By: Muhammad Arif, Editor NSN.Asia
Beijing: Iran, an important country along the ancient Silk Road, has announced to launch a trade center in Shanghai, the financial and economic trade center of China, local media has reported.
China and Iran have strengthened their multilateral cooperation under the frameworks of Belt and Road Initiative and the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO).
The announcement of Iran’s Trade Center in Shanghai was made by the Trade Promotion Organization (TPO) of Iran, the trade and exports promotion body of the government of Iran.
“TPO had issued a permit for the launch of the Islamic Republic of Iran’s Trade Center in Shanghai, a major trade and economic hub on the East China, according to the statement.
the Iran’s trade center in Shanghai will be authorized to carry out trade activities on behalf of the Iranian government and businesses until the end of the current calendar year in late March, it was reported.
Also, Iran has already launched a trade center in the Chinese capital Beijing as part of its plans to expand economic relations with China and to increase its exports to the East Asian country.
Currently, China is Iran’s largest trade partner as the country accounts for nearly a fourth of all purchases of Iranian non-oil exports.
The trade volume between Iran and China in the first two months of 2024 stood around $2.879 billion, marking a 37 percent increase compared to the same period last year, according to the data released by China Customs.
China exported $2.5 billion worth of products to Iran and imported $829 million from Iran from January to February 2024, representing a 45 percent and 20 percent year-over-year increase, respectively.
Iran-China relations got growing during the late Iranian President Rais’s term which led to the 25-year strategic agreement signed by the two countries.
Besides opening center in Shanghai, the TPO also issued a permit for launching the Iranian trade center in Minsk, saying the permit will be valid until May next year.
Iran and Belarus have sought better ties in recent years as part of plans to fight off sanctions imposed on their economies by the West.
Iran relies on Belarus for imports of heavy mining and manufacturing equipment and agricultural machinery while it exports sizable volumes of agrifood and manufactured products to Belarus.
Iran has signed a free trade arrangement with the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU) of which Belarus is a key member.
Trade ties between the two countries can further expand once parliaments of Iran and all EAEU countries finalize the free trade agreement signed in December last year.
