwish]

11 hours ago, blueskyline said:

Recent agreements. The usage of Russia's and Iran's own currencies to do business. Outside Investors using Bitcoin to bypass sanctions. And then exchanging the Bitcoin for Rial to invest in Iran's markets . Those alone will add urgency to lift the rials value . 

Hmmmmm..........I wonder.....

[screwball]

 

 

 

Economy, Business And Markets

Tuesday, April 04, 2017

Rial Holds Steady Against USD In Defiance of Expectations

 

The rial was quoted in the free market at 37,800 to the US dollar in Tehran on Monday, having kept a steady course since the Norouz (Iranian New Year) holidays started on March 21.

Although the USD exchange rate was predicted to leap in the early days of the Iranian New Year as it happened last year, it only crossed 38,000 rials for a short period with rial gaining ground quickly afterward.

The long-held stability in the currency market during much of President Hassan Rouhani's tenure was briefly interrupted in late December when rial hit a record low of 41,500 against the greenback.

Awaiting a surge in greenback exchange rates, currency speculators had bet on rial to reach 38,200 per dollar.

Intervention by some bank-owned exchange houses, selling the US dollar during the Norouz holidays, was the main reason for speculators' presumptions to fall flat.

Two days prior to the holidays on March 19, the rial stood at 37,950 to the dollar and now after the holidays, the rial even gained slightly against the greenback at 0.2%.

In a survey conducted by the Persian economic daily, Donya-e-Eqtesad–a sister publication of Financial Tribune– 66 economists and academics expressed their forecasts on economic indicators such as inflation rate, GDP growth and foreign exchange rate for the current year.

Asked to estimate the USD exchange rate against the rial by the end of the year on March 20, 2018, 75% of them put the figure between 39,000 and 45,000 rials while the rest predicted the rate to stand around 45,000 to 50,000 rials.

As for the inflation rate, more than half the economists put it somewhere between 10-12% and about 33% of them predicted it to exceed 12%.

In 2016, Iran’s inflation rate eased into single digits for the first time in a quarter century following the lifting of sanctions against Tehran after the implementation of a landmark nuclear agreement, officially known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, in January.

Bahar Azadi Gold Coin also experienced steady days. The market closed at the end of the previous year with the price of benchmark coin standing at 12.15 million rials ($324).  

The price hovered around 12 million rials ($320) during the holidays and fetched 12.05 million rials ($322) on April 3 in Tehran's market to register a 0.62% decrease compared with the rate just before the holidays.

Lackluster demand for the precious metal during the second week of the new Iranian year was the main factor behind the bearish market. This is while the global price of gold went up from $1,234.8 on March 20 to $1,250 two weeks later, marking a 1.2% increase.

The head of Tehran Gold and Jewelry Union also ascribed the fall in gold coin price to weak demand.

"The gold rally in global markets impacted our market and prevented the [further] decline in gold coin price. However, the price is in tandem with foreign exchange rates and the global price of gold," Mohammad Keshti-Arai was also quoted as saying by ISNA.

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An Economy Ministry official has said that with the lifting of sanctions targeting Iranian economy in the wake of the 2015 nuclear accord, the country has joined various global monetary institutions, which goal will be further pursued in the future.

"During the past few years and especially in the post-sanctions era, the administration of President Hassan Rouhani and the Organization for Investment, Economic and Technical Assistance of Iran made efforts to resume collaborations with international financial entities, all of which were realized as a direct result of JCPOA," Saeed Khani Oshani, a senior director at the OIETAI, said in a talk with the official news service Shada.

The Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action is the formal name of the nuclear deal Iran reached with six world powers.

"International sanctions meant that Iran was ostracized from major financial institutions to the detriment of its economy, but has now managed to rejoin them and create new connections," he added.

The official, who is in charge of international entities at the investment office of the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Finance, split these efforts into two categories of "reconnecting with institutions that had dealings with Iran prior to the sanctions" and "entities with which the country had no previous ties".

As examples of these two categories, Oshani first pointed to The World Bank as an international organization of which "Iran was a member since about 60 years".

The country's ties with WB was cut due to the international sanctions that imposed banking restrictions on the one hand and caused other countries to refrain from linking up with Iran on the other.

After the nuclear accord and because of efforts undertaken by the government, "The WB gradually announced that it will work with Iran again", the official said.

