German exports to Iran surge despite sanctions

Berlin, Aug 31, IRNA - German exports to Iran rose significantly during the first half of the current year despite the imposition of sanctions over Tehran's nuclear policy, Reuters quoted yet unpublished data from the Federal Statistical Office in the southern city of Wiesbaden.


The total amount of German goods exported to Iran stood at 1.85 billion euros during the first six months of this year, up 14 percent from the first half of 2009.

Meanwhile, imports from Iran surged 88 percent to 280 million euros.

German exports to Iran included primarily machines, chemical products and metal.

The German export of machines rose from 480 to 635 million euros from January to June, while chemical exports increased from 149 to 235 million euros and the export of metal was almost unchanged at 168 million euros.

Topping the list of imports from Iran is crude oil and natural gas as Germany paid around 118 million euros for these products in the first half of 2010, compared to slightly less than eight million euros during the same corresponding period last year.

Exports from Germany to Iran reached 3.7 billion euros last year, according to official figures.

Germany remains an important trading partners for Iran, ranking third behind China and the United Arab Emirates in 2008.

Nearly nine percent of all Iranian imports came from Germany.

Numerous major German companies are operating in Iran, including Linde, BASF, Lurgi, Krupp, Siemens, ZF Friedrichshafen, Mercedes, Volkswagen and MAN.

Around 50 German firms have affiliates in Iran and more than 12,000 firms have their own trade representatives in the country.

Over 40,000 German jobs are indirectly affected by German-Iranian trade./end