IRAN: Illegal Textile Imports Reach 2m Metres A Year
Around two million metres of fabric are illegally imported into Iran each year reports The Tehran Times. According to the newspaper, textile factory manager Aliasghar Yousefi said the country needed between 700 million and 1 billion metres of cloth annually. But problems such as smuggling, surplus manpower, high interest rates, various duties, inconsistent tax rules, violation of labour laws and the bad public image of manufacturers are making it difficult for the country's textile industry to compete.