Trilateral Chabahar port deal to reduce transportation expenses by 30%: Indian trade body

The landmark trilateral Chabahar deal signed by Iran, India and Afghanistan will reduce transportation expenses at least by 30%, an Indian trade body said in Tehran on Wednesday.

"India and Iran enjoy dynamic economies and the trade cooperation between the two will benefit both," said Khalid M Khan, regional chairman of Federation of Indian Export Organisations (FIEO).

He said that the Chabahar agreement was a basis for economic relations between India and Iran.

"Establishment of Chabahar international corridor will reduce transportation expenses at least by 30%," he was quoted as saying by Iran's state-run news agency IRNA.

Iran and India inked 12 documents on cooperation in different areas, including a trilateral deal on Chabahar corridor, during Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit to Tehran this week.

The corridor is the closest access to countries including Afghanistan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, Kyrgyzstan and Kazakhstan that are located in the Central Asia, he said.

"Iranian cities of Isfahan, Shiraz and Tehran are at the center of attention for India...Several meetings have been held to review ways to widen trade cooperation with those cities," Khan said.

Iran's share of exports to India, whose worth of yearly imports is $450 billion, is only $2.5 billion in a year.

The FIEO, he said, is trying to boost trade exchanges with Iran through chambers of commerce in both countries.

The FIEO supervises export activities in India and is determined to help strengthen trade cooperation through holding different exhibitions.