|
Trade Trends and Balance of Payments
(2003-2004)
| TRADE
|
|
|
| (million
US dollars) |
2003
|
2004
|
|
Total Exports (fob)
|
28,283
|
28,538
|
|
Fuel
|
24,057
|
23,940
|
|
Total Imports
|
29,547
|
31,216
|
|
Food
|
2,461
|
2,677
|
|
Fuel and energy
|
1,044
|
1,115
|
|
Capital goods
|
16,257
|
16,820
|
|
|
|
|
|
BALANCE OF PAYMENTS
|
|
|
| (million
US dollars) |
2003
|
2004
|
|
Exports of goods and services
|
40,254
|
40,111
|
|
Imports of goods and services
|
39,320
|
45,587
|
|
Resource balances
|
934
|
-1,476
|
|
Net income
|
2,195
|
851
|
|
Net current transfers
|
-1,065
|
541
|
|
Current account balance
|
2.063
|
-84
|
|
Financing items (net)
|
-5,063
|
-2,916
|
|
Chnages in net reserves
|
3,000
|
3,000
|
|
Memo:
|
|
|
|
Reserves including gold
|
23,706
|
23,875
|
|
Conversion rate
|
8,193.9
|
8,614.0
|
Source:
World Bank, Data & Statistics, Iran
World oil market developments, new foreign
trade regulations, and increase in imports affected
the balance of payments in the review year. Foreign
exchange revenue received from oil sector exports rose
by 34.6 percent to $ 36,827 million. With respect to
the oil export basket, the crude oil and oil products
exports, respectively, amounted to $ 30,863 and 2,650
million. Repayments of buy-back contracts reached $
1,579 million. However, exports of natural gas and liquefied
gas amounted to $ 481 and 1,254 million.
In 2004/05, easing foreign trade regulations, eliminating
of surrender requirements, giving exporters more free
hand in managing their resources, reducing LC prepayments,
extending facilities in rial and foreign exchange to
foreign trade sector, exempting exports from taxes and
levies, extending export rewards and subsidies, and
creating stability in foreign exchange market eased
foreign trade. The value of non-oil exports and imports
grew by 14.2 and 23.9 percent to $ 7,576 and 36,639
million, respectively. Thus, the trade balance, including
oil exports enjoyed $ 7,764 million surplus.
During the review year, services balance ran a deficit
of $ 4,812 million, up by 6.1 percent compared with
the previous year. On the whole, the current account
of BOP, enjoying a gargantuan rise of 389 percent, ran
a surplus of $ 3,989 million. Net capital account enjoyed
$ 5,575 million surplus, $ 664 million of which was
related to longterm
and $ 4,410 million to short-term accounts. Among the
constituents of long-term account, $ 2,188 million was
related to new buy-back contracts(1) and $ 1,559.8 million
to previous buy-back obligations (mainly related to
oil sector). As a result, with the inclusion of repayment
of previous obligations resulting from finance, indebtedness
to World Bank and oil prefinance, the sum of long-term
debts showed a surplus of $ 666 million. A total of
$ 500 million in the form of foreign investment was
absorbed in the review year. Among the constituents
of short-term account, LCs had $ 4,296 million increase,
banks’ foreign assets rose by $ 10 million and
net bilateral account by $ 104 million. CBI’s foreign
assets and the OSF totally rose by $ 8,282 million.
External sector developments during the past years have
laid the foundations for a rise in the country’s
foreign exchange reserve to reach a safe level. This
put Iran among countries enjoying a high volume of reserves
worldwide. Moreover, according to international standards,
Iran’s external debts is at a low level.
Source:
Central Bank of Iran, Annual Review 2004-05
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