Iran Imports Over US$5 billion Worth of Wheat, Oil

Iran imported US$5.226 billion worth of wheat and raw edible oil during the year to March 20, the Government Trading Corporation of Iran (GTC) announced. According to statistics, 7.75 million tons of wheat worth US$2.486 billion and 1.983 million tons of raw oil worth US$2.74 billion were imported over the past calendar year, IRNA reported. Noting that these two commodities are among the main agricultural imports of Iran, the GTC added that raw oil and wheat have the second and third most allocated forex for imports after livestock corn, respectively.

Considering that the global prices of cereals including wheat and raw oil have increased, it is worth noting that in the past, the domestic price of these commodities used to be backed by the subsidies provided by the government. As a result, a significant portion of cereals ended up in neighboring countries where their prices were much lower compared to Iran. Iran signed a memorandum of understanding with Russia and Kazakhstan in 2019 on importing wheat from the two nations, based on a trade agreement between Tehran and the member states of the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU). - Iran Daily