was issued, obliging the government to sell out a minimum 80% of all suitable holdings, companies and organizations in line with above policies. In this regards, the government plans to:

- sell out 80% of many affiliates of the Ministry of Industries and Mines such as IDRO and IMIDRO,

- transfer ownership and/or operation of most power plants across the country,

- transfer all intermediary and consumer goods manufacturers currently owned by the state,

- privatize four commercial banks.

In this context, Bank Saderat Iran has started concrete preparations for a listing at the Tehran Stock Exchange.

Composition of Trade - Iranian imports are predominantly intermediary and capital goods, which claim 46% and 42% of total imports respectively.

Consumer goods represent only 12% of the total. Oil constitutes the most significant portion of Iran's total exports and amounts to between 75%-90% of the total, depending on global crude oil prices.

Investment Activity - Various initiatives, including soft loans from the Oil Surplus Fund, have encouraged private investment in industrial and agricultural activities. As a result, there has been substantial growth in private investment and in industrial and agricultural GDP of above 7% p.a.

Since adoption of the new Foreign Investment Promotion and Protection Act (FIPPA) in 2002, foreign investment applications have grown substantially. FIPPA guarantees compensation for any expropriation or nationalization, allows foreign investor to own more than 49% in a company and repatriation of principal and profit in hardcurrency.

Privatization - Since 1992, Iran decided to reduce the state's control and influence on the economy by selling out public corporations. Privatization went through different stages and experienced ups and downs in relation with other economical factors. In 2002, the Islamic Republic announced its new policies regarding implementation of Article 44 of the Constitution Law of Iran. This article defines the ownership structure of economic activities in Iran and underlines the role of the private sector in complementing the government's duties in the various fields of industry, trade, services and agriculture. The new policies allow for the private sector to invest, own and operate mother industries such as oil and gas downstream, power generation, water projects, etc. and also set easier regulations on private sector activities, which were already previously allowed, such as mining, banking, public transport and aviation, etc.

Approved and conveyed by the Supreme Leader of the Islamic Republic of Iran, in May 2006 a new resolution