Iran Economy

March 26; 2020

The Iranian capital city Tehran hosted 70 renowned foreign companies during a large international conference on grains, oilseeds, and related industries at Espinas Palace Hotel.

The event titled “Iran Grain Conference 2019” was the largest conference ever held in Iran in the field of grains, according to Sharif Nezam-Mafi, the board chairman of Iran-Switzerland Joint Chamber of Commerce which is organizing the international gathering.

■ Swiss ambassador news of a new financial mechanism

The Swiss ambassador to Tehran also spoke at the conference about the government’s efforts to establish a financial channel between the two countries for the exchange of humanitarian goods in the field of medicine, medical equipment, and food products.

“This financial channel is not going to be a competitor or substitute for Instex and will operate differently from Instex’s financial mechanism if it is set up,” said Mark Leitner.

“This financial channel and mechanism is not a new invention, and sanctions against Iran have been similar in the previous period,” he said. And money transfers have been active for humanitarian trade in Iran, and the Swiss government is currently examining its implementation.

Leitner then cited some statistics on trade between Iran and Switzerland in the agricultural sector and said: According to the statistics of the Iranian Ministry of Agriculture Jihad, about 15 percent of total imports of agricultural and food products from Switzerland were supplied during the last year.

He said that many agricultural and food crops are not cultivated in Switzerland and the advanced industries of Swiss companies in the production and processing of crops are among the top in the world, adding: Of the two watermelons planted and consumed in Iran, one Watermelon comes from Switzerland. Also, 90% of the carrots sown in Iranian farms were produced in Switzerland. In addition, one out of every eight Iranian infants is a Swiss consumer of pharmaceutical and food products.

The Swiss ambassador to Tehran then referred to the Iranian-Iranian conference in Tehran as a step forward in developing cooperation between Iranian and Swiss companies in the field of the grain trade.

■ Networking, the major objective of the conference

Sharif Nezam-Mafi, who is the secretary of the event, said for the first time in the country a conference on grains includes the complete chain of the related products, technology, equipment, industries, and all other related issues. “It is a prominent feature of Iran Grain Conference.” Referring to the high number of participants and sponsors of the event, he said 450 applicants have registered to participate in the conference, of the 70 applicants are from other countries including Russia, Germany, Switzerland, Denmark, France, China, Turkey, Azerbaijan and Kazakhstan, and the event is sponsored by 35 companies and associations.

He said the foreign participants are all renowned companies at the international level and in fact, they are all among the Ten Top companies of their countries in the related fields. Nezam-Mafi further said that the main objective and role of Iran Grain Conference is “Networking” and in fact, it tries to create a proper ground for the Iranian companies to find their foreign partners.

Many foreign companies think that Iran is an importer of the consumer products, he said, adding, “We intend to let them know that Iran is a major producer in many fields.” Elsewhere in his remarks, Nezam-Mafi referred to holding many specialized panels in various fields on the sidelines of the conference as another prominent feature of the international event and mentioned “Trade” as the subject of the first panel which will discuss international banking during the sanctions.

The panels mainly cover issues related to the future needs and limitations, for example, those related to climate change, and will discuss the possible resolutions, he informed.

■ To build a linking bridge

Hossein Ziaian, a board member of Iran Grain Conference, referred to the status of Iran in the grain market and said that given its potential the country should elevate its status in this field.

“Through inviting private sector and foreign companies we wanted to create a linking bridge through this conference in a way that Iran can promote its status especially during the current condition”, he underlined.

Creating a linking bridge between Iranian companies and foreign ones especially during the sanctions time is, in fact, the main objective of this international gathering, he noted.

Ziaian further said, “We are planning to hold provincial and regional conferences continuously after holding Iran Grain for further promotion of the country’s status in the field of grains.”

■ To expand the export market

Hossein Yazdjerdi, another board member of the conference, said that Iraq, Afghanistan and North African countries are some major importers of flour in the region and Iran can benefit from this opportunity to expand its export market, adding that Iran Grain Conference is a platform to help the country promote its export status.

The organizers have made many efforts to make this conference as attractive as possible to address many important attendees, he underscored.

Yazdjerdi further elaborated on the status of wheat cultivating in Iran and said, “The good news is that we have achieved self-reliance in production of wheat, but in terms of the quality of this grain we should still try to promote it, as just 40 percent of our produced wheat is of high quality.”

