Economy Minister Ehsan Khandouzi says Iran and China talked about increasing the share national currencies in two-way trade during President Ebrahim Raisi's visit last week to Beijing.
"The yuan already accounts for a considerable part of trade between the two sides. However, the process of using the Chinese currency needed to be eased and the Central Bank of Iran is negotiating with the Chinese to address the issues," Khandouzi told reporters in Tehran on Tuesday.
He stressed that trade in national currencies and de-dollarization is on the government agenda. "Russia, China, Turkey and some other countries are also working to reduce the role of the US dollar in their foreign trade."
Iranians and Chinese officials sign documents for cooperation during the meeting between Iranian President Ebrahim Raeisi (R) and his Chinese counterpart, Xi Jinping, in Beijing, on February 14, 2023.
Raisi traveled to Beijing last week leading a politico-economic delegation and met his counterpart Xi Jinping. The two countries signed 20 memorandums of understanding during a meeting chaired by the two presidents.
The cooperation agreements cover several areas, namely crisis management, tourism, telecoms, information technology, environment, international trade, intellectual property rights, agriculture, export, health, media, sports and cultural heritage.