TEHRAN (Iran News) Ojaghi made these remarks during a press conference held on the eve of the 25th Annual Home Appliances Exhibition, attended by members of the media and newly appointed board member Mehrdad Mohammadi.

Ojaghi stated that Iran’s home appliance production has increased from 6 million units in 2017 to 20 million units in 2024, driven largely by private investment despite limited government support. Domestic manufacturers now meet the nation’s demand without relying on imported final products, although consumer preference for foreign brands still exists.

However, she noted a sharp downturn in 2025, with production dropping 38 percent in some sectors and 12 percent overall, while sales have fallen by 40–60 percent, marking one of the toughest years since the Iran-Iraq War.

Ojaghi expressed hope that this year’s exhibition would help revitalize the sluggish market and showcase domestic capabilities.

The exhibition covers 10 halls across 20,000 square meters of indoor space and 800 square meters of outdoor area, featuring 240 Iranian companies and 12 foreign firms from China, Brazil, Turkey, Japan, and South Korea. In addition, five trade delegations from Russia, Armenia, Pakistan, Iraq, and Afghanistan are expected to attend.

She added that the exhibition coincides with the Glassware and Crystal Fair, designed to present a complete export-oriented product portfolio to both domestic and international buyers.

Ojaghi criticized the recent decision to remove the Association from organizing the event — despite 24 successful previous exhibitions — and said that although the management was handed over via public tender, the Association continues to assist the new organizers to ensure a productive outcome.

When asked why some leading brands were absent from the exhibition, Ojaghi explained that the 12-day war in the region disrupted scheduling, forcing multiple exhibitions to be held simultaneously. Many companies, facing poor sales, have also cut marketing and participation costs to survive.

Ojaghi reported that smuggling now accounts for around 30 percent of the market. The new “border residents” regulation, she warned, effectively allows large-scale imports under the guise of local trade — undermining domestic manufacturing.

She urged authorities to regulate and guarantee imported goods, noting that many smuggled or “te-lenji” products lack warranty coverage.

On the issue of damages from the Shahid Rajaee Port incident, Ojaghi said there are no precise data on total losses and that insurance complexities continue to delay compensation.

She also cited electricity shortages as a major production barrier: “Power cuts halted manufacturing last summer, and although the issue has been partially resolved, imbalance in energy supply remains a key obstacle.”

Ojaghi emphasized that Iranian home appliances are increasingly competitive in quality, with positive consumer ratings across online platforms. However, she acknowledged that limited R&D investment, restricted access to advanced machinery, and import barriers have hampered further improvement.

Sales have particularly declined for refrigerators, washing machines, and dishwashers, as consumers are postponing large purchases or opting for repairs instead.

Board member Mehrdad Mohammadi criticized state-controlled pricing, calling it “completely destructive” to the industry.

He noted that foreign exchange allocation delays — sometimes exceeding 160 days — have forced manufacturers to rely on export or free-market currency, driving up production costs. Continued restrictions, he warned, could trigger another price surge within two to three months.

Mohammadi estimated that sanctions have increased import costs by up to 30 percent, mainly due to non-transparent payment channels and the lack of SWIFT or letters of credit (L/C).

“China remains Iran’s largest trading partner,” he said, “but circumventing sanctions raises overall costs and risks.”

Mohammadi added that due to economic instability, consumers increasingly prefer to invest in gold and foreign currency rather than purchasing durable goods.

He also warned that strict regulations on repatriating export earnings have made exports less profitable, further constraining the industry.

Mohammadi concluded that Iran has the potential to reach Turkey’s industrial scale, given access to markets such as Iraq and Afghanistan.

“If legal and export barriers are removed,” he said, “Iranian manufacturers can easily expand to regional and global levels.”

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Speaking to ILNA, Pazouki said that purchasers expect with the strength of national currency against dollar the price of the goods to decrease at the same level  but the rules of the market is different and for decrease in the price of a product we need different factors simultaneously happen.

He went on to say that currently home appliances market in the country is struggling with 90% recession, adding that purchasing power of the people has declined and purchasers expect the prices of the products to slow down with the national currency gaining strength against dollar but it does not happen in the market because several factors are needed to happen for the decrease in the price of the products.