■ Iran’s grain need in the next ten years

Speaking at the conference, the president of the Federation of Iranian Food Associations estimated Iran’s urgent need to recharge wheat reserves in the next six months to 3-4 million tonnes, saying that Iranian flour makers preferred to buy milling wheat with 12.5 and above gluten protein. 28.

Seyyed Mohammad Reza Mortazavi then pointed out that water resources and reserves in Iran are declining and unnecessary harvests in the area have raised domestic concerns. However, it is estimated that Iran will need grain imports in the next 10 years. To reach 17 million tons per year.

He said that Iran is a credible partner for foreign countries in the field of trade, adding that what always hurts the Iranian economy in supplying the country’s needed grain is that it provides long-term planning for domestic and foreign investors due to political issues and ups and downs. We haven’t had it.

“Northern countries will guarantee the country’s grain needs over the next 10 years,” Mortazavi said, stressing that grain imports into Iran would never be and would not be seriously threatened.

■ Iran’s economy does not wait for Europe

The head of the Chamber of Commerce, Industries and Mines and Agriculture of Tehran, attended the second day and gave a speech.

In this gathering, Masoud Khansari said self-reliance on domestic production and export to neighboring countries is one of the ways to reduce the impact of sanctions in the current situation, saying that the threat of sanctions can become an economic opportunity for the country and by identifying domestic capacities and development. Interactions and cooperation with neighboring countries have lifted the country’s economy under the shadow of sanctions.

Khansari, who spoke at the conference, attended by the Swiss ambassador and representatives of foreign companies, especially from Europe, said that after the crisis, Europe’s exports to Iran increased as imports from the region increased. Iran did not go ahead with this trade leap, and since the US withdrawal from the Brigham Treaty, European countries have not yet fulfilled their promises, especially in setting up the Intex financial mechanism, so Iran has come to the conclusion that it cannot Tie the economy to Europe while opportunities and markets d Gary still facing the economy is open.

He mentioned the neighboring countries of Iran as trading partners in the coming period and added: “In addition to emphasizing the expansion of economic interaction with the world, we believe that the Iranian economy can be win-win with neighboring countries’ markets and of course. China, Russia, and India bonded and expanded non-oil and commodity exports to these countries while offsetting the country’s import needs from these markets.

The head of the Tehran Chamber pointed out that during the sanctions period as well as the fluctuations in the Iranian currency market, many industries in the country, in addition to strengthening their productive vigor, have also increased exports of their products, adding that the garment industry is one of those industries that Over the past few years, it has achieved self-reliance and Iranian production of the sector has now reached other markets, especially neighboring countries. In the automotive industry, the domestic industry has also succeeded in producing automotive electronic equipment that had previously been supplied from other countries, and the need and value of this sector are now greatly reduced.

■ Iran and Europe’s trade is imbalanced

The Head of Foreign Investment Services Center of Tehran Chamber of Commerce, Ferial Mostofi also explained in the conference that the share of agriculture in Iran’s GDP is $ 80 billion and that grain production in Iran is over 19 million tons a year. According to Mostofi, wheat accounts for 70% of Iran’s grain production.

Mostofi then referred to INSTEX (Instrument in Support of Trade Exchanges) and the European countries’ responsibility for implementing this financial mechanism with Iran, saying that although the US government has placed humanitarian goods out of sanctions against Iran, European banks have refused to comply with US threats. They are not cooperating with Iran, and INSTEX is still in the limelight.

She added that Iran and the private sector are waiting for European officials to announce operational solutions for the implementation of INSTEX, adding. “After the sanctions were lifted, trade between Iran and Europe entered a new phase, but statistics show that at that time, while EU exports to Iran grew by 340 percent, imports from Iran experienced only 27 percent growth, and thus saw an uneven trade between Iran and the EU.

The Head of Foreign Investment Services Center of Tehran Chamber of Commerce added: Iran’s private sector hopes that after the lifting of sanctions and return to normal economic relations, the gap between Iran and EU trade balance will be lifted and European countries will increase imports from Iran.

In another part of her speech, Mostofi referred to Iran’s accession to the Eurasian Economic Community and described it as a new experience for Iran in free trade with the neighboring northern countries, citing a new agreement between Iran and Russia and Kazakhstan on wheat swaps. After the agreement on Iran’s accession to Eurasia, with the presence of the head of the Armenian Chamber of Commerce and Industry in Tehran and the meeting with the head of the Iranian chamber, the two sides agreed to establish an Iranian-Eurasian business office in Yerevan.

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