As to the second category, Oshani referred to Iran's membership in the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank as a prime example.

Iran began negotiations to become a "founding member" of the bank three years ago while sanctions were still in place, which stood in the way of Iran becoming a member. Even if the membership were to be approved, "we would not have been able to use the benefits because our banking system was facing restrictions".

But after the sanctions, Oshani adds, there were no excuses and Iran became a shareholder and member state of AIIB.

An international financial institution, AIIB aims to support infrastructure development in the Asia-Pacific region. It was proposed by China and consists of 57 member states.

The bank is widely regarded as a strong and emerging rival to western lenders, namely the International Monetary Fund and The World Bank—both headquartered in Washington, and operates with a capital of $100 billion, equivalent to two-thirds of the capital of the Asian Development Bank and about half of The World Bank.

Iranian lawmakers approved the proposal of Iran’s membership in AIIB in late August and President Hassan Rouhani enacted the law in early October, while along with 26 other initial founding member states, Iran signed the bank's constitution in Beijing on June 29, 2015.

Added Benefits

As Oshani outlines, rejoining previous institutions and reaching out to new ones will have a significant impact on absorbing foreign investments, namely from The World Bank that can allocate funds gradually after identifying and being introduced to local projects.

The official noted that AIIB identified potential projects in Iran in February and aims to finance major projects in a number of Iranian cities.

"By developing collaborations and eventually hosting a delegation from AIIB, which visited four Iranian provinces, the Ministry of Economy was able to approve about $600 million worth of funds for water and wastewater projects in the provinces of Gilan, Khorasan Razavi and Kermanshah, which will be implemented soon," he said.

Furthermore, OIETAI helped "attract the credit needed for 2017-19 from the Islamic Development Bank by sending a list of prioritized projects", Oshani said.

IDB is a multilateral development financing institution located in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, which was founded in 1973 and aims to serve Muslims in member and non-member countries.

[screwball]

The new planes ordered by Iran after the lifting of nuclear sanctions will create 20,000 direct jobs in Iran, an official with the Civil Aviation Organization of Iran said.

“The figure excludes thousands of other jobs which are to be created indirectly,” Mohammad Reza Kazemipour was also quoted as saying by the Persian daily Iran.

Nuclear sanctions were lifted in January 2016 as part of a deal clinched by the country with world powers earlier in July 2015.

Iran Air has already received three of the airplanes it ordered from Airbus. The flag carrier has also signed a contract with Boeing to buy and lease 100 jets.

It is also in talks to finalize another contract with French-Italian manufacturer of regional planes ATR to purchase up to 40 aircraft.

“Currently, 500-700 co-pilots are unemployed in Iran,” Kazemipour said, adding that the acquisition of new planes will generate tens of billions of dollars in revenues for Iran.

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Heading for the Iranian presidential election in May, Iranian President Hassan Rouhani has much to feel good about.

Thanks to his tireless efforts, Iran’s economy has moved from a recession in 2015-16 to a 7.4% GDP growth in the first half of 2016-17, reads an article published in the economic weblog EconoMonitor run by Roubini Global Economics, a global economic and financial analysis firm based in London. Excerpts follow: 

The UN economic sanctions, in response to the Iranian nuclear program, targeted everything from shipping and banking to foreign investment and exports.

The sanctions also limited Iranian revenues and stymied industry. Over $100 billion in financial assets were blocked. The volume of oil exports fell over 50%. Car production fell by 40%.

One out of every five Iranians was jobless. The economy was 15 to 20% smaller than it would have been without the sanctions.

But lifting sanctions is not enough for Iran to be competitive in the global economy. If Iran is to escape the trap of poor management and inefficiency, Iran must ensure that privatization creates a real private sector rather than a semi-governmental sector. It can take months to get a new company registered due to bureaucratic inefficiency. The Iranian economy suffers from price controls, import tariffs and other interventions.

That said, hope is on the way. After a decade of economic despair and three years of tortuous negotiations, Tehran at last is coming in from the cold. On July 14, 2015, Iran made a deal with the UN Security Council’s five permanent members plus Germany to unwind its nuclear program in return for lifting international economic sanctions.

