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Iran-US Trade Drops by 29% from Jan. Through June

By Parto Jamshidi August 18, 2017

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The value of trade transactions with Iran between Iran and the US has decreased by 29 percent from January to June 2017, compared to the same period of last year, according to the data by the US Census Bureau / Tehran Times

Trade between the United States and Iran has decreased by 29 percent between January through June, compared to the same period of last year.

The total amount of imports and exports between the two countries amounted to $77.2 million from January through June 2017, while that figure stood at $109.2 million for the same period last year, according to data by the US Census Bureau.

American goods exported to Iran between January and June 2017 were worth $41.3 million, which is 42 percent less than the $71.9 million exported in 2016. Meanwhile, the number of Iranian imports into the US during this period amounted to $35.9 million, reflecting a four percent drop compared to 2016.

Exports from the US to Iran in recent years have included wheat, rice, soybeans, corn, dairy, pulpwood, plastics, medical equipment and pharmaceuticals. Iran is the region’s second-largest grain importer after Saudi Arabia.

Iran is the second largest economy in the Middle East and North Africa region after Saudi Arabia, with its gross domestic product (GDP) in 2016 standing at about $ 412 billion. The Iranian economy grew by 6.4 percent in 2016, according to a report by the World Bank.

Dominated by the hydrocarbon sector, Iran’s economy also includes agriculture, services, manufacturing and financial services. The country ranks second in the world in natural gas reserves and fourth in proven crude oil reserves.

Although Iran reached a deal with the five permanent members of the United Nations Security Council plus Germany in July 2015 to have nuclear-related sanctions lifted in exchange for curbing its nuclear program, sanctions over Iran's human rights policies, support for terrorism and its missile programs remain. These sanctions bar American citizens and companies from most forms of investment or trade with the Iran.

On August 2, US President Donald Trump signed a bill passed by both houses of the US Congress with an overwhelming majority to impose a new round of sanctions on Iran, as well as North Korea and Russia. The sanctions against Iran were related to its ballistic missile program, human rights abuses and the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC).

Meanwhile, Iran's President Hasan Rouhani promised on August 5, during his swearing-in ceremony for his second term in office, that Iran will pursue a "path of coexistence and interaction with the world.” Rouhani also proposed a new cabinet for his second administration, which cuts out the hardline Revolutionary Guard from controlling the Defense Ministry for the first time in nearly 25 years.