Pazouki reiterated that people are waiting the prices of the products to be determined, adding that removal of the sanctions is just at the early stage and for seeing its positive impacts they need at least one year. He added that although the price of dollar has declined in the market and people expect the price of the products to decrease but producers have purchased their raw materials with the then price of dollar and therefore they cannot decrease the price of their products.

Touching upon the possibility of exporting home appliances to Saudi Arabia, he said that the industry can pin hopes on the growth of export that the price and quality of the products can compete with their international rivals.

He added that currently Iranian products have no problem in terms of quality but some factors like the forex rate and raw materials deprive Iranian producers of being able to competite with their rivals in the neighboring countries.

Pazouki said that Iran is able to produce some luxurious products and it is currently continuing their production.

He reiterated that rise in the cost of productions like salary and rent as well as the taxes have caused price hike in the products and their sales, admitting that because of the prices and people’s losing their purchasing power, this industry is seriously in the recession mode and it is challenging with 90% recession.

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Omid Qalibaf said that currently imports of home appliances are forbidden but exports of Iranian home appliance are in good and promising condition. He noted that currently 470 licenses have been issued for producing home appliances and the number for producing gas stove may be more and for TV may less but in the field of home appliances there are 200 producers on average and 15 of them are brands which account for 80% of the market.

He noted entering and exiting the market should be free, adding that the ministry cannot stop issuing production license due to claims of saturation in the market and it is against the competitive market because one may get license and produce a product much cheaper with higher quality through using better technology and management.

Qalibaf went on to say that some part of home appliances includes refrigerator, freezer, washing machine and TV which are widely used and there are more demands for them and their pricing is under supervision and their prices are fixed by the Headquarters for Regulating the Market.

He added that some part of the home appliance products are whose prices are fixed by the producers and the headquarters.

He noted that the ministry has controlled the factory inflation rate and it tries to lower it. He went on to say that although inflation weakens the competition in the domestic , the most important advantage of the domestic production is their after sales services which can distinguish domestic products from the smuggled ones and with the devaluation of national currency, the price of smuggled home appliances increase but it does not happen for the domestic products.

He once again reiterated that the government does not intend to lift ban on imports of home appliances for now and by the way exports of home-made home appliance products are in good condition.

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Speaking in a press conference, Head of Association of Home Appliances Manufacturers (AHAM) Mr. Mohammad Reza Dayyani said currently LG’s share of Iran’s TV market is 16%, Samsung’s is 17% and Sony’s is 8% while the country is under sanctions and imports of those products are banned.

He went on to say that during the past three years, imports of the home appliances have been banned and it has led to the rise in production and occupation in this industry but now some people condemn production and defend imports.

Dayyani reiterated that today the mafias of importing the home appliances who feel the danger have started attack at domestic products and defended imports and they try to bring down this successful industry of the country.

He said in recent years huge investment has been done in this industry and imports of the home appliances will lead to the bankruptcy of the investors. He stated that for this reason producers wrote a letter to the Supreme Leader and called for banning the imports of the foreign-made home appliances.

Dayyani also criticized South Koreans and said while the Koreans were not ready even to reply to Iranian’s e-mails, they have announced readiness to send home appliances to Iran in exchange for Iran’s frozen assets.

He said South Koreans in 1960s banned imports of Japanese electronic goods for 12 years and even sales of Japanese goods were banned in their stores. He added that even the U.S. permanently changes the tariffs on imports to support its industries.

Dayyani reiterated that the association does not seek full ban on imports but it wants imports of home appliances to be managed and controlled for a period of five years in order that home-made products can improve their quality and standards to compete with foreign rivals.

He added that Turkey due to its policy last year earned $45b through production of home appliances production which was two times of Iran’s oil revenues and we should study how Turkey has been able to achieve such success.

Meanwhile the data released by Industry, Mining, and Trade Ministry indicates that manufacturing of TV sets in Iran has increased 11.7 percent during the first five months of the current Iranian calendar year (March 21-August 22), as compared to the same period of time in the past year, As reported, 447,700 TV sets have been manufactured in the five-month period of this year.

