ECONOMIC NEWS

Lord Temple-Morris at the Chamber of Commerce

The Hon Lord Peter Temple-Morris, President of the British Iranian Chamber of Commerce and Chairman of the British-Iranian All-Party Parliamentary Group, headed a large participating British delegation to the International Oil, Gas and Petrochemical Exhibition, held in Tehran between 24 and 27 April 2002. During his visit, Lord Temple-Morris met with H.E. Eng. Ali-Naghi Khamoushi and Dr. Amir Houshang Amini at the Iran Chamber of Commerce. He expressed hope that the current increasing pace of British trade visits to Iran could help develop a stronger bilateral relationship, in which the BICC and IBCCIM could maintain a significant role.

Lord Temple-Morris also expressed hope that Europe would be more united in developing co-ordinated trade relations with Iran. On the Afghanistan issue, he envisaged "a beginning on the Afghanistan joint initiative."

Considering recent regulatory/customs problems affecting Iran's pistachio export to the EU, Lord Temple-Morris called for even more preparedness on the side of Iranian food exporters who want to enter EU market, considering the increasingly tightening regulations being put in place by the EU member countries.

British Dubai Business Group's Mission

The 14-member-strong trade mission, organised by Dubai and Northern Emirate British Business Group visited Tehran between 5 and 9 May 2002. It was the group's second visit to Iran in nine months. A roundtable at Iran Chamber hosted the group on its first day in Tehran, during which, Assadollah Asgaroladi, ICCIM's Vice President, called for more British technology transfer to Iran, as a wise move to help expand bilateral trade relationship. He also invited British companies to invest in Iran's SMEs.

Michael Thomas Leads Another MEA Trade Mission to Iran

During 18 and 23 May 2002, the Middle East Association brought the largest ever British trade mission - with 42 participants - to Iran. They met around 220 ICCIM/IBCCIM members on 25 May during a roundtable at the chamber.

The Scottish Trade Mission in Iran

The Energy and Engineering Focused Trade Mission to Iran, led by Dr. Abdel Hadi Fawzy, consisting of Scottish Development International representatives and several energy and engineering companies, visited Tehran between 22 and 27 June 2002. They met with Dr. Amir Houshang Amini, Senior Economic Advisor to the ICCIM and Vice President of IBCCIM, and discussed ways to improve the bilateral trade relationship.

Also present at the meeting was Eric Jenkinson, First Secretary Commercial, British Embassy in Tehran.

IBCCIM NEWS

New Lease of Life for the IBCCIM Committees

The IBCCIM's Committee of Investment Promotion and Joint Co-operations, which recently had a new lease of life by merging with the Bank, Insurance and Contracts Committee of IBCCIM, started its new period with as many as 18 members. They discussed associated subjects, including the new law of Promotion and Protection of Foreign Investment.

Planning Committee of the IBCCIM also restarted work after a short lapse. Meanwhile, the Training and Information Committee conveyed as planned and discussed the related issues.

IBCCIM's New Website

The new Website of the Irano-British Chamber of Commerce, Industries and Mines was unveiled last month. The site includes a new and improved corporate face, providing easier navigation through the information provided. Exhibition Calendar is among the most comprehensive sections, which gives the visitor the ability to search for intended British exhibitions in various methods, including by subject, by starting date, by venue and starting date, and by organiser and date. It also includes a list of British exhibition organisers, for participation information. A similar list of Iranian exhibitions and organisers will also be included soon. The Irano-British Quarterly magazine also launched its online edition as part of the new site. The Website has 'Useful Links' page, which our visitors will definitely appreciate. You can have access to the site at:

http://www.ibchamber.org

In the second phase, the IBCCIM members will also have a dedicated - visitor restricted - section containing exclusive market information and internal news and event calls.