Baku, Azerbaijan, May 5
By Umid Niayesh - Trend:
Iran imported 2,309 sedans during the first month of current Iranian calendar year (started on March 21) - a 348.35 percent increase compared to the same period of the preceding year. The total value of the imported cars was around $52 million during the period, according to the Iranian Custom Administration's latest monthly report released on May 5.
It should be noted that the country's car imports indicate a significant fall compared to the preceding month.
Some 17,600 sedan cars, worth $1.744 billion were imported to Iran in the 12th month of last year.
The average price of imported cars was $22,682 which indicates a 0.8 percent fall in price compared to the same month of preceding year. Iran has imported 2,057 cars from the UAE, 100 cars from Kuwait and 47 cars from South Korea during the period.
The country exported 685 sedan cars, worth $4 million in the first month of the current Iranian calendar year, which indicate fall by 23.8 percent in terms of volume and 45.5 percent in terms of value respectively compared to the same period of previous year.
The figure also is significantly less than country's sedan exports in last year's 12th month.
Iran exported about 4,230 sedans, worth $27 million in the latest month of the last Iranian calendar year.
The average price of exported car was $5,556 during the period, which indicates a 28.5 percent decrease compared to the same month of the preceding year.
Iran has exported 678, 4 and 3 sedan cars to Iraq, Azerbaijan and South Korea respectively during the period.
Increasing prices on raw materials and foreign currencies as well as international sanctions are car manufacturers' main problems in Iran. About 69 automobile manufacturer units have been closed and 115,000 people lost their jobs in the automobile sector of Iran during the past two years due to imposed sanctions.
Western countries suspended certain sanctions against Iran as the Geneva nuclear deal came into force on Jan. 20 for six months. Iran was permitted to import materials for its auto manufacturing sector as a result of the nuclear deal implementation.
Iran produced 655,551 cars in the first eleven months of the last Iranian calendar year.
The country produced 989,110 cars in 2012, which made it Asia's eighth largest car manufacturer.