Three European powers are set to make good on a plan to help companies trade with Iran, defying President Donald Trump with a bid to bypass U.S. sanctions. The entity, which could be presented as early as Monday, is key to the European Union’s effort to save a 2015 nuclear accord with Iran after Trump withdrew […]
The European Commission said it’s seeking to launch “very soon” a special purpose vehicle to help European companies bypass U.S. sanctions on Iran, with three European diplomats saying the official unveiling could come as early as Monday. Progress has been slow in developing the SPV, a key element of the European Union’s effort to keep […]
Iran-Italy relations, which date back to the time of the Roman and Persian empires, are marked by important affinities. Historical and cultural traditions as well as commercial and economic connections have deeply shaped mutual perceptions. Unlike the other major EU countries, Italy is not seen as a former colonial power still trying to “dominate” relations […]
Iran has adequate currency supplies to cover trade, and the rial has stabilized after “a heavy attack” from the U.S.-led economic sanctions imposed on the Islamic Republic, the head of the country’s central bank said. Iranians need to adjust their spending habits and “take seriously” sustained efforts by the U.S. to destabilize the economy, while […]
It’s Warsaw and Washington against the big EU powers, as U.S. President Donald Trump’s administration pushes to kill the Iran nuclear deal — and to exploit European divisions on foreign policy in the process. Of all the damage Trump has done to transatlantic relations, no issue has divided the U.S. from its European allies as […]
State-run Chinese energy giant Sinopec has offered Iran a $3-billion deal on further development of an Iranian oilfield the two countries are already working on, the Wall Street Journal has reported. The offer made by the China Petroleum & Chemical Corp (Sinopec) is part of an existing contract to operate the Yadavaran oilfield in southwest Iran on the Iraqi […]
Three years ago, Iran and global powers implemented the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), curtailing the country’s nuclear weapons program in exchange for sanctions relief. The deal continues to hang together—but only just. There are growing indications of signatory states’ fatigue and frustration in attempting to prevent the collapse of the JCPOA, following the […]
WASHINGTON — The Donald Trump administration conducted a preliminary internal assessment of its Iran “maximum pressure” policy this month and determined that it is not working, according to a new report. Such an assessment could drive administration efforts to try to provoke Iran to leave the nuclear deal, possibly by urging a potential inspections crisis at the […]
French auto giant Groupe PSA, which makes the Citroen and Peugeot brands, reported record vehicle sales Tuesday as the acquisition of General Motors’ Opel unit helped offset a sharp downturn in key markets China and Iran. PSA sold 3.88 million vehicles, up 6.8 percent from 2017 when it acquired the Opel business which includes British-based Vauxhall. PSA said that […]
Tehran, Iran – Monir Farmanfarmaian, the grand dame of Tehran’s vibrant art scene, has set a new record for a local female artist after an untitled mirror mosaic of hers fetched almost $1m at an art auction in the Iranian capital. The 96-year-old Iranian artist, who once hobnobbed with the likes of Andy Warhol, Willem de […]
Japan’s energy policy towards Iran has been an area of struggle for independence from the United States for four decades. Even when Japan tried to pursue its own energy policy towards Iran, the US has generally had the final say. From Japan’s point of view, however, the US stance towards Japan-Iran energy relations has toughened […]
A major Iranian oil buyer that shut out supplies last year even before U.S. sanctions on the Persian Gulf state took effect is finally set to receive cargoes once again. National Iranian Tanker Co.’s Silvia I is expected to reach South Korea — Tehran’s third-biggest customer before it stopped purchases in August — on Jan. 15, according […]
President Donald Trump’s Iran policy has been reckless as regards Iran—it all but invites Tehran to return to an unconstrained nuclear program, and it reduces U.S. credibility to bargain on other contentious issues. But it has been far more reckless on the far more consequential matter of America’s relationships with allies and partners and especially […]
Europe has yet to launch its special purpose vehicle (SPV) to support trade with Iran and while Iranian stakeholders grow increasingly impatient, some have begun to question the likely impact of the new mechanism. The chief complaint is that the initial SPV, if limited to humanitarian trade, will not have a meaningful economic impact for […]
LAS VEGAS, Jan 9 (Reuters) – South Korean oil buyers are expected to restart Iranian oil imports in late January or early February, the head of South Korea’s SK Innovation, which owns South Korea’s biggest oil refiner SK Energy, said on Wednesday. In November, South Korea won a six-month waiver from sanctions imposed by the […]
Against the backdrop of an ailing yet dominant banking system that is struggling to upgrade its operations, Iranian fintech firms are slowly but steadily fashioning a position for themselves. Local developments in the past year have made it clear that fintech firms will be a major part if not the architects of the future landscape of financial services in Iran. On […]
Iran will boost trade with India as the European Union struggles to find a way to circumvent a fresh US embargo on Tehran, Iranian Foreign Minister Javad Zarif said Tuesday. Brussels is working on a payment mechanism to keep financial transactions flowing with Iran, after the US ditched the 2015 nuclear deal with Tehran earlier this year and reintroduced […]
LONDON (Reuters) – Turkey has resumed imports of Iranian crude oil after a one-month hiatus in November when U.S. sanctions on Iran were reimposed, trading and shipping sources said. The United States granted Turkey and other countries import waivers in early November. Turkey said it was permitted to take 3 million tonnes a year, equivalent […]
NEW DELHI, Jan 7 (Reuters) – State-run Bharat Petroleum Corp will import 1 million barrels of Iranian oil in February after a gap of three months, with the nation’s overall purchases from Tehran remaining at 9 million barrels, three industry sources said. The United States in early November granted India a six-month waiver from sanctions […]
London — Iran’s steel exports have remained about steady in the first nine months of the current Iranian year despite the US’ reimposition in August of sanctions on metals trading, according to Mohsen Parvan, CEO of Tehran-based AASIM Consulting Group. For the full year, Iran’s steel exports may equal last year’s record of over 9 million […]
An Iranian arbitration body gave its approval on Saturday to an anti-money laundering bill seen as crucial to maintaining international trade and banking ties, the official IRNA news agency reported. “The bill on amending the law to counter money laundering was approved with certain changes and will be sent to the parliament speaker to be communicated to the government,” […]
LONDON (Reuters) – All countries that were granted waivers from the United States to continue buying a certain amount of Iranian oil imports are complying with U.S. sanctions, a senior Iranian energy official said, noting that Tehran was hopeful to find new buyers. The United States withdrew from a nuclear deal with Iran last year […]
Between 2016 and 2018, Iran’s energy sector was the main beneficiary of the lifting of nuclear-related sanctions. Increased oil production and exports, the return of international oil companies (IOCs), massive investments in renewable energies, introduction of new technologies into upstream and downstream sectors, etc., were among key developments in the industry. The reimposition of US […]
Iran will invest about 15 billion rupees to expand a refinery run by Chennai Petroleum Corp. in south India, the company’s managing director said, amid U.S. sanctions on the Persian Gulf nation that have severely hit its oil exports. The state-run company is boosting capacity at its Nagapattinam facility by nine-fold to process 9 million tons per year and […]