Financial Tribune - Major Iranian automotive companies and 32 parts makers from the private sector signed a $60 million deal on Saturday to curb the auto industry�s reliance on foreign suppliers.

During an event held on Saturday at Tehran�s International Exhibition Center, which was attended by Industries Minister Reza Rahmani and other officials, Iran Khodro (IKCO) and SAIPA agreed to a deal worth 7.4 trillion rials ($60 million) with 32 small- and medium-sized parts makers to promote auto localization, IRNA reported.

On the sidelines of the ceremony, government officials and the respective heads of IKCO and SAIPA� Hashem Yekezare and Mir Javad Soleimani�and managers of local parts makers discussed ways of indigenizing key auto parts.