Iranian carpet has received insufficient publicity and information about customersÕ new preferences has not been passed on to the weavers.

The carpet industry should be viewed more realistically so that it can attain its true status in national development while maintaining its economic, artistic and technical impact on the economy.
Iran’s carpet industry dates back to 3,000 years ago. There are records of the magnificence of carpets woven during the Safavid era when Iranian carpets had high status and value. European kings of the time placed orders for fine rugs. Therefore, hand-made carpet was a flourishing industry with high technical and artistic levels and well developed nationwide, particularly during the Qajar era.
History has it that after the Safavid era, carpet weaving prospered during the reign of Karimkhan Zand and Nader Shah despite ongoing conflicts and wars. Its growth and development was also well documented in the economic book of Charles Isavi and many others such as ’Industrialization of Iran’ by William Flor, and those written about the industry and economy of the Qajar era.
After the 16th and 17th centuries and during the renaissance of Iranian carpet industry, the Dutch reported that ’in 1713 Persian silk carpets for Japan’s emperor were no longer available in the same amount and design, and that it could take a year to order one from the market. Every year the Iranians made several hand-made carpets in velvet and gold and then sent them to the king of Bavaria and sometimes as gifts to the Netherlands’.
Until a few years ago, Iran was a leading carpet producer. The Persian carpet with its fast colors, fine designs and unique texture, has always been the most tangible manifestation of Persian art for other nations.
Its material and weaving methods, design and color composition, border design, foundation threads and knot density, generally distinguish a good quality carpet. In spite of serious challenges in the global carpet market, Persian carpets have maintained superior quality from every aspect.
The cities of Tabriz, Kashan and Kerman are considered the top three carpet hubs of which Kerman ranks first, a carpet expert told ISNA.
Carpet weaving in Kerman goes back to 400 years, Mohammad-Reza Hesani pointed out. Carpets were once exported from Kerman to many foreign companies.
Foreign customers preferred Kerman carpet because of its fine design, fast colors, unique texture and top quality.
He underlined that the fleece sheared from Kerman sheep has better quality due to its length and softness. In this city, at first the wool is dyed and then made into yarn, he explained.
The Commerce Department has estimated the number of carpet looms in Kerman at between 80,000 and 90,000, of which between 20 and 25 percent are active and the rest idle, Hesani noted.
He attributed the recession in carpet workshops to the market, low income and difficult working conditions. “Nowadays, the new generation does not find carpet weaving very attractive because of its low income.“
The expert urged the media to introduce carpet weaving as a symbol of genuine Iranian art. “Carpet weaving should be supported by relevant organizations.“
Iran used to be the world’s leading carpet producer and exporter. However, currently China, India and Pakistan have taken over the market.
Iranian carpet has received insufficient publicity and the latest information about customers’ preferences has not been passed on to the weavers, he regretted.
Hesani said that Kerman carpet is not exported directly. “It is sent to Tehran Customs Administration and from there it is exported.“
A number of operations such as fading of fast colors should be conducted on a carpet before it is exported, the expert explained.
These operations cannot be done in Kerman due to lack of required facilities and tools, he claimed.
On insuring the craftsmen particularly carpet weavers, the expert said that the Commerce Department is in charge of this.
Weavers could be covered by insurance upon presentation of identification cards from Iran’s Cultural Heritage, Handicrafts and Tourism Organization, Imam Khomeini Relief Committee, etc.

While about 1.2 million tons of sugar and sugar cubes are in warehouses of factories, the conspiracy of brokers in raising the prices is aimed at forcing the government to lower import duties, said secretary of the State Sugar Factories Association.
On the hike in prices of sugar and sugar cubes, Bahman Danaei pointed out that since import tariffs have increased, profiteers can no longer gain from importing the commodity and thus they try to create chaos in the market.
Speaking to Fars News Agency, he assured that there is excess sugar in the warehouses.
While the government has set the base price for sugar at 5,600 rials per kilogram, he noted that factories are inclined to sell their products even at 5,100 rials per kilogram to repay their dues to sugar beet growers and meet their expenses. “Given the amount of sugar stored in factories, we can supply domestic demand for a year even if no sugar is processed this year,“ he declared.
Highlighting that the sugar produced in domestic factories has not been purchased, he said that association has announced in a statement that the ex-factory prices of sugar and sugar cubes are 5,600 rials and 6,150 rials per kilogram respectively.
Danaei urged the Commerce Ministry to exercise closer supervision over the sugar market.

About $100 million has been invested in olive processing industry, said secretary of Iran’s Olive Association.
Mohammadreza Hatefi recalled that the area under olive cultivation stood at 35,000 hectares in 1974 while per capita consumption did not exceed 30 grams since olive was little known in the provinces, according to Fars News Agency.
Since 1974, the Ministry of Agricultural Jihad has implemented the Touba Plan to increase the area under olive cultivation to 614,000 hectares by 2011, the official pointed out.
The plan encouraged farmers to establish olive gardens by making state land available for the purpose, providing olive saplings free of charge and extending soft loans, Hatefi underlined.
Thanks to efforts to promote the culture of consuming olive oil in recent years, per capita olive consumption has reached 300 grams per year and the area under olive cultivation has increased to 105,000 hectares, the expert explained.
Also about 36 olive processing units have been established in olive producing provinces and their products are marketed domestically, he added.
In related news, deputy agricultural jihad minister disclosed that olive orchards would be set up in the provinces of Fars, Gilan, Golestan, Kerman and Khuzestan in the year to March 2009.
The initiative is aimed at reducing the harvest period for the crop, Mohammadreza Jahansouz said.
Under the plan, the number of olive trees would rise to 2,000 from 200.