But it would take six months before the nuclear deal would finally go into effect. Finally, on January 14, 2016, the UN nuclear watchdog announced that Iran had fulfilled all of its commitments under the July nuclear agreement to scale back its nuclear program.

The UN inspectors verified that Iran has carried out all measures required under the agreement. As a result, UN sanctions on Iran were lifted, as were most European restrictions, including an embargo on oil imports.

Lifting sanctions allows crucial Iranian sectors such as oil and finance to reenter the global economy. Iran will also get access to funds frozen in international banks. These came after it substantially reduced the scope of its nuclear program.

 Huge Potential

At first glance, foreign businessmen saw the nuclear deal paving the way for a flood of new business deals, opening up foreign investment and international trade in crucial sectors such as oil and gas, car production, aviation, tourism, technology, mining, stock market and banking.

Iran’s potential emergence from economic isolation could be the most significant opening of an economy since the fall of the Soviet Union and the US rapprochement with China. The potential of Iran is huge.

As one of the last markets to open up to the world, its allure is unmistakable. Its nearly 80 million population—60% of whom are under 30 years old—is tech-savvy. Internet penetration is 53% across the population and 77% in Tehran. About 11 million Iranians have mobile Internet access.

Iran’s market for technology products and services is roughly $4 billion a year.

  FDI Soars

It didn’t take long for the post-sanctions economic potential to materialize.

By April 2016, Iranian oilfields were doubling their production. Iran pumped almost 3.6 million barrels of oil, a level last reached in November 2011 before sanctions over Tehran’s nuclear program were tightened. Crude oil exports surged to 2 million bpd, just 200,000 bpd below late 2011 levels.

In addition, the removal of UN sanctions reopened the county’s economy to a stream of new investments. Before the lifting of sanctions, Iran was ranked 12th out of the 14 Middle East nations for foreign direct investment between January 2003 and December 2015, equating to a market share of 1.62%.

Since sanctions were lifted in 2016, Iran has climbed to number 3 in the rankings, with a market share of 11.11%, placed only behind regional powerhouses the UAE and Saudi Arabia.

Iran won 22 FDI projects during the first quarter of 2016, the highest rate of investment since FDI Markets began recording data in 2003.

Since the sanctions were lifted, the leading sector for investment into Iran has been financial services. The country has also attracted investments from the automotive sector, business services, consumer electronics and textiles, among others.

The principal countries investing in Iran during the period were South Korea and Germany, which invested $2.15 billion.

  Impressive Recovery

In retrospect, Iran’s economy enjoyed an “impressive recovery” after the sanctions were lifted. Concerns over the durability of the nuclear agreement were triggered by Donald Trump’s repeated criticism of the nuclear deal.

The Trump administration has also warned Tehran that it is “on notice” and imposed new sanctions on Iranian individuals and entities because of Iran’s ballistic missile program and its role in regional conflicts. That said, western diplomats in Tehran and Iranian businessmen believe the deal is not about to unravel as it enjoys strong support from its other signatories, including the UK, France, Germany, Russia and China.

There was also concern that international energy groups might somehow be deterred by renewed uncertainty over US President Donald Trump’s election and his bellicose rhetoric toward Iran during his campaign. But that did not turn out to be the case.

In fact, on December 7, 2017, Royal Dutch Shell signed a provisional memo of understanding with Iran to explore potential investment in three of the country’s biggest oil and gas fields.

Shell will carry out studies on the giant oilfields of Azadegan and Yadavaran in southwest Iran as well as the Kish gas fields in the Persian Gulf. This marked the first public commitment by a large western oil company to work with Iran since the start of Trump’s presidency.

Few western oil firms can ignore the multibillion oil and gas “candy store” that is Iran. There are lots of reasons why Iran is a golden opportunity for oil and gas companies.

Iran is preparing to open a multibillion shop window for 50 oil and gas projects that are now up for grabs. It has the world’s fourth largest crude oil and second largest natural gas reserves, or more than 250 billion barrels of oil equivalent in reserves. Its energy resources have been mapped and production costs are low. Production costs are just $10 to $15 a barrel.

This ambitious oil production goal will hinge on foreign direct investment that will depend not only on sanctions relief but the terms under which western companies will be permitted to invest.

[screwball]

The 15th annual General Assembly and the 30th meeting of the council of the Islamic Financial Services Board will convene in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, on April 6.

