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According a report by Iranian Mines and Mining Industries Development and Renovation Organization (IMIDRO), the figure shows a 14-percent rise compared to the output for the same period in the preceding year which was 627,130 tons.

The report added that 88,329 tons of copper concentrates were produced during October 22-November 20.

Sarcheshmeh Copper Complex and Meyduk Copper Company produced a total of 125,678 tons of copper cathode during the eight-month period showing a growth of two percent against the figure for the same period last year.

Sungun Copper Complex produced 746 tons of molybdenum as an important byproduct during the eight-month period while the figure was 3,985 tons for Sarcheshmeh Copper Complex.

Iran's total sulfide copper ore extraction stood at 32.522 million tons during the period with Sarcheshmeh Copper Complex, Meyduk Copper Company and Sungun Copper Complex being the main producers.

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Alex Kyriakidis, president and managing director of Marriott's Middle East and Africa division,  said the hotel group is 'very keen' to enter Iran describing it as a 'substantial market' in terms of demand for hotels, Press TV reported.

"Depending on what happens in the future and what agreements are reached between the United States and Iran, if the doors open legally to do business in Iran, we would be very keen to pursue that opportunity," he said.

The announcement, however, put Marriot among a long list of global companies looking to overtake their rivals for a foothold in Iran.

International leisure groups are heartened by the incentives offered by Iran which includes 100 percent tax holidays to hoteliers.

The government has made tourism a top priority for rebuilding Iran's economy and hopes to attract 20 million visitors a year by 2025.

In 2014, despite the sanctions, Iran earned about $6.5 billion from visits by 4.8 million tourists.

Tourism accounted for 7.6 percent of Iran's GDP in 2015 and the figure is expected to rise to about nine percent in 2016, according to Minister for Roads and Urban Development Abbas Akhoundi.

Once the seat of great empires, the country sits on the crossroads of a great civilization retaining a lasting allure to visitors in diverse cultural, religious, medical, eco-tourism and adventure segments.

With the removal of sanctions, business tourism is also gaining momentum among international companies which are wooing the country for major stakes.

Beside its rich reserves of oil, gas and metals, Iran has a promising consumer sector with a well-educated population of 80 million.

The French group AccorHotels became the first international hotel group to enter the Iran market since the 1979 Islamic Revolution, opening an Ibis hotel and a Novotel branch near Tehran's international airport in September 2015.

Abu Dhabi-based-Rotana Hotel Management Corp, Spain's Melia Hotels International and Germany's Steigenberger Hotel Group have also entered Iran's market.

Rotana plans to open two hotels in Tehran in 2018 and two others in Mashhad in 2017.

Melia is planning to open a 319-room hotel in 2017 on the Caspian Sea.

Iran plans to build 300 new hotels over the next five years. According to Akhoundi, projects are underway to build some 170 four- and five-star hotels.

Foreign companies are specially seeking to tap Iran's huge religious tourism market in Mashhad and Qom which attract about 25 million pilgrims a year which is more than those visiting Mecca in Saudi Arabia.

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The two sides agreed to cooperate in joint scientific research, developments, production, supplies and maintenance of equipment and its components for managing air traffic, communications, navigation and surveillance, the company said.

The goal of the agreement is to use the capabilities of Almaz-Antey and Shiraz Electronics Industries "for developing the aircraft navigation system of the Islamic Republic of Iran and also advancing the results of joint scientific research and developments on the markets of third countries", the statement stated.

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"The biggest event for us was the reopening of the Australian Trade Commission two months ago," he said. "Our Trade Minister Steven Ciobo had a wonderful visit in Tehran, signed a number of MoUs, talked to the ministries of energy and science and also the minister for industry and trade. Everything was good."

Biggs said Australian firms are highly interested in ties with Iran as the Iranian economy has opened up international business in the post-sanctions era.

