“Good political ties between Iran and Oman have paved the ground for expanding economic relations between the two countries,” Hemmati wrote on his Instagram page today.

“Following good talks that I recently had with Oman’s foreign minister and the head of the country’s Central Bank in Muscat, I will negotiate with Oman’s industry minister,” he added.

Headed by Minister of Commerce and Industry of Oman Ali bin Masud Al Sunaidi, a high-ranking economic delegation from Oman is visiting Iran to discuss expansion of ties.

The Head of Iran Trade Promotion Organization Hamid Zadboum said on Saturday that trade, investment, industry, chambers of commerce, free zones, the environment, electricity, and gas are some common areas of cooperation between Iran and Oman.

According to the Head of Iran-Oman Joint Economic Committee, Iran’s exports to Oman reached $728 million this year, while the two countries’ trade turnover hit $1.16 billion, indicating a 5.3 percent increase in trade between the two countries in about five years.

Last month, Head of Iran-Oman Chamber of Commerce Mohsen Zarrabi said that the volume of Iran’s annual exports to Oman has skyrocketed from $146 to $728 million in the past year which indicates a fivefold jump, hailing the rise also in the volume of imports from the Arab country.

In a meeting with Omani Ambassador to Tehran Saud bin Ahmad Khalid al-Barwani on November 12, Zarrabi said that the economic interactions between Iran-Oman joint chambers are expected to increase, citing that Iran’s exports to Oman stood at $146 million in the Iranian year of 1396 (March 21, 2017-March 20, 2018) but the figure increased up to $728 million in the Iranian year of 1397 (March 21, 2018-March 20, 2019).

He went on to say that Iran’s imports from Oman have also reached $433 million resulting in increasing of trade volume to $1.1 billion.

Thanks to its good political relations with various countries, having free trade agreement with them and its membership in World Trade Organization, Oman can be a good target for exporting Iranian products to various markets in the world, Zarrabi noted.

He reiterated that the best way for entering into Oman’s market is to attend eight exhibitions which have been established through the Omani government’s efforts.

The Omani envoy, for his part, said, “Omani officials seek expansion of economic ties with Iran.”

“It is vital for delegations from both countries to attend Iran-Oman joint economic summit to prepare the ground for the development of mutual economic relations,” he added.

Late in October, Tehran and Masqat announced that they are eager to boost their trade ties up to $1bln.

“The volume of trade exchanges between the two countries are expected raise to $1bln by the end of this year,” Head of Iran-Oman joint chamber of commerce Mohsen Zarrabi told FNA on October 28.

He also added that the volume of Iran’s exports to Oman had increased by 57% in the first six months of the Iranian year of 1397 (March 21, 2018- August 20, 2019) compared with the corresponding period in 2017.

Zarrabi said that imports of goods from Oman to Iran have also shown a 264% increase in the past six months of the current year.

Iran and Oman have had good economic relations from old times and the ties have even expanded in recent years due to extended bank cooperation between the two countries.