Central Bank of Iran Vice Governor Akbar Komijani will be a keynote speaker at the events, which also include other conferences and meetings held during the two days prior to the main event, the official website of CBI reported.

In mid-December, IFSB announced the appointment of the Central Bank of Iran’s governor as its chairman for 2017.

The website reported that Valiollah Seif, governor of the Central Bank of the Islamic Republic of Iran, will steer the chairmanship of IFSB while Fazle Kabir, governor of Bangladesh Bank (the central bank of Bangladesh), was appointed deputy chairman.

According to IFSB, Seif took over the chairmanship of the international standard-setting organization from Tarek Amer, governor of the Central Bank of Egypt. The new appointments came into effect on 1 January 2017.

During this year's event and considering the fact that the tenure of the current secretary-general is coming to an end, "the new secretary-general, which is the highest office in the IFSB, will be chosen, giving this particular round of meetings added importance", CBI noted in its statement.

CBI is the official organizer of this year's IFSB events, a responsibility which it last held in 2005.

The 29th meeting of IFSB council, hosted by the Central Bank of Egypt, was held last year in Cairo, Egypt. It was attended by 10 central bank governors and deputy governors of regulatory and supervisory authorities, and 10 representatives from among IFSB members, representing 14 countries and the Islamic Development Bank. The meeting was chaired by Tarek Amer.

The Kuala Lumpur-based IFSB was officially inaugurated on Nov. 3, 2002, and started operations on March 10, 2003. It serves as an international standard-setting body of regulatory and supervisory agencies that have vested interest in ensuring the soundness and stability of the Islamic financial services industry, which is defined broadly to include banking, capital market and insurance.

In advancing this mission, IFSB promotes the development of an Islamic financial services industry by introducing new, or adapting existing international standards consistent with the principles of Islamic law, and recommending them for adoption.

To this end, the work of IFSB complements that of the Basel Committee on Banking Supervision, International Organization of Securities Commissions and the International Association of Insurance Supervisors.

[screwball]

Iran pressing ahead with plan to ditch dollar 

Mon Apr 3, 2017 6:14PM

1. Home
2. Iran
3. Economy

The Central Bank of Iran (CBI) says it is still working on a plan to reduce the role of the US dollar in its foreign exchange basket. 

A recent controversial decision by a Luxembourg court to endorse freezing Iran’s assets has once against brought a plan by Tehran to ditch the US dollar into the spotlight. 

The Central Bank of Iran (CBI) in a statement emphasized that it was still trying to reduce the role of the US dollar in its foreign exchange basket – a policy that officials in Tehran had previously said would make the country immune to Washington’s pressures.

The CBI said this was part of an ambitious plan that had been devised after the intensification of US sanctions against the Islamic Republic.

“This policy is currently still being pursued with maximum care,” the bank added in its statement that was posted on its website.   

The CBI further emphasized that removing the US dollar in both official statements as well as in the foreign exchange basket would reduce Iran’s risks to sanctions as well as the related international restrictions. 

This, it added, would also result in significant economic and financial gains for the Islamic Republic, the bank added in its statement.

A judge at Luxembourg's district court last month ruled that 2016 verdict to freeze CBI assets in the country was legal.

What initiated the freezing of more than $1.6 billion of CBI assets was a legal bid by the US to seek compensation from Iran for the victims of 9/11 and their families over the country’s alleged role in the terror attacks.

The exterior of Clearance securities depository in Luxembourg where above $1.6 billion of Iran’s assets have been ordered to be frozen.

Washington claims that Iran helped the al-Qaeda terrorist group in conducting the attacks. Iran has repeatedly rejected the allegation and has also rejected US bid to seek compensations through freezing CBI assets in Europe as “completely unlawful”.

The CBI emphasized in its statement that it would appeal the ruling by Luxembourg's district court. 

It also added that the ruling had affected dollar bonds that had been purchased between 1999 and 2007 but were already off-limits to Iran due to sanctions.

Nonetheless, it emphasized that the necessary measures should have been taken to transfer those assets to Iran before the intensification of the sanctions.  

The CBI further added that the sanctions as well as rulings by US courts had created multiple layers of difficulties that had resulted in the freezing of Iran’s assets in several instances including the case in Luxembourg. 