"There are a number of Australian firms which have great interest in the issue," he said. "We will have to see how they work to prequalify for the international petroleum contract and also many of them which are involved in traditional trade in agriculture and commodities."

Iran was freed from international sanctions following the implementation of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) in early 2016. Since then, the country has managed to reach preliminary agreements and in some case sign contracts with international companies.

The Australian ambassador also identified the sectors that Australian firms are most interested in as they come to Iran. "The things we are doing best and we are most hopeful about for the future are services in the mining sector and business in general," he said.

Executives from GrainCorp, WorleyParsons, LiveCorp, Oil Search, Qantas, Sydney Univer­sity and Rubicon Water traveled with Ciobo in September.

"We are in the dawn of a new age of the relationship with Iran," Ciobo told a gathering of business leaders in Tehran at the time.

At its peak, Australia exported goods valued at almost $1 billion to Iran before nuclear sanctions slashed the trade to below $350 million.

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Sharif Nezam-Mafi noted that Johann Schneider-Ammann, head of the Federal Department of Economic Affairs (FDEA) as Switzerland's ministry of economy, will lead a delegation which will include the Director of the Swiss State Secretariat for Economic Affairs (SECO) Marie-Gabrielle Ineichen-Fleisch, directors of Swiss National Bank (SNB) and private banks as well as private sector activists.

The official underlined that the visit of the economy minister of Switzerland, as one of the most important members of the European Union (EU), can be of particular significance in view of Donald Trump taking office as the president of the US.

"Following Trump's election as US president, concerns have emerged on the implementation of the nuclear deal and the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA)," said Nezam-Mafi.

"The upcoming visit will provide economic officials of Iran and Switzerland with the opportunity to discuss ways to expand economic, political, cultural cooperation."

He assessed banking and financial challenges as the most formidable barriers to development of ties between the two countries adding, "The visit by Swiss economy minister and SECO director mainly pertains to banking negotiations on resolving banking and financial transactions between the two sides."

Swiss authorities are slated to hold extensive talks with officials of the Central Bank of Iran (CBI) as well as heads of private banks to overcome the obstacles to developing economic relations.

Nezam-Mafi  said the Swiss delegation will also visit Mahak Society to Support Children Suffering from Cancer in Tehran and will have a dinner banquet in the charity organization.

NGO and charitable activities are greatly valued in Switzerland and the Swiss economy minister and his delegation will therefore visit Mahak Organization, as a successful charity entity, to become familiar with child care activities in the center.

The official also stated that, during the three-day visit, the Swiss delegation is also scheduled to hold meetings with Iran's private sector activists.

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In a meeting with Brazil's Minister of Mines and Energy Fernando Coelho Filho, Iran's Oil Minister Bijan Namdar Zanganeh voiced the willingness of both sides to develop relations in the oil and gas sectors.

Brazilian firms, Petróleo Brasileiro S.A. in particular, possess invaluable experience in exploration and expansion of deep-water oilfields which is what Iran seeks in the Caspian Sea region, said Zanganeh.

While inviting Brazilian companies to participate in Iran's offshore oil industry, Zanganeh asserted, "In addition to collaboration in Iran's upstream oil sector, Tehran and Brazil could also cooperate in the Iranian oil industry."

He expressed Iran's readiness to take part in the upstream sector of Brazil's refinery industry and added, "The Iranian government can supply crude oil to Brazilian refineries."

Zanganeh also pointed to providing services as yet another possible area of cooperation between the two countries. He recalled that Brazilian firms will be able to conduct activities in Iran only through investment or by establishing joint ventures with Iranian counterparts.

"Firm banking relations are mandatory prerequisites to development of bilateral cooperation," Zanganeh underscored, adding, "Talks to this effect were initiated during the earlier visit of Iran's economy minister to Brazil and the negotiations are expected to be resumed in Tehran."

