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Iranian date exports stumble 50 percent drop in date exports in the last two years; Sanctions tripled shipping costs

Mintec Global
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Exporters’ uncertainty about buying and forecasting a one-year supply to target markets has halved date exports over the past five years. Sanctions against Iran have tripled shipping costs, and large shipping companies are reluctant to operate in Iran.

More than 1.2 million tons of dates are produced annually in Iran, and this year, this amount was achieved despite the drought. Iran is the second-largest producer of dates in the world after Egypt. Iranian traders are always waiting for exports. Internal sudden decisions have hurt Iran’s date exports more than foreign sanctions. In 2020, the government stopped exporting dates to supply dates during Ramadan (although this decision was overturned after 16 days), but date traders have felt the consequences, and date exports have halved to date.

Sanctions against Iran have tripled shipping costs. Large shipping companies are reluctant to operate in Iran; The cost of renting a container for an Iranian businessman has reached 12,000 USD, while Iran’s commercial rivals could rent a container for a maximum of 4,000 USD.

It takes half the time for shipments to reach destination countries for rival countries, but Iranian exporters have to spend a lot of time resolving the problems caused by sanctions.

The political issues that have arisen have changed the target export markets. In the past, dates were exported to North America and Europe, but now these markets have adjusted to East Asia, Eurasia, India, and China. The issue of product quarantine is of particular importance in China. The product quarantine period is 60 days. The quarantine period for importing agricultural products to China is long.

Over the past month, the price of Iranian dates has increased slightly due to a slight increase in export demand for this product. Compared to last month, the price of Iranian dates has increased by about 1 to 2 per cent. Given that there are less than three months left until the beginning of Ramadan, it is predicted that in the coming weeks, the export demand for dates produced in Iran, especially Mazafati, will increase, which could lead to an increase in the price of this product in the coming weeks.

Current quotations
ProductTypeGrade$ Price/kg€ Price/kg
DateMazafatiPremium Grade1.591.37
Dried ZahediPremium Grade1.391.20
Dried KabkabPremium Grade1.050.90
RabbiPremium Grade2.241.93