Financial Tribune - The Ministry of Industries, Mining and Trade has set a target of raising Iran's annual exports to neighboring countries to $48 billion by the fiscal 2021-22, the deputy industries said.

According to Hossein Modarres Khiyabani, Iran currently has a 2% share in the neighboring countries' total imports and if the target is realized, the share will rise to 4%, IRNA reported.

“Neighboring states have $1.2 trillion worth of imports [per year] while Iran’s share is only $24 billion,” he said.

“Iran's export commodities are being monitored so that data for exploring more options to boost exports can be collected.”

The official believes Iran’s exports to its 15 neighbors, namely the UAE, Iraq, Turkey, Afghanistan, Pakistan, Russia, Oman, Azerbaijan, Turkmenistan, Kuwait, Qatar, Kazakhstan, Armenia, Bahrain and Saudi Arabia, have the potential to reach $100 billion per year.

According to Khiyabani, the average value of Iran's exported commodities presently stands at $400 per ton while it is $1,200 per ton for imported commodities.