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Mousavi said that Iran and Czech are to study the expansion of banking cooperation, investment opportunity, industry, mines, commerce, health and treatment in the upcoming meeting of the Iran-Czech joint economic cooperation commission.

He also called for the expansion of mutual economic cooperation, bolstering cooperation between the two sides’ private sectors, mainly in industry, and rendering services.

The two sides are to examine various issues ranging from banking to investment opportunities and easing visa issuance between the two countries, he said.

The Czech deputy minister of industry and trade in charge of the section of Industry, Entrepreneurship and Construction, Eduard Muřický, for his part, highlighted good political and economic relations and cooperation between the two countries and called for the further expansion of cooperation in these fields.

There are many companies mainly in the energy sector who mind to broaden cooperation with the Islamic Republic of Iran, Muřický said.

In April 2018, The Chamber of Deputies of the Czech Republic supported a plan to lift a ban on the export of equipment to the Bushehr Nuclear Power Plant in Iran.

The decision by the Czech Parliament came after the online Czech newspaper ‘Prague Daily Monitor’ wrote that continuation of the ban on the transfer of equipment to Bushehr Nuclear Power Plant would prevent normalization of relations between Tehran and Prague, which is detrimental to Czech exports.

The Czech Communist Party had tried since 2009 to have the 18-year-long ban on the export of equipment to Iran lifted. In 2016, the Communist Party tried again to get the ban removed.

The Czech company ZVVZ Milevsko planned to deliver ventilation equipment to the Bushehr Nuclear Power Plant and for this reason the Communist Party had proposed that all restrictions and obstacles facing the company be removed.

The issue was raised at a Czech cabinet session in March 2018 but the Prague government adopted a neutralized stance. Some persons and groups believe that the reason for this is that the Czech government is afraid of harming its relations with some of its allies, including the US, if it agrees to lift the ban.

However, it seems that the Czech Chamber of Deputies decided to follow the country’s foreign policy principles independent of the US.

The former coalition government of the Czech Republic tried to lift the ban in 2017, but Parliament blocked its move. The Czech Foreign Ministry supports the plan to lift the restrictions on the export of equipment to the Bushehr power plant.

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South Korea in April imported 1.45 million tons of crude oil from Iran, or 353,223 barrels per day (bpd), compared to 1.24 million tons a year earlier, according to customs data, reported Reuters.

For the January-April period, the country’s imports of Iranian crude dropped by 17.4 percent to 3.87 million tons, or 235,533 bpd, versus nearly 4.7 million tons in the same period last year, the data showed.

South Korea was granted a six-month waiver from the United States in November to buy oil from Iran, mostly condensate, or an ultra-light form of crude oil.

However, Washington said in April that it would not renew any exemptions for sanctions on Iran, stepping up pressure on Tehran.

In the wake of that step, South Korean petrochemical makers are expected to scour the world to replace Iranian condensate.

South Korea’s overall April crude oil imports were 12.76 million tons, or 3.1 mbd, up 10.2 percent from 11.58 million tons a year earlier.

In a sign that South Korea has been diversifying its import sources, imports from the United States grew fivefold to 1.45 million tons in April, or 353,006 bpd, from 268,511 tons a year earlier.

In the first four months of the year, the country’s crude oil imports increased by 3.4 percent to 49.91 million tons.

The nation’s final crude oil imports data will be released later this month from state-run Korea National Oil Corp. (KNOC).

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Exports from Europe’s largest economy to Iran amounted to €233 million ($261 million) in January and February of 2019, according to data from the Association of German Chambers of Commerce and Industry revealed on Friday, leadership.ng reported.

According to the figures, reported by the German Funke media group, imports from Iran hit to €41 million in the first two months of 2019.

Up to 7,000 German business enterprises are estimated to seek continued trade with Iran, said the managing director of the German-Iranian Chamber of Commerce in February following the launch of a payment vehicle that enables continued European trade with Iran irrespective of unilateral sanctions by the United States.

Michael Tockuss said in an interview with the German business news weekly Wirtschaftswoche that the launch of the payment vehicle – known as the Instrument in Support of Trade Exchanges, or INSTEX – was a welcome development and that it would enable European companies to engage in barter transactions with Iran.

“Our estimate is that between 5,000 and 7,000 small- and medium-scale businesses are still after trade with Iran,” Tockuss said.

France, Germany, and Britain unveiled INSTEX, which is a special purpose vehicle (SPV), to facilitate legitimate trade between European economic operators and Iran.

INSTEX took months to prepare, and the idea to set it up came after the US unilaterally withdrew from a multilateral deal with Iran and five other, mainly European, parties.

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Iranian Steel Producers Association released a report showing that the production of steel products showed a 13-percent growth during the 11 months as billet and bloom output stood at 12.958 million tons, while that of slab reached 9.738 million tons.

Hot-rolled coil has the lion’s share of finished steel production with 7.277 million tons, up three percent year-on-year, the data indicated.

