Figures by the Iranian customs office (IRICA) show that the country had a trade surplus of of $875 million in the month to April 20.
IRICA’s deputy for technical affairs Foroud Asgari said on Thursday that Iranian non-oil exports had reached a total of $3.699 billion in value terms in the first month of the current calendar year, an increase of 25% compared to the same month in 2021.
Asgari said that imports into Iran over the same period had totaled $2.824 billion, adding that shipments had declined by one percentage point year on year in April.
The official reiterated that April export had decreased by 10% in volume terms year on year despite the surge reported in the value of the shipments.
However, he said that the volume of imports into Iran had increased by 10% compared to the month to April 2021.
The figures come as Iran continues to report consecutive periods of growth in exports despite being subject to an inclusive regime of American sanctions that seeks to hamper the country’s trade with the rest of the world.
Experts say growth in trade is a byproduct of US sanctions on Iran’s direct sales of crude as the country has moved to diversify its economy away from oil revenues by encouraging more activity in manufacturing, agriculture and metals sectors.
Annual figures released by IRICA earlier this month showed that Iran’s foreign trade had reached a total value of $101.6 billion for the year to late March, an increase of 38% compared to the previous calendar year.
The figures showed that Iranian non-oil exports had increased 40% over the year to March to reach a total value of $48.6 billion.