Asian countries to restart oil, trade ties with Iran

Tabnak – Despite officially announcing the start of new round of sanctions against Iran, the United States has issued some sanctions waivers for a number of Iran’s oil costumers. As a result, Asian buyers of Iranian oil set to restart their purchases, while considering new mechanisms to keep ties with Tehran.

In this vein, Japan’s leading crude oil wholesaler JXTG Holdings Incorporation said it is preparing to resume imports from Iran after the US issued a waiver for Tokyo to continue its purchases of oil from the Islamic Republic. "We will decide from (the standpoint of) diversifying our suppliers and economic feasibility," said an official of the oil wholesaler as quoted by Reuters.

JXTG, which imported several percent of its annual crude oil supply from Iran, stopped doing so in October only weeks before the US restored sanctions against Iran.

Following Washington’s announcement of sanction waivers for eight countries, Japan’s Trade Minister Hiroshige Seko said the country’s oil importers were expected to prepare to resume imports from Iran.

“It would be up to the judgment of private firms, but based on this decision, the (Japanese) companies would likely prepare for resuming Iran crude imports,” Seko told reporters.

Japan is one of Iran’s largest oil importers. As of September, Iranian crude oil accounted for 5 percent of Japan’s crude oil intake, and, as the head of the Petroleum Association of Japan, Takashi Tsukioka, commented in September, Tokyo will try to maintain a good relationship with Tehran despite the sanctions, according to a report by Reuters.

Meanwhile,¬ South Korea says it has reached a deal with Iran to use local currencies in mutual trade between the two countries instead of the US dollar. According to Yonhap News Agency, the two countries "will restart the won-based settlement of bilateral trade transactions" using the accounts of the Central Bank of Iran at two South Korean banks: Woori Bank and the Industrial Bank of Korea.

"It's expected to provide South Korean firms with more opportunities for the trade of non-sanctions data-x-items such as medical products, processed food and home appliances, although the exports of some products including steel and automobile parts will be affected by the sanctions," Yonhap quoted an anonymous informed as saying.

On Monday, the administration of US President Donald Trump restored all Iran sanctions that had been lifted after the 2015 nuclear deal was signed between the country and the five permanent members of the Security Council – the US, Britain, France, Russia and China – as well as Germany.

Later, Washington said it had granted 180-day waivers to eight economics, including China, India, South Korea, Italy, Greece, Taiwan and Turkey, from the oil import ban reimposed on Iran by Trump.