The number of companies worth over one billion dollars in Tehran Stock Exchange has reached 12.

Tehran Stock Exchange (TSE) has embarked on an ambitious modernization program to ensure greater market transparency and attract domestic and foreign investors.
Concrete measures have been taken in the planning and operations of the stock exchange such as the settlement system, geographical expansion, new exchange laws to attract local and foreign capital. TSE is a full-fledged member of World Federation of Exchanges and a founding member of Federation of Euro-Asian Stock Exchanges (FEAS).
The TSE, Iran’s largest stock exchange, was inaugurated in April 1968. As of April 2007, 324 companies, with a market capitalization of $42 billion were listed on TSE.
The Securities & Exchange Council is the highest authority responsible for all relevant policies, market strategies and supervision of the market. The chairman of the council is the minister of economics and its members include commerce minister, Central Bank of Iran governor, managing director of the Chamber of Commerce, attorney general, chairman of the Securities and Exchange Organization, representatives of the active market associations, three financial experts proposed by the economics minister and approved by the Cabinet, and one representative for each commodity exchange.
The Securities and Exchange Organization (SEO), which is responsible for administration and supervision, is headed by a Board of Directors elected by the Securities and Exchange Council.
The TSE is open for trading five days a week from Saturday through Wednesday, excluding public holidays. Trading takes place through the Automated Trade Execution System from 9 a.m. to 12:30 p.m., which is integrated with a clearing, settlement, depository and registry system.
The TSE is solely an order-driven market and all transactions are executed under the principles of open auction.
The trading system is an order driven system, which matches buying and selling orders of investors. Investors can place orders with TSE accredited brokers, who enter these orders into the trading system. Then, the system automatically matches buy and sell orders of a particular security based on the price and quantity requirements.
Price of equities is determined according to the best price (price priority) and time of order priority.
Under the price priority rule, a selling (buying) order with the lowest (highest) price takes precedence. Under the time priority rule, an earlier order takes precedence over others at the same price. Thus, when the lowest sell and the highest buy orders match in price, transaction takes place at the price. In short, the TSE market is a pure order-driven market.
Presently, TSE trades mainly in securities offered by listed companies. Equities and Corporate Bonds are traded at TSE at the moment. The plan is to introduce other financial instruments in the near future. Introduction of project-based participation certificates that bear a fixed annual return during the period of the project and promise the final settlement of the profit on the date of its completion, has diversified the market.
According to ISNA, the number of companies worth over one billion dollars in Tehran Stock Exchange has reached 12. Shares of eight firms are estimated between one and two billion dollars while shares of two companies are worth more than five billion dollars.
The new by-law for Foreign Portfolio Investment was approved by the government in June 2005 under which foreign investors can join TSE activities.
Iran is to target foreign investment in the energy sector by creating an umbrella group of nearly 50 state-run firms and listing its shares on four international stock exchanges. Under the privatization plan, 47 oil and gas companies worth an estimated $90 billion are to be listed on the Tehran Stock Exchange by 2014.

Over half of the financial resources granted by Mehr-e Iran Interest-Free Bank are in the form of non-usury facilities, said the head of the bank.Speaking at the inaugural ceremony of Presidential Office branch of Mehr-e Iran Interest-Free Bank, Gholamreza Mostafapour explained that the bank began operations last November by implementing non-usury banking regulations and offering soft loans to the vulnerable strata, reported ISNA.
It managed to overcome initial problems and offer banking services via 300 independent branches nationwide.
At first its systems were outdated, he said, adding fortunately, after a while, the bank went online.
With an initial capital of 10 trillion rails in cash and kind, the bank draws public assets in the form of deposits and current interest-free accounts and in return grants interest-free loans, Mostafapour elaborated.
Mehr-e Iran Interest-Free Bank began operations on November 22, concurrent with the auspicious birth anniversary of the eight Imam of the infallible household of Prophet Muhammad (PBUH), Imam Reza (AS).
It aims to promote the Islamic economy, raise public awareness about it, get involved in operations related to interest-free loans, encourage people to deposit in interest-free accounts and reduce state monopoly.

About 6,000 billion rials have been allocated to contain the impact of drought and cold weather nationwide in the year to March 2009, declared Agriculture Jihad Minister Mohammad Reza Eskandari, adding that of this amount 2,000 billion rials were made available to the Insurance Fund.
Speaking in a meeting to discuss ways of countering the impact of drought in Mazandaran province, he pointed to the importance of safeguarding the supply of strategic products which are needed by the majority of the population, ISNA reported.
“Studies show that losses inflicted on farmers in Mazandaran province are far greater than the funds earmarked to offset the effect of drought in the region.“
Mazandaran and Gilan provinces are the top priorities of the ministry in this respect, he concluded.