It was followed by rebar with 7.102 million tons, up 24 percent in comparison with last year’s 11-month period.

Production of cold-rolled steel coil stood at 2.34 million tons, up 14 percent, while the production of coated coil with 1.272 million tons observed a nine-percent fall.

Earlier on January 26, the World Steel Association (WSA) announced that Iran ranked 10th among crude steel producers in the world in 2018 with 25 million tons of production, with a 17.72-percent rise compared with 2017.

Iran has pushed aside Italy, Taiwan and Ukraine to become the 10th biggest producer of crude steel in the world for the year 2018.

The WSA put the global crude steel production for the year 2018 at 1,808.6 million tons, which shows a 4.6-percent increase compared to 2017.

According to the report, Iran’s crude steel industry has remained in good shape despite the US sanctions.

Iran produced 25 million tons of crude steel in 2018.

Iran’s share of global crude steel production was 1.38 percent for the year 2018.

Based on the report, the second to ninth places went to India, Japan, the US, South Korea, Russia, Germany, Turkey and Brazil with 106.46 million tons, 104.33 million tons, 86.7 million tons, 72.46 million tons, 71.68 million tons, 42.44 million tons, 37.31 million tons and 34.73 million tons respectively.

According to the 2025 Vision Plan, Iran's total steel production capacity is to hit 55 million tons a year by 2025, with exports figure expected to reach 10-15 million tons.

In a very recent move to further increase the country’s steel production, two steel plants, a direct reduction iron (DRI) and a steel pelletizing plant, were officially inaugurated by First Vice President Es’haq Jahangiri in the Southeastern province of Kerman on January 26.

The two plants, built with more than half a billion dollars of investment, will add 1 million tons of DRI, known as sponge iron, and 2.5 million tons of iron ore pellets to Iran’s steel production.

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Deputy Governor General of North Khorasan Province Majid Pour-Isa announced the above adding that the investments will be made in mines of Garmeh city of the province.

“Chinese operation in the province’s mines will start as of the next Iranian year (to start on March 21),” he said.

There are also plans to cede land to the Chinese in Bojnord Special Economic Zone to set up plants, he said.

Some 21 types of minerals with reserves of 775 million tons were discovered in North Khorasan Province, the most important of which are bauxite, marble, limestone and plaster.

Back in late September, 2018, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi, in a meeting with his Iranian counterpart Mohammad Javad Zarif in New York, called for broadening of mutual cooperation, especially in trade and economic fields.

"Beijing will maintain economic relations with Tehran and is committed to Iran nuclear Deal despite pressures from the US government," Wang said during the meeting on the sidelines of the 73rd session of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) annual session.

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Iranian Economy Minister Farhad Dejpasand and his Azerbaijani counterpart Inam Karimov discussed mutual cooperation in different fields of agriculture, including extra-territorial cultivation, livestock quarantine and food security during a meeting late on Thursday in Baku, on the sidelines of the 13th Summit of Iran-Azerbaijan Joint Economic Cooperation.

They also emphasized that the two countries should use each other’s experience, implement agreements signed earlier.

Meanwhile, Dejpasand met with the Governor of Azerbaijan Central Bank Elman Rustamov and Head of Azerbaijan Railway Company Javid Qorbanov and explored relevant issues with them.

Upon his arrival in Baku’s Heydar Aliyev International Airport late on Wednesday, Dejpasand said that Tehran-Baku cooperation will go beyond infrastructure projects, adding that the two countries are determined to broaden ties in almost all areas.

Dejpasand hailed the “very successful relations and historical ties” between Iran and Azerbaijan, saying that Tehran seeks to boost cooperation with Baku in a wide range of economic fields.

The Iranian minister said the two countries have a very good experience in implementation of certain joint projects.

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According to figures released by World Steel Association (WSA) on Tuesday, China topped the list of crude steel producers during the first month of 2019 with an output of 75.01 million tons.

India, Japan and the United States with 9.18 million tons, 8.14 million tons and 7.64 million tons respectively were listed in second, third and fourth places, the report said.

Global steel production in January amounted to 146.7 million tons showing a 0.16-percent rise compared to the output for December of 2018 which was 146.46 million tons.

Iran ranked 10th among global crude steel producers last year with 25 million tons of production, according to figures released by WSA last month.

The statistics show a 17.72-percent rise for Iran compared to the figure for 2017 which was 21.24 million tons.

Iran was the 14th steelmaker of the world in 2017.

According to the Islamic Republic's Vision Plan, the country's total steel production capacity is to hit 55 million tons a year by 2025, with exports figure expected to reach 10-15 million tons.

The World Steel Association (WSA) is one of the largest and most dynamic industry associations in the world. WSA members represent approximately 85 percent of the world's steel producers, including over 150 steel producers with nine of the 10 largest steel companies, national and regional steel industry associations and steel research institutes.

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According to Reporters, Vika Mazwi Khumalo said in a meeting on Thursday with the Governor General of Yazd Province Mohammad Ali Talebi, "One of the ways to bypass US sanctions is to conduct trade through small and medium economic enterprises which are not within the range of sanctions."