Yet, it said it was already working on a solution in cooperation with the Legal Department of the Presidential Office to retrieve its assets ordered frozen due to what it described as an “illegal” move by the US. 

[screwball]

Cabinet Aiming for +700,000 New Jobs This Year: Iran’s President 

News ID: 1369156 Service: Economy 

 April, 03, 2017 - 15:44 

TEHRAN (Tasnim) – Iran’s President Hassan Rouhani said his administration has formulated plans to create jobs for more than 700,000 young people in the current Iranian year, which began two weeks ago. 

In a Monday meeting with a group of officials and government staff, President Rouhani said the job creation target will come true by carrying out national production plans.

“Employment is one of the most important economic, social and security-making issues of the country,” he added.

As regards the upcoming presidential election, slated for May 19, Rouhani said what matters the most will be the maximum turnout and encouraging all eligible voters to cast their ballot.

Last week, President Rouhani described creation of new jobs for the country’s youth as the main priority of his administration.

He said he had told Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyed Ali Khamenei immediately after taking the office following the 2013 presidential election that the major problem the administration had to deal with was job creation for the youth, which is more important than nuclear negotiations or foreign policy issues.

Ayatollah Khamenei named the new Iranian calendar year, which began on March 21, as the “Year of Economy of Resistance: Production and Employment".

Also in a speech in Iran’s northeastern holy city of Mashhad on the first day of spring, Imam Khamenei highlighted the need to stimulate domestic production and combat unemployment, and enumerated the factors that contribute to stronger national production.

[screwball]

04/03/17

Iran's Annual Foreign Trade Reach $87.68B

Source: Mehr News Agency

Iran's foreign trade volume reached 87.614 billion dollars in the previous Iranian calendar year (ended March 21) with the share of exports standing at 43.930 billion dollars. Iranians imported 43.684 billion dollars of goods in the meantime for the country to enjoy a slight trade surplus.

cartoon by Salman Taheri, Iranian daily Shahrvand

The overall trade volume of 87.614 billion dollars last year was 4.34 per cent worth 3.436 billion dollars larger than the figure for the earlier year. The volume of foreign trade two years ago had only hit 83.968 billion dollars. The figures indicate that Iran experienced favorable balance for the second consecutive year as the country's non-oil exports were $246mn larger than overall imports.

What's more, the volume of commercial operations in customs across the country climbed to 163.47 million tons in the previous year revealing that customs formalities grew by 23.988 million tons in weight bringing about 26.3% increased workload I customs. The volume of customs operations stood at 129 million and 59 thousand tons two years ago.

Over twelve months of last Iranian year (2016-2017), non-oil exports brought $43.930bn in foreign currency showing a 3.54% growth as compared to the year before that.

Also, Iran's imports rose by 5.16 per cent reaching 43.684 billion dollars in the meantime.

In terms of tonnage, Iran imported an aggregate total of 33.399 million tons of goods last year while 129.648 million tons were exported.

Last year petrochemical sector had a good record in exports by a nine-percent growth and realizing a total volume of 14.340 billion dollars. Iran's petrochemical exports was $13.134bn two years ago. The export value of gas condensate also improved by 56% last year and recorded the best performance by hitting 7.320 million dollars though a total decline of 10 percent was felt in exports of other goods.

Main exportable items during the past year respectively included gas condensates worth $7.320bn, light oil products excluding gasoline worth $2.479bn, liquefied natural gas $2.79bn, liquefied propane $1.222bn and liquefied petroleum gases and gaseous hydrocarbons worth one billion and 204 million dollars. Average price of each ton of exported goods was $339 which was 25% more expensive than the figure for two years ago.

Major imported items in the same time comprised livestock corn worth one billion and 413 million dollars, soybeans worth $909mn, motor vehicles with cylinder capacity of 1,500 to 2,000 cc worth $893mn, CKD parts for automobile production worth $782mn as well as rice worth 690 million dollars. However, the average value per ton of imported goods rose to 1308 dollars which was 10.66% higher than the rate for two years ago showing the willingness of Iranian businessmen to import goods with lower volumes and higher values.

