TEHRAN (Tasnim) Iran and Iraq are in talks to finalize a draft MoU for the establishment of a joint bank to ease commercial barriers and facilitate monetary transactions between the two neighbors.
"Last year an Iraqi trade delegation paid a visit to Iran to remove trade barriers, including the transfer of money between Iran and Iraq and they agreed on the formation of Iran-Iraq bank," Shaker Rawaq al-Da'ami, the Iraqi Embassy's commercial attach, said.
A draft MoU was submitted to Iranian officials last month, al-Da'ami said on the sideline of a meeting on Iran and Iraq's exports.
The Iraqi official also highlighted the necessity of increasing the volume of trade transactions between the two countries.
The volume of trade exchange between Iraq and Iran reached about $12 billion in 2013, making Iraq one of Irans top five trading partners.
In Irans non-oil trade, Iraq is the most significant export market. These exports include light industrial products, foodstuffs, consumer goods, construction materials and electricity.