He added that culture and trade provide golden opportunities for promoting communications between the two countries and investment in the industrial province of Yazd.

Referring to the registration of some of historic sites in Yazd as UNESCO World Heritage as well as the existence of huge mines across the province, he said that all these capacities can help promote communications between the two nations.

The South African diplomat highlighted that Iran boasts excellent capacities in various sectors which can be used for promoting trade exchanges between the two countries.

Talebi said that there are common aspects between Yazd and South Africa which should be used for expanding ties.

Establishing sisterhood agreement between Yazd and one of the South African cities can also help strengthen communications between the two countries, he added.

He proposed that agreements should be signed between Iran and South Africa as this can play a crucial role in promoting ties.

On Tuesday, Khumalo said that the unilateral US withdrawal from the Joint Comprehensive plan of Action (JCPOA), also known as the nuclear deal, will not scale down his country's economic, commercial and cultural cooperation with Iran.

Promoting tourism is one of the effective areas for economic growth, Khumalo said in a meeting with Governor General of Iran's central province of Isfahan Abbas Rezaei.

Underlining the need for establishing direct flight between the two countries, he said, "Although there are economic and international limitations in the field, we are seeking to solve the problems."

Last month, Khumalou, in a meeting with Chairman of the Iranian Parliament's National Security and Foreign Policy Commission Heshmatollah Falahatpisheh, said that his country is determined to strengthen relations with Iran.

He stated that his country was aware of Iran's fulfillment of Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) commitments and continued to maintain support the deal and its implementation.

"South Africa has always had friendly ties with Iran since the (1979 Islamic) Revolution, and has never forgotten Iran's support for the liberation of its people," he highlighted.

The diplomat noted South Africa seeks to expand cooperation with Iran in the commercial and economic fields, and in this regard, in addition to emphasizing the importance of the implementation of the agreements, also calls for cooperation in other areas in which the two sides have high capabilities and capacity.

In the meeting, Falahatpisheh referred to friendly relations between Iran and South Africa, and said, "After the Islamic Revolution, Iran-South Africa relations have been pursued at a high level, based on mutual respect which must be maintained with the efforts of the authorities of the two countries."

The lawmaker added, "One hundred documents of cooperation between Iran and South Africa have been signed, which is evidence of friendly relations between the two states, but the two countries' agreements should be executed and not remain on paper."

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Director General of the Omid Entrepreneurship Trust of Iran Asghar Nourollahzadeh and Head of Entrepreneurship Development Institute of India Senile Shukla signed the deal $2 million in Hyderabad, India, on Thursday.

Based on the memorandum, which was signed on the sidelines of the biennial conference on the development of entrepreneurship in India, the special entrepreneurship center for small- and medium-sized enterprises of India-Iran will be created in Tehran.

Providing specialized training courses, sharing knowledge to identify entrepreneurship capacities, implementing entrepreneurship development and microfinance programs are the central tasks of this center.

India is one of the most successful countries in the development of micro and small businesses in the world, and implementation of this memorandum can be a base to use its experience in developing entrepreneurship, the financing system for micro and small businesses in rural and outskirt of cities, and poor–developed areas of to Iran.

Early in January, Iran's Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif told reporters on the sidelines of his meeting with Indian Minister for Road Transport and Highways Nitin Gadkari in New Delhi that his country will not wait for the EU and will expand ties with its other partners.

"The Europeans have made efforts but they could not progress to the extent that we expected. We will cooperate with Europe on the SPV but will not wait for them and will cooperate with our traditional partners, including India, China and Russia, in line with the interests of the Iranian people," Zarif said.

He underscored cooperation with India in various fields, and said, "India's UCO bank and Pasargad bank in Iran have begun cooperation in trade."

Zarif hoped that Iran and India would be able to further boost cooperation irrespective of the US sanctions in line with the interests of the two nations.

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Hashem Namvar, the company's managing director, said on Sunday that once the development projects become operational, the sulfur content of its diesel will be reduced to 50 ppm from the current level of 10,000 ppm.

The official added that his company will produce four million liters of Euro 5 gasoline and 1.5 million liters per day of jet fuel and three million liters per day of kerosene with the implementation of its development plans.

Namvar stated that 65 percent of the refinery's feedstock came from domestic sources.

On January 26, Namvar announced that Iranian experts have, for the first time, produced hydrochloric acid (HCl), a key ingredient in the production of gasoline in accordance with international standards.

"Hydrochloric acid used in petrochemical industry was produced with high purity and pressure in Bandar Abbas Oil Refining Company," he said.

Hydrochloric acid is mainly used in isomerization units whose main product is isomerate — one of the key ingredients of gasoline produced by Euro 5 standards.

Namvar said Iran's domestic production of HCl means the country now joins the only two producers of the key chemical in oil industry; China and India.

The official added that the refinery can produce 500 kilograms of hydrochloric acid per day.

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