Key importers of Iranian goods in the meantime were China with $8.377bn, the United Arab Emirates with $7.436bn, Iraq $6.111bn, Turkey with $3.244bn and the Republic of Korea with 2 billion and 877 million dollars. Iran's non-oil exports to China, the United Arabic Emirates, Iraq and the Korean Republic grew by 9, 3, 2 and 3.5 per cent, respectively.

Main exporters of goods to Iran were China with $10.753bn dollars, the UAE Arabic with $6.407bn, South Korea with $3.460bn, Turkey with $2.738bn and Germany with 2.537 billion dollars. Iran's imports from China, the UAE, South Korea, Turkey and Germany increased by 2.6, 17.5, 6, 8.3 and 29.2 percent respectively.

[screwball]

Iran resumes coop. with intl. financial institutions

News ID: 3943096 - Mon 3 April 2017 - 12:14

Economy

TEHRAN, Apr. 03 (MNA) – An OIETAI official said Iran has resumed cooperation with international financial institutions in the post-JCPOA era.

Head of OIETAI's Office for Loans and International Institutions Saeed Khani Oshani said in the past few years, Organization for Investment Economic and Technical Assistance of Iran (OIETAI) has taken steps to resume cooperation with international financial institutions though all the measures were made possible by the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA); as such, the taken steps can be classified into two categories one being resumption of cooperation with international financial institutions is which Iran was already a member but its cooperation with them had been blocked due to sanctions.

“Following the JCPOA, we are now able to resume collaborations with these institutions or add to our capital in them,” highlighted the official adding “in the other category, the Islamic Republic of Iran has become a member of institutions in which we were not members.”

Khani said the World Bank pertained to the first category since Iran had been a member for 60 years though relations were interrupted during sanction years due to banking restrictions and opposition of certain countries.

“Following the nuclear deal and efforts of the government, the World Bank gradually announced that it would continue cooperation with Iran.”

The official said one instance of the second category was Iran’s membership at Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB); “prior to the JCPOA and when Iran’s subscription to the bank was being negotiated, one major obstacle was that even in case of membership, we would gain no benefit due to blocked banking systems; presently, no restrictions are felt as the country is now a founding member of AIIB.”

OIETAI official said these institutions could directly pay funds to the Islamic Republic of Iran underlining “by identifying projects, the World Bank is able to grant funds to Iran.”

“On the other hand, the AIIB identified its primary projects in several major cities of Iran in late February and seeks to finance them,” stressed Khani concluding “therefore, these organizations can directly allocate funds for development of infrastructure projects as well as that presence of international institutions will give trust and credibility to investors.”

[screwball]

Just now, screwball said:

has taken steps to resume cooperation with international financial institutions though all the measures were made possible by the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA); as such, the taken steps can be classified into two categories one being resumption of cooperation with international financial institutions is which Iran was already a member but its cooperation with them had been blocked due to sanctions.

Hmmmm.thought this **** would have started months ago considering they claim they are connected to target.2 , chips and swift...

[screwball]

Removing economic hurdles guarantees political independence: Larijani

1. Politics

April 3, 2017

 

TEHRAN – Iranian Majlis Speaker Ali Larijani said on Monday that it is essential to overcome economic challenges to protect political independence and national security. 

“We have adopted right strategies in the region and at the international atmosphere from the political and security point of view, but continuing to apply them is contingent upon enjoying a strong and dynamic economy,” he said during a meeting with Majlis staff.

He said that the country is facing challenges in export and domestic production.

Abundant foreign commodities in the market have negatively influenced domestic production, he said, calling for serious fight against smuggling.

Larijani also said that investment should be facilitated to boost domestic production.

Employment and domestic production are interrelated, he noted.

[screwball]

Iran Aseman Airlines has signed a Minute of Agreement (MOA) with the American plane giant Boeing to purchase 60 B737-Max passenger jets worth more than $5 billion based on catalogue prices.

The document was signed on March 18, during a meeting with Boeing representatives in Tehran, Aseman told the Financial Tribune on Tuesday.

 Aseman expects to finalize a contract in 2-3 months. The deal is now pending a license from the US Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control, according to the airliner.

The airline is also in talks with Boeing’s European rival Airbus to add two A340s and seven A321s to its fleet that is the third largest fleet in Iran, after Iran Air and Mahan.

Aseman’s has three A320-200s, one A340-300, four ATR72-200s, two ATR72-500s, three B727-200s, one B727-200(F), two B737-400s and 19 Fokker 100s.

