A new report by the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) shows a 17.3-percent surge in foreign investment in Iran in 2012, Press TV reports.

According to the report, foreign investment in Iran went beyond USD 4.8 billion in 2012, despite the global decrease in foreign investment over the same year.

UNCTAD’s annual report for 2012, titled World Investment Report, provided data on 141 countries.

From among 31 Iranian provinces, the southeastern province of Kerman ranked first by attracting USD 272 million of foreign investment.

Meanwhile, Iran’s Petroleum sector, with a share of 76 percent, constituted Iran’s major foreign investment hub.

“With regard to direct foreign investment, we are among the six countries that have had a constant increase in attracting foreign investors. It shows that Iran has a good economic capacity to attract foreign companies and the domestic private sector,” said Iran’s Deputy Minister of Economy Behrouz Alishiri on the sidelines of an event on UNCTAD’s report in the Iranian capital city, Tehran.

Explaining why Iran has remained alluring for foreign investors despite Western pressures, economic analyst Sadeq Dehqan said, “One of the reasons [why] Iran is a good destination for foreign investment is that Iran’s market is not saturated with few international competitors,” adding that the country also enjoys “a very reasonable price” for energy and raw materials.

HK