Baku, Azerbaijan, Sept. 15
By Fatih Karimov - Trend: More than $14.5 billion of goods are smuggled to Iran per year, Mojtaba Khosrotaj, Iranian deputy industry minister, said.
Based on statistics which have been released by the Headquarters for Fighting Smuggling of Goods, $3 billion of gold, $2.7 billion of clothing, $2 billion of home appliances, $1.8 billion of cell phones, $1.5 billion of car spare parts, $1.5 billion computer parts, $1.1 billion of cosmetics, and $912 million of cigarettes are smuggled to the country annually, Khosrotaj said, Iran's Fars news agency reported Sept. 15.
High custom charges and illegal importation of some basic goods, as well as red tape are among the main reasons that lead to smuggling of goods, he said.
Some people say a lack of inspection and control at border areas has promoted smuggling of goods, he noted.
Through reducing custom charges for official imports and cracking down on smugglers, illegal importation of goods should be curbed, he said.
Mostafa Pourmohammadi, the Iranian Justice Minister, said in May that between $12 billion and $20 billion worth of goods are smuggled into the country, the lion's share of which enter the country via official customs.
Iranian MP Mohammad Reza Pourebrahimi said in May that domestic manufacturers are grappling with a drop in sales, and consequently, a shortage of liquidity and revolving capital due to irregular and illegal imports of goods.
Edited by CN
