Who are Iran’s top trading partners US would need to target to isolate it?

EXPLAINERThe US wants to isolate Iran from the global economy. Here is who Tehran trades with, and how much is at stake.United States Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent has unveiled a new wave of sanctions on Iran, branded “Operation Economic Outcast”, designating close to 60 entities, individuals and vessels and widening secondary sanctions to cover shipping, gold, aviation, technology and digital assets.He said the aim was to sever every economic lifeline sustaining the government in Tehran until it stands alone, and that President Donald Trump was telephoning world leaders with specific requests to halt their dealings with Iran, though he named no countries and set no deadline.Below, we break down Iran’s top trading partners using official customs figures compiled by Trade Data Monitor, which exclude the unrecorded flows sustaining much of Iran’s oil exports.Iran’s top export partnersIran has spent much of the past two decades under Western sanctions, a pressure that has pushed its economy away from Europe and towards a narrowing group of Asian and regional partners.In 2024, Iran exported some $56bn worth of goods to at least 112 countries and territories, according to official customs figures. Its top export partners were: China ($14.58bn) – The largest buyer of Iranian oil, taking more than 80 percent of Iran’s seaborne crude exports, according to tanker-tracking analysts. Much of it is discounted and moved by shadow-fleet vessels, barely registering in either country’s customs records. Iraq ($11.7bn) – Iran has been a major supplier of gas to Iraq for electricity generation, and sells electricity directly to Iraqi provinces in the south. It is also a leading source of food products, building materials and manufactured goods. UAE ($7.16bn) – Has long been a financial and re-export lifeline for Iran, accounting for 13 percent of its exports. Abu Dhabi imposed an indefinite trade embargo last week after accusing Iran of firing missiles at its territory. Tehran denied the allegations. Turkiye ($6.1bn) – Iran has long supplied Turkiye with pipeline gas via the Tabriz-Ankara Pipeline, along with petrochemicals, food products, and construction materials. Afghanistan ($2.3bn) Iran supplies its landlocked neighbour with fuel, food and construction materials, and Afghanistan depends heavily on Iranian ports and overland routes to access wider markets.