TEHRAN Iran exported non-oil commodities valued at $1.2 billion to India during the first eight months of the current Iranian calendar year (March 20-November 20), the head of the Islamic Republic of Iran Customs Administration (IRICA) announced.Foroud Asgari said that India was Irans seventh top export destination in the mentioned eight-month period.Exporting commodities valued at $1 billion to Iran, India was Irans sixth top source of import in the first eight months of the present year, the official further added.Iran exported $2.217 billion worth of goods to India during the past Iranian calendar year (ended on March 19), according to an official with Irans Trade Promotion Organization (TPO).Hadi Talebian Moghaddam, the director of TPO department for Indian Subcontinent Affairs, said on Sunday that the figure shows a two percent increase in comparison to the $2.175 billion reported a year earlier.Noting that Irans balance of trade with India turned positive last year, he put Irans last year's imports from India at $1.916 billion.The value of trade between Iran and India reached $1.836 billion in 2023, according to Indias Ministry of Commerce and Industry.The trade exchange between the two countries declined by 26 percent in 2023 compared to the previous year, the figure was reported to be $2.499 billion in 2022.According to the Indian Ministry data, Iran exported commodities valued at $699 million to India during the past year, registering no significant change from 2022.Petroleum products were the top goods imported by India from Iran in 2023, and India imported $221 million worth of such products from Iran this year.
The import of Iranian oil products by India in 2023 increased by 26 percent compared to the previous year.Raw materials for dye production and various fruits were also among the top exported goods to India in 2023.India's exports to Iran in January-December 2023 experienced a 35 percent decrease and reached $1.187 billion.
In the previous year, India had exported $1.847 billion worth of goods to Iran.Rice was the top export product of India to Iran in 2023.
India's rice exports to Iran decreased by 34 percent in 2023, falling from $1.98 billion in 2022 to $723 million.India's tea export to Iran also declined by almost a third, from $86 million in 2022 to $30 million in 2023.
The countrys fruit exports to Iran however increased by 14 percent and reached $55 million and spice exports decreased by 28 percent to $15 million.MA