Manufacturing of home appliances in Iran has risen 8.7 percent during the first five months of the present year, as 2.61 million sets of such products have been manufactured inside the country.

Home appliances manufacturing has also increased 78 percent to stand at 15 million sets in the past Iranian calendar year (ended on March 20).

Rise in home appliances manufacturing and export has been also planned for the current year.

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The order was issued after Ayatollha Khamenei issued a notice to Raeisi warning that a potential return foreign brands of home appliances, including two of two South Korean companies, to the Iranian market would be a huge blow to local manufacturers and their expansion projects.

The Leader intervened in the case after local brands of home appliances wrote to him to ask for help, according to a letter by his office addressed to the Iranian Presidency.

Local manufacturers of home appliances have reported continued increase in their output as they have been struggling to fill a gap created by the departure of foreign companies from Iran after the US sanctions were imposed.

South Korea’s Samsung and LG were among the first such firms that decided to leave the Iranian market three years ago to comply with US sanctions.

The ban imposed on Thursday would not cover parts used to manufacture home appliances inside Iran.

Meanwhile on Thursday, Iran’s foreign minister urged that South Korea provide the Islamic Republic with “quick access” to the funds that it has been withholding from the country under the banner of abiding by US sanctions.

Hossein Amir-Abdollahian made the remarks to his Korean counterpart Chung Eui-yong during a telephone conversation on Thursday.

Amir-Abdollahian expressed “strong criticism” of the continued freezing of the Iranian funds at South Korea’s banks.

Iranian authorities have said on several occasions that they expect South Korea to do more on the release of nearly $8.5 billion blocked illegally at two South Korean banks under the pretext of the United States’ sanctions against the Islamic Republic.

The top Iranian diplomat urged that the money be released so the Islamic Republic could use it towards buying medicine and other commodities.

It had been previously agreed for the funds to be used by Iran towards the purchase of humanitarian items, something that has again been prevented as a result of Korea’s commitment to honor the sanctions.

Tehran has been returning Seoul’s refusal towards cooperation by exercising restrictions on imports from South Korea.

“The Iranian people are seriously displeased with the situation” that has been brought about as a result of cessation of trade activities between the countries—on the back of the American economic measures—and prevention of application of the funds even towards purchase of humanitarian items, Amir-Abdollahian told the Korean official.

Chung, for his part, said that he was pursuing the issue of Iran’s access to the frozen funds.

He, meanwhile, expressed concern regarding the actions that the Islamic Republic has been taking concerning the Korean imports.

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The ministry’s data put the country’s home appliance output at 2.61 million sets in the five-month period of this year, while the figure was 2.4 million in the same time span of the previous year.

Iran’s Deputy Industry, Mining and Trade Minister Mehdi Sadeqi Niaraki has said that the country’s home appliance industry experienced a 78-percent growth in the past Iranian calendar year (ended on March 20).

Last year, the industry was able to achieve 78 percent growth despite the restrictions on the manufacturing sector, the official said, adding, “While foreign brands left Iran, manufacturers were able to achieve this leap by relying on domestic capacities.”

Back in April, the official had said that considering the Iranian home appliance industry’s infrastructure and capacities, the country will be able to become an exporter of such products in the near future because most of the raw materials needed by the mentioned sector are produced domestically.

Stating that the Industry, Mining, and Trade Ministry will definitely support domestic manufacturers and national brands, the official added: “Today we have the necessary manpower, knowledge, and infrastructure in the field, so there is no reason to look for foreign sources to meet the country’s demands.”

Over the past few years, the Iranian government has been following a new strategy for supporting domestic production to neutralize the impacts of the U.S. sanctions while reducing the reliance of the economy on oil revenues.

The home appliances sector has been one of the pioneers in this regard and like many other areas, the production of home appliances has witnessed a significant rise in the past two years so that this industry’s production capacity increased by 24 percent in the past Iranian year, and by 10 percent in its preceding year.

