Merchandise trade in Iran
Iran: Merchandise trade was 49.3% in 2025. ▲ Rising
Merchandise trade in Iran, 1960–2025
Source: World Trade Organization (WTO). Measured in % of GDP.
Analysis
The most recent figure for merchandise trade in Iran is 49.3%, measured in 2025.
The figure is up 28.7% on the previous year and up 75.1% over ten years.
Over the whole period, merchandise trade in Iran peaked at 62.0% in 1993 and was at its lowest, 8.5%, in 1986.
Iran ranks 110th of 204 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 66 years of available data.
Merchandise trade in Iran, year by year
| Year | % of GDP | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1960 | 28.5% | — |
| 1961 | 30.7% | +7.9% |
| 1962 | 28.8% | -6.2% |
| 1963 | 29.3% | +1.6% |
| 1964 | 35.8% | +22.2% |
| 1965 | 34.9% | -2.4% |
| 1966 | 33.0% | -5.5% |
| 1967 | 40.3% | +22.2% |
| 1968 | 37.9% | -6.1% |
| 1969 | 37.2% | -1.7% |
| 1970 | 37.0% | -0.5% |
| 1971 | 41.5% | +12.0% |
| 1972 | 24.5% | -40.9% |
| 1973 | 22.4% | -8.8% |
| 1974 | 29.9% | +33.8% |
| 1975 | 35.4% | +18.1% |
| 1976 | 32.1% | -9.3% |
| 1977 | 28.9% | -9.9% |
| 1978 | 28.3% | -1.9% |
| 1979 | 20.0% | -29.6% |
| 1980 | 26.1% | +30.5% |
| 1981 | 26.4% | +1.3% |
| 1982 | 25.7% | -2.5% |
| 1983 | 25.5% | -1.0% |
| 1984 | 20.0% | -21.5% |
| 1985 | 14.3% | -28.4% |
| 1986 | 8.5% | -40.9% |
| 1987 | 16.0% | +89.5% |
| 1988 | 16.4% | +2.2% |
| 1989 | 23.1% | +41.2% |
| 1990 | 31.7% | +37.2% |
| 1991 | 35.4% | +11.5% |
| 1992 | 38.2% | +7.9% |
| 1993 | 62.0% | +62.3% |
| 1994 | 46.2% | -25.4% |
| 1995 | 33.4% | -27.7% |
| 1996 | 32.1% | -4.0% |
| 1997 | 28.6% | -10.9% |
| 1998 | 24.9% | -13.0% |
| 1999 | 30.2% | +21.3% |
| 2000 | 38.9% | +28.9% |
| 2001 | 33.4% | -14.1% |
| 2002 | 38.0% | +13.7% |
| 2003 | 38.5% | +1.5% |
| 2004 | 39.2% | +1.8% |
| 2005 | 42.8% | +9.1% |
| 2006 | 44.3% | +3.6% |
| 2007 | 38.2% | -13.8% |
| 2008 | 42.1% | +10.2% |
| 2009 | 31.3% | -25.7% |
| 2010 | 34.2% | +9.4% |
| 2011 | 30.8% | -10.0% |
| 2012 | 25.7% | -16.5% |
| 2013 | 27.4% | +6.7% |
| 2014 | 32.5% | +18.4% |
| 2015 | 28.2% | -13.4% |
| 2016 | 24.2% | -13.9% |
| 2017 | 27.9% | +15.1% |
| 2018 | 37.1% | +33.0% |
| 2019 | 30.9% | -16.7% |
| 2020 | 30.5% | -1.3% |
| 2021 | 29.6% | -2.8% |
| 2022 | 37.1% | +25.0% |
| 2023 | 35.7% | -3.8% |
| 2024 | 38.3% | +7.4% |
| 2025 | 49.3% | +28.7% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 33.6% | 28.5% | 40.3% | 10 |
| 1970s | 30.0% | 20.0% | 41.5% | 10 |
| 1980s | 20.2% | 8.5% | 26.4% | 10 |
| 1990s | 36.3% | 24.9% | 62.0% | 10 |
| 2000s | 38.7% | 31.3% | 44.3% | 10 |
| 2010s | 29.9% | 24.2% | 37.1% | 10 |
| 2020s | 36.7% | 29.6% | 49.3% | 6 |
Countries ranked near Iran
More private sector data for Iran
- Food imports 29.5% (2022)
- Manufactures imports 58.1% (2022)
- Merchandise imports 65.63 billion current US$ (2025)
- Food exports 5.9% (2022)
- Manufactures exports 31.3% (2022)
- Merchandise exports 113.22 billion current US$ (2025)
- Merchandise exports (current US$), per capita 1,225 current US$ per person (2025)
- Merchandise exports (current US$), per unit of GDP 0.3122 current US$ per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Merchandise exports (current US$), annual growth rate 0.5069 % change on previous year (2025)
- Merchandise imports (current US$), per capita 710.17 current US$ per person (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is merchandise trade in Iran?
- Merchandise trade in Iran was 49.3% in 2025, according to World Trade Organization (WTO).
- What is the highest merchandise trade recorded in Iran?
- The highest recorded value was 62.0% in 1993.
- What is the lowest merchandise trade recorded in Iran?
- The lowest recorded value was 8.5% in 1986.
- How does Iran rank for merchandise trade?
- Iran ranks 110th out of 204 countries with data for 2025.
- Is merchandise trade rising or falling in Iran?
- Over the last ten years it is up 75.1%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Iran data come from?
- The figures come from World Trade Organization (WTO), published as part of Merchandise trade (% of GDP). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 66 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data).
About this data
General merchandise trade includes goods whose economic ownership is changed between a resident and a non-resident and that are not included in the following specific categories: goods under merchanting, non-monetary gold, and parts of travel, construction, and government goods and services n.i.e. It is the total of merchandise exports plus merchandise imports. This indicator is expressed as a percentage of Gross Domestic Product (GDP) which is the total income earned through the production of goods and services in an economic territory during an accounting period.