He said Iran attaches great importance to establishing strong banking ties with the South American country stating that as a powerful country, Brazil boasts a large market with high technologies and Iran is eager to form long-term and strategic relations with the Brazilians.

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Mojtaba Khosrowtaj said that the figure indicates a growth of 5.7 percent against the amount for the same period last year.

Khosrowtaj, who is also the deputy minister of industry, mine and trade, said that in the seven months to October 21, the export of carpet and moquette reached $170 million while handwoven carpets brought $166 million in revenues.

During the same period, he noted, Iran exported pharmaceuticals and medical equipment valued at $103 million showing a growth of 50 percent compared to the figure for the same period last year.

According to Iran Customs Administration, Iran's non-oil exports last year stood at $42.415 of which $6.664 billion pertained to gas condensates.

Iran has targeted an earning of $50 billion from the export of goods and gas condensates for the year to March 2017.

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New Zealand’s Trade Minister Todd McClay attended a conference over economic relations between Iran and New Zealand, which was held in Tehran on Saturday.

Pedram Soltani, the deputy president of Iran's Chamber of Commerce said the visit by New Zealand's trade minister at the head of an economic delegation signals the determination of Wellington's officials and commercial partners to develop economic relations with Iran.

Ahead of his trip to Tehran, McClay said “There is enormous opportunity for Iran and New Zealand to work together to boost two-way trade”.

Leading a high-ranking delegation in his visit to Tehran, he is to revive trade between the two countries after a hiatus of over a decade.

“Iran has traditionally been a very important market for our sheep meat and butter. However, exports have diminished over a number of years. Since the lifting of UN sanctions, there are now renewed opportunities to reestablish this trade as well as new opportunities in the education, construction, food and beverage, energy, forestry, specialized manufacturing and services sectors,” the McClay said.

Representatives from 18 companies, universities and educational institutions are accompanying McClay during his visit to Tehran.

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Emissions control systems will be developed and produced for the Iranian market under a 50-50 joint venture between Maadiran — a leading industrial automation and control engineering company — and Faurecia, Reuters reported on Friday.

Total sales of the first venture are expected to reach €50 million in 2020, the report added.

The second venture has been formed between Azin Khodro — a major Iranian automotive parts manufacturer — and Faurecia for vehicle interior systems. Its total sales is expected to reach €50 million in 2020.

Iran's automotive industry is the second largest in the country after its oil and gas industry, accounting for 10 percent of the country's GDP.

Experts believe that Iran's economic growth is rising following the removal of anti-Tehran sanctions.

The sanctions were removed after Tehran and the P5+1 (Russia, China, the US, Britain, France and Germany) finalized the lasting nuclear deal on July 14, 2015 which went into the implementation mode on January 16, 2016.

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The MoU was signed by Iran's Agricultural Jihad Minister Mahmoud Hojjati and Dutch Minister of Economic Affairs Henk Kamp in Amsterdam on Friday.

Hojjati, who is heading a delegation of his deputies and representatives of Iran's private sector, visited the Netherlands at the official invitation of the host country.

In his meeting with Dutch minister of economic affairs, Hojjati pointed out that Iran is at par with the world's top countries in the production of certain crops such as pistachios, dates, pomegranates and apricots.

He added that the Islamic Republic is planning to increase the export of such products to new markets.

The Iranian minister noted the various capacities of the Netherlands in agriculture and livestock, and said, "The two countries can complement one another on agricultural cooperation and the MoU to be signed today can better define the framework for cooperation between the two sides."

Kamp highlighted the nuclear deal between Iran and the P5+1 as a good opportunity for countries to further expand relations with Iran.

"The exchange of delegations between the two counties in the past two years shows the speed of developing relations and the Netherlands is ready to boost cooperation with Iran in all areas, including economy and agriculture," he added.

Kamp further noted the relative advantage of the Netherlands in agricultural production, which is about five times more than the average for Europe. He called for exchange of experiences between the two countries in the fields of agriculture and livestock.

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