Tabriz-IRNA:  According to the Economic and Investment Deputy of Aras Free Zone, the export value of the zone in the first quarter of this year was 21.3 million dollars, and this amount has doubled compared to the same period last year.

In an interview with IRNA on Saturday, Safar Shasfand, refered to the fact that in the first quarter of last year $ 11 million of exports came from the Aras Free Zone, stating that 43% of the zone's export has been directed to the Republic of Azerbaijan, and Turkey, Iraq, China, Afghanistan, United Arab Emirates, Armenia, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan and Georgia are other target countries for this zone's export respectively. He said Bitumen, oil, diesel oil, hydrocarbon film, shrink film, all kinds of bags, polyethylene rope, nuts, polyester yarns, textiles, pepper and tomatoes are among export items from this zone to other countries.

Shasfand also pointed out that in the area of re-export of this zone this year, we see a 3-fold increase compared to the first quarter of last year, claiming that re-export of the zone in the first quarter of last year was $ 7 million, reaching $ 28.3 million this year.

Pointing to the launch of the Nourdoz Customs, he noted that $ 23 million was also earned through re-export from Nourdoz Customs.

According to Shasfand, the value of exports to the mainland in the first three months of this year was $ 31.6 million, while in the same period last year, the zone's export value to the mainland was $ 27.2 million.

Iranian customers buy a variety of goods including yarn, UPVC profiles, all kinds of bags, MDF-melamine, profiles, greenhouse equipment, cabinets, home furniture, electric oven, car battery, pickup trucks, rear axle of trailer, two-cabin Pick-up trucks, propylene bags and yarn, aluminum ingots, aluminum profiles, non-woven textile, felt, and silicon from the Aras Free Zone said Shashfand .

Indicating that $ 4 million of domestic goods was exported from the Aras Free Zone last year, said it increased to $ 10.6 million this year.

Shasfand stated that exports of Aras free zone in the first quarter of this year totaled $ 91.8 million, while the total export of the zone was $ 49.2 million in the same period last year.

He also reported a decrease in imports of goods to the Aras Free Zone in the fourth quarter of this year compared to the same period last year and said that $ 15 million has entered the zone this year, while the value of imports in the first quarter of last year was $ 17.2 million.

Shasfand pointed out that the import of passenger goods to Aras Free Zone was $ 14 million last year, and it reached $ 14.5 million this year. He further added that imports of goods to the zone have fallen from $ 800,000 to $ 200,000 and motor vehicles have raised from $ 200,000 to $ 2.5 million.

Sending goods outside of the country's customs borders with the aim of using or earning money in foreign countries is called export, and temporary export is another type of export which is, by definition, outward transmission of goods from the customs territory of the country for display and supply at exhibitions, or for the purpose of repairing, completing and processing the product outside the customs territory of the country and then returning it to the territory.

According to IRNA, the strategic location of the Aras Free Zone in the northwest of the country with an area of 51,000 hectares, due to its alignment with the Republic of Azerbaijan, Armenia and the Nakhchivan Autonomous Republic, as well as its proximity to Turkey and Iraq, and, ultimately, geographical adjacency with the CIS countries, targeting a market composed of 600 million people overall, have created very good economic capacities for the zone among the free zones of the country.

In 2018, $ 251 million worth of goods and services were exported from the Aras Free Trade Zone.