Syrian imports for the first half of 1997 totaled 20 billion Syrian pounds

According to the Syrian local daily Tishreen, Syria's imports through June 1997 are estimated at 19.153 billion Syrian pounds, of which industrial machinery and spare parts account for 2.389,738 SP; building materials (iron steel and aluminum ) for 2.897.639 billion SP; textiles for 1.992.671 SP; fertilizers, chemicals and medicines for 1.739 billion SP; sugar and cocoa for 1.635.87 billion SP; rice, tea and coffee for 1.538.24 billion SP; and 1.490.64 billion SP was spent for importing cars and tractors.