Iran holds sizeable share of Afghan consumer market: report

TEHRAN, Nov. 28 (Xinhua) -- Iran holds some 22 percent of Afghanistan's goods consumer market, according to Financial Tribune daily on Tuesday.

Afghanistan imports about 11.5 billion U.S. dollars worth of consumer goods annually and Iran's share accounts for 2.5 billion U.S. dollars of the total sum, the report quoted Afghan commercial attaché to Iran, Jaber Ansar, as saying.

Cheaper transportation costs reduce Afghanistan's expenses when imports are made from Iran and this benefits Afghan consumers, he said, adding that Iranian goods have better quality compared with those of its neighboring countries.

"We want to expand our cooperation and give this opportunity to Iran to increase its current share to 5 billion U.S. dollars," Ansar said.