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by the US reimposition of sanctions on Iran from 2018.
In a parting move, the Rouhani government pushed ahead with plans to build 1.3mn units.
Critics have complained that Maskan-e-Mehr projects are populist initiatives that can tank the property market with a great number of poorly-built properties appearing on the market in areas surrounding cities at the same time. In recent years, a significant number of people who moved into such properties have complained of a lack of utilities including gas connections and bus links to nearby cities.
9.1.11 Metallurgy & mining sector news
Iran makes substantial steel export gains as virus impacts on trade ease
Iran produces 4.5mn tonnes of cement in sixth Persian month, hopes for 70mn tonnes in full year
Iran’s steel product and steel ingot exports grew 88% y/y and 39% y/y, respectively, in the first five months of the Persian calendar year (March 21 to August 21), according to the Iranian Mines & Mining Industries Development and Renovation Organisation (IMIDRO).
A total of 3,079,000 tonnes of various types of steel ingot, including slab, bloom and billet, were exported as industry rebounded amid the reopening of international trade routes following obstacles caused by coronavirus crisis impacts. Iran’s steel ingot exports fell to 2,213,000 tonnes in the first five months of the last Persian year, Iranian Steel Producers Association (ISPA) data showed.
IMIDRO added that in the first five months of the current Persian year, 338,000 tonnes of steel products and 2,000 tonnes of steel ingots were imported into Iran, marking a 1% y/y increase and 33% y/y decline, respectively.
Earlier on September 7, the World Steel Association (WSA) reported Iran's crude steel production reached 17.8mn tonnes in January to July, marking an increase of 9.9% y/y. Iran remained the world's 10th biggest producer of crude steel, the WSA added.
Iran's cement producers produced 4.5mn tonnes of cement during the sixth Persian calendar month (Mordad, which ended on August 22), IRNA has reported.
Speaking at a meeting with new Industry Minister Reza Fatemi Amin, held to explore issues related to market regulation and exports, Seifollah Amiri, general director of the Mining Department at the Ministry of Industry and Trade, reportedly said there were no problems in the production and supply of cement in the country despite worker shortages and coronavirus restrictions. He was further cited as saying that 10 regional groups were formed to assess and manage the cement market, and various meetings were held with consumers, manufacturers and operators of Ofogh (Eagle), a system for monitoring prices of various goods in the domestic market.
Currently, more than 62 cement manufacturers offer their products on the Iran Mercantile Exchange (IME), with 52 of those companies listed on the Tehran Stock Exchange (TSE).
Iran produced 68.3mn tonnes of cement in the last Persian calendar year (ended March 20). In 2021, the annual production volume may reach over 70mn tonnes, official estimates project.
Annual consumption of cement in the country stands at around 65mn tonnes, while the annual export of the commodity exceeds 11mn tonnes.
56 IRAN Country Report October 2021 www.intellinews.com