The company announced that in this period, it managed to set various production records, in, among other things, producing paraxylene and benzene in amounts equaling 106 percent and 111 percent of its rated capacity respectively, Shana reported.

In addition, the company’s total production in the six-month period grew by 26.5 percent (511,000 tons of different products) year-on-year – an amount equal to 107 percent of its nominal capacity.

According to the production indices of the Persian Gulf Petrochemical Industries Company (PGPIC), Nouri Petrochemical Company was ranked first among the holding’s subsidiaries in terms of production during the six-moth time span.

The report, published on Saturday, showed that total exports from Iran between March 20 and August 21 had exceeded $10.9 billion while imports into Iran had topped $13.7 billion over the same period, Press TV reported.

Figures released by the Ministry of Industry, Mine and Trade (MIMT) showed that gross weight of export shipments over the period were nearly three times the weight of imported goods as Iran shipped 38 million metric tons of cargoes to other countries against 13.8 tons imported.

Corn, which Iran is increasingly using as animal feed, was a major import item, showed the report, as the country took delivery of nearly 4.3 million tons of shipments, a 14-percent surge year on year in late August.

The figures also showed that trade with other countries rebounded in July-August as neighbors and countries around the world began to ease restrictions meant to curb the spread of the coronavirus pandemic.

Iran shipped $2.16 worth of goods in the fifth month of the calendar year while imports reached $2.875 billion. China remained the largest trade partner as it topped the list of Iran’s main export destinations while it was also the biggest supplier of goods to the country, according to the MIMT.

Iran’s non-oil trade has remained largely stable despite sanctions imposed by the United States since 2018. The bans have sought to deter governments and entities from engaging in trade with Tehran.

However, direct sanctions on trade of crude have caused a boom in Iran’s non-oil exports as the country keeps finding more markets for its high-quality products.

According to statistics released by the Iranian Mines and Mining Industries Development and Renovation Organization (IMIDRO), the country’s major mineral production companies managed to produce 38.162 million tons of iron ore concentrate in the previous year’s same time period, reported imidro.gov.ir.

According to the IMIDRO report, in the mentioned 10 months, 22.512 million tons of iron ore conglomerate were produced, showing a two-percent decline as compared to last year’s corresponding period.

Based on IMIDRO’s data, 3.459 million tons of granulated iron ore was also produced in the first 10 months of the current year to register a 39-percent decline as compared to last year’s 10-month period.

As previously announced, Iran’s export of iron ore concentrate rose 96.6 percent during the past Iranian year, compared to its preceding year.

The country exported 5.552 million tons of the product worth $398 million in the past year.

In a bid to prevent the exports of unprocessed minerals, creating more added value and meeting the requirements of domestic producers for the raw materials, Iran has levied a 25-percent duty on the export of raw minerals (especially iron ore) since September 23, 2019.

The new duty is aimed at encouraging the production of more processed minerals such as pellets and concentrate instead of selling the raw minerals.