Iran Aims for 5% Economic Growth Next Year, Minister Says
TEHRAN (Tasnim) – Iran’s Minister of Economic Affairs and Finance Ali Tayyebnia announced on Saturday that the administration has set a 5 percent target for annual economic growth in the next Iranian year, due to begin on March 20.
Speaking at a press conference in Tehran, Tayyebnia said the purpose is to reach a 5% economic growth and fix the inflation rate at 11.3% during the next Iranian year.
He said those targets have been set with regard to the opportunities brought by the termination of anti-Iran sanctions under the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), a lasting nuclear deal with the Group 5+1 (Russia, China, the US, Britain, France and Germany) that took effect on January 16.
However, he added, the international institutions have predicted that Iran’s economic growth would stand at rates higher than 6 percent.
The minister then touched on the growing global enthusiasm for investment in Iran following the implementation of the JCPOA, saying 400 companies only from Japan have voiced willingness to come to Iran.
Tayyebnia also hailed a 10-billion-dollar credit line that Japan has recently agreed to open for investment in the production projects in Iran.
Pointing to the plunging prices of oil, the minister explained that the Persian Gulf littoral states suffered heavy losses due to the sharp drop in the crude price, saying their foreign exchange reserves experienced a $100 billion decrease.
With the chaotic situation in the oil market, Iran saw a limited amount of fluctuation in the currency prices and the lowest level of excitement over the past two years despite facing sanctions, he noted.
The minister then reiterated that the administration feels duty-bound to decrease the country's dependence on the oil revenues, and unveiled a comprehensive plan on tax incomes as a sustainable source of revenue.
Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyed Ali Khamenei has repeatedly called for formulation of plans to cut dependence on oil revenues and govern the country on the basis of domestic capabilities instead of natural resources.
“Instead of relying on the oil revenues, Iran should be governed by rely on the domestic forces and the sources above the ground, namely the intelligence and talent of young people and the generation of science and knowledge,” the Leader said in October 2014.
The Leader warned that devising the country’s economic plans based on petrodollars will leave the economy prone to decisions made by the “world’s major policy-makers”.