Iran Aseman Airlines, owned by Iran’s Civil Service Pension Foundation, would be the second Iranian airline to purchase brand new aircraft from Boeing after the lifting of the sanctions in January 2016.

Back in December, Iran Air finalized a deal with Boeing on 80 jets including 50 narrow-body 737max 8s, 15 wide-body 777-300ERs and 15 777-9s, which will be delivered to Iran Air over 10 years.

It was reported that the Iranian airline was set to lease seven A320neo from an undisclosed Irish firm following the signing of a memorandum of understanding between Iran’s Civil Aviation Organization and the Irish Aviation Authority in Tehran in February.

Developing…

so you dont say...

[pokerplayer]

Lots of great articles coming out considering the last article regarding zero removal in 2019. Smoke and mirrors ? No idea but at least we are moving in the right direction anyways.

   pp

[pokerplayer]

[blueskyline]

Thanks Screwball....... Keep them coming ! GM PP

 

[Freedomwish]

4 hours ago, pokerplayer said:

Lots of great articles coming out considering the last article regarding zero removal in 2019. Smoke and mirrors ? No idea but at least we are moving in the right direction anyways.

   pp

https://financialtribune.com/articles/economy-business-and-markets/61660/currency-revaluation-a-two-year-process

This what was posted from another thread - who knows.....I'm betting they're either waiting to see what Iraq is gonna do or allow it to pop when the Dinar does.......jmowaw.  (just my opinion without any whiskey )

[screwball]

Banque de France, the central bank of France, has reportedly removed all and any remaining restrictions on the Paris branch of Bank Saderat Iran, meaning that the branch is now able to provide full banking services to its customers in the European capital.

"Following ongoing and effective diplomatic, legal and banking measures taken by the Bank Saderat officials in the aftermath of the implementation of the nuclear accord, the central bank of France has officially announced the complete lifting of restrictions put in place as a result of sanctions in a letter to the Paris branch of the bank," Bank Saderat said in a statement published on its website.

"Accordingly, the Paris branch of the bank is authorized to engage in all activities and offer all banking services from March 31."

The privatized Bank Saderat, with 2,700 branches inside the country and 27 foreign branches, has one of the widest networks of all Iranian lenders both inside and outside the country.

The statement notes that the European Union had previously officially announced that Bank Saderat and its London PLC branch have been removed from the list of sanctioned entities. It adds that the termination of sanctions "on the assets of the most internationally-active bank of the country " and the subsequent removal of sanctions pertaining to its Paris branch will not only be a positive thing for all beneficiaries, but will also prove useful for the Iranian economy.

In late October, the UK Treasury announced in a press release that it has amended its Council Regulation (ET) 267/2012, adding that asset freeze no longer applies to BSI and Bank Saderat PLC.

BSI’s presence in the UK dates back to 1963 when it launched a branch in London. The branch was merged with Iran Overseas Investment Bank PLC in 2002 to form Bank Saderat PLC.

Saderat was subject to sanctions since 2010 and remained on the black list even after the lifting of sanctions in Jan. 2016.

Bank Melli Iran and Tejarat Bank are other Iranian lenders with branches in Paris. The chief executive of the former had said in early February that its French branch has started offering services to French traders "to help boost Iran-France commercial ties in the post-sanctions era".

A New Lease on Life

According to its website, Bank Saderat has 27 branches outside Iran, accounting for half the total presence of Iranian banks on the global scene.

Considering that expanding these branches is a constant priority, they will benefit the national economy by "easing and accelerating international trade, reducing costs of foreign-exchange dealings, increasing investments, boosting the share value of banks, providing a variety of forex services and increasing profitability".

Furthermore, the removal of sanctions from the bank and its linkup with the inter-bank messaging network SWIFT can add to its credit and ability to facilitate international deals and "make its macroeconomic role more effective".

Bank Saderat also pledged in its statement that it will continue to strive to clear any other international hurdles facing it and employ all potential economic opportunities through full cooperation with the Central Bank of Iran and the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Finance.

Tehran is hoping for a swift reintegration into global trade after its nuclear deal in 2015 led to the lifting of international sanctions. Its failure to persuade western banks to accept its business has been one of the main choke points preventing its rehabilitation.