In early April, the secretary of the Association of Industries of Household Appliances of Iran announced the 24-percent growth in the home appliance output over the past year and said, “We expected to produce about 12 million units, including small and large appliances in the previous year, however, the figure increased to about 15 million by the yearend, registering a 24 percent growth compared to the preceding year.”

“We also had good growth in after-sales service, product quality improvement, indigenization and exports, so that last year $345 million worth of home appliance products were exported,” Abbas Hashemi added.

Pointing to the advantages of home appliance industry in Iran, the official said: “Production of home appliances in the country is an advantage considering cheap energy and workforce and the country’s geographical situation”, he noted.

“This industry should be more supported,” he stressed.

Regarding the return of foreign brands to the country, Hashemi said: “we should prevent the imports of foreign finished products into the country in order to support domestic producers.”

He further noted that foreign companies can invest in this industry and co-produce their products with local manufacturers.

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“Lack of a strategic document for development in the country’s economy has overshadowed many parts of the economy,” Mohammadreza Pour-Ebrahimi told the national TV on Sunday evening.

He pointed to the home appliance industry as an example and said: “Advanced knowledge, resources, and skilled manpower are among the advantages in this field, but it seems that lack of comprehensive strategies in using the necessary capacities to partner with other countries in regional and global scale is one of our main gaps in this sector.”

The official further mentioned some other problems in the way of expanding domestic production and economic growth and said that smuggling is a major problem that has created serious problems in the way of domestic production and the government is taking serious measures to battle it.

Speaking to the same TV program, Deputy Industry, Mining, and Trade Minister Mehdi Sadeqi Niaraki mentioned the insufficient growth in the production of home appliances in the current Iranian calendar year (started on March 21), saying: “In the first four months of the current year, 40 percent growth was recorded in production compared to the same period last year, however, the growth for the previous year’s same period compared to its preceding year was recorded to be 70 percent.”

“In recent months, however, a suitable amount of foreign currency has been provided in order to supply raw material for domestic producers and such materials are properly imported into the country,” he said.

“We currently need about 220 trillion rials (about $5.2 billion) of working capital annually in the home appliance industry, which must be provided by banks and producers,” Niaraki added.

The home appliances sector has been one of the pioneers in this regard and like many other areas, the production of home appliances has witnessed a significant rise in the past two years so that in the Iranian calendar year 1398 (ended on March 19) this industry’s production capacity increased by 10 percent compared to the preceding year.

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“Despite the economic sanctions, the production of home appliances in the country has grown significantly and we are on the verge of achieving self-sufficiency in the production of various types in this field,” Alireza Razm Hosseini said on Saturday.

Speaking at the inauguration ceremony of a washing machine production line in Khorasan Razavi Province, Razm Hosseini said: “over 13 million home appliances were produced in the country in the previous [Iranian calendar] year (ended on March 20), which was a great achievement for the industry.”

The official noted that the growth in the home appliance industry shows the surge of domestic manufacturing in this field, saying: “in the near future the Iranian home appliance market will no longer need foreign brands.”

Over the past few years, the Iranian government has been following a new strategy for supporting domestic production to neutralize the impacts of the U.S. sanctions while reducing the reliance of the economy on oil revenues.

The home appliances sector has been one of the pioneers in this regard and like many other areas, the production of home appliances has witnessed a significant rise in the past two years.

Back in May, Iran’s Deputy Industry, Mining, and Trade Minister Mehdi Sadeqi Niaraki said that the country’s home appliance industry experienced 78-percent growth in the past Iranian calendar year.

The growth was achieved despite the restrictions on the manufacturing sector, the official said, adding, “While foreign brands left Iran, manufacturers were able to achieve this leap by relying on domestic capacities.”

Niaraki had previously said that considering the Iranian home appliance industry’s infrastructure and capacities, the country will be able to become a net exporter of such products in the near future because most of the raw materials needed by the mentioned sector are produced domestically.

“Today we have the necessary manpower, knowledge, and infrastructure in the field, so there is no reason to look for foreign sources to meet the country’s demands,” he said in early April.

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The exports destinations for Iranian home appliances will be neighbor countries, he added.

The official called also for the Central bank of Iran (CBI) to supply the liquidity for production units and to allocate specified forex sources.

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