Page 55 - IRANRptDec21

and Moldovan rivals’
gains, Uzbek and Moldovan counterparts lost market share, it added.
Andriy Yarmak, an economist at the Investment Centre of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, told the trade news site: “The growth in the supply of fruits and nuts from Iran to Russia is one of the reasons for the difficulties fruit suppliers from Moldova and Uzbekistan began to experience in the Russian market last year. Iran can offer a wide range of fruits and supplies them almost all year round, which distinguishes this country from its competitors.
"Also, Iranian suppliers are active in promoting their fruits, while exporters from Moldova, for example, rarely resort to advertising their products. In particular, in the largest fruit and vegetable trading group EF Trade Platform in Telegram, Iran is often among the five most active countries, and Moldova is usually not even in the top 10.”
Breaking down the fruit exports, in the first nine months of this year, Iran expanded its shipments of apples to Russia 2.5 times to 125,000 tonnes; 37,000 tonnes of kiwis were also shipped from Iran to Russia; as well as 27,400 tonnes of watermelons, 26,600 tonnes of peaches and nectarines, 12,200 tonnes of raisins, 7,400 tonnes of dates, 7,300 tonnes of cherries, 7,100 tonnes of pistachio, 6,800 tonnes of sour cherries, 4,100 tonnes of table grapes and 3,400 tonnes of plums. Some shipped volumes may have been missed by the data assessment as Iran also ships fruit to Russia via third countries.
9.1.9 Retail sector news
Iran’s footwear industry ‘well capable of reaching billion pairs per year target’
‘Iranian Amazon’ Digikala says it is Middle East e-commerce champion with five million product varieties
Iran’s footwear industry is well capable of reaching an output threshold of 1bn pairs of footwear annually within a few years from its current 450mn pairs, Ali Ajdarkosh, who chairs the Iranian Guild Association of Shoe Manufacturers, told PressTV.
Hitting the target, with substantial exports to regional countries featuring in the success, would enable Iran to earn around $6bn in shoe export revenues per year, he reportedly added.
An outright ban on imports of shoes into Iran was enacted in 2018, causing rapid growth in the Iranian footwear sector.
“The ban on imports led to significant growth in the footwear industry, with Iranian manufacturers reaching a growth level within three years that would normally have been attained within 20 years,” Alireza Jabbarian, a businessman representing shoemakers of Tabriz in northwestern Iran, was quoted as saying. Tabriz is well-known for its handmade shoes.
Iranian footwear manufacturers are also said to owe their major expansion to price surges in the cost of hard currency caused by the reimposition of heavy US sanctions on Iran that began in 2018. The smuggling of foreign-made shoes into Iran almost stopped because of rising exchange prices, while consumers developed a preference for brand new Iranian shoes that were more affordable, according to the Iranian Guild Association of Shoe Manufacturers.
Iran’s Digikala has laid claim to the title of “prevailing e-commerce business in the Middle East”, with the company—sometimes known as the “Iranian Amazon”—saying it has moved up to offering more than five million product varieties, while boasting more than 150,000 marketplace sellers and 40mn active monthly users.
In an update on business progress, Digikala said: “Founded in 2006 with inadequate funds, Digikala is the largest e-commerce business in Iran as of
55 IRAN Country Report December 2021 www.intellinews.com