TEHRAN – The trade volume between Iran and Qatar has seen a 34 percent growth over the past year, Qatari official has said.
Sheikh Mohammed Bin Hamad Bin Qassim Al-Thani, Qatar’s Minister of Commerce and Industry made the remarks at the eighth meeting of the Joint Commission for Economic Cooperation held between Iran and Qatar.
Constructive ties between the two countries are positively seen in the level of trade relations, he noted.
An Iranian delegation headed by energy minister Ali Akbar Mehrabian attended the eighth meeting of the Joint Commission for Economic Cooperation between Iran and Qatar in Doha on Monday.
At the end of the joint commission meeting, Iran and Qatar inked a memorandum of understanding. The MoU is in the fields of transit, transportation, industry and trade, energy, customs, free zones, tourism, cultural heritage, agriculture, sports, etc.
Earlier on Monday, Iranian and Qatari officials signed a memorandum of understanding to form a joint trade council, whose first session was held in Doha.
The document was signed by Sheikh Khalifa bin Jassim Al-Thani, chairman of Qatar’s Chamber of Commerce and Industry, and his Iranian counterpart Gholam Hossein Shafeie, in Doha.
Hailing the formation of the council that includes elites from different economic sectors of the two countries, the Qatari official said the council will help discover investment opportunities and develop mutual cooperation.
He also highlighted the positive role that the private sectors can play in developing trade between Doha and Tehran, IRNA reported.
Shafeie, for his part, voiced Iran’s willingness to boost trade ties with Qatar considering the numerous grounds for cooperation.
Speaking to the Iranian state TV from Doha, Iranian Energy Minister Ali Akbar Mehrabian said Qatar has issued a permit for Iran to launch a major trade center in the Arab country.
According to the minister, the Iranian trade center will be launched in a prestigious building in one of Doha’s top neighborhoods.
The Iranian energy minister arrived in Doha on Sunday to co-chair the eighth round of intergovernmental committee meetings between Iran and Qatar.
He was accompanied by a senior trade and business delegation.