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Iran is the largest economy that is not currently included in the World Trade Organization (WTO). This paper addresses why Iran has not yet joined the WTO and whether it is ready to join. Iran's interaction with the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) in 1948 marks the beginning of the relationship between Iran and the WTO. To determine why Iran has not yet entered the WTO, the role and penetration of powerful members of the WTO and Iran's economic position are examined. To determine whether Iran is ready to join the WTO, literature is reviewed concerning the effects of joining for the five most-affected major industries in Iran. The major disadvantages of joining the WTO are described as short-term effects, and the advantages of joining are described as long-term goals. Currently, no clear scheme has been offered to handle the negative effects on the Iranian economy. As the major player, the Iranian government could achieve the long-term goals with a realistic and well-planned strategy or miss the mark through its inattention to the critical economic effects. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

The article presents a cohort analysis of the earnings of Iranian men who entered Iran's labor market near the time of the 1979 Iranian Revolution. The possible role of the Revolution in Iran's decade-long economic downturn in the 1980s is examined. The authors are largely concerned with the relationship between age and earnings in Iran. Both macroeconomic and microeconomic data are utilized by the authors. Along with male earnings, per capita household expenditures since the Revolution are examined.

The purpose of this study is to analyse the degree of poverty in Iran and how it changed over time during the second, third and fourth (first three years) five-year national development plans (1995-2007). It does this by documenting overall poverty levels and poverty within regional subgroups, using the micro-level data set of household expenditure survey conducted by the Statistical Centre of Iran (SCI) in 1995, 1999, 2004 and 2007. I have found an increase in all poverty measures in rural regions and a decrease in urban areas during the second development plan (1995-1999). The country as a whole also experienced a considerable poverty reduction over the third development plan (1999-2004) under Khatami's presidency. However, all poverty measures suggest that during Ahmadinejad Administration (2004-2007) poverty has risen. This paper also examines the distribution of poverty breakdown by the regional status of households in Iran. The incidence, intensity and severity of poverty are higher in rural than urban areas in Iran. Regional decompositions show that although poverty was spread throughout the country, the intensity of poverty in some provinces such as Systan-Balochestan, Kermanshah, Kordestan, Hamadan and Ilam was more pronounced. The results also suggest that the contribution of the 'southeast' and 'west' regions (including above mentioned provinces) to the national poverty were increased during the second, third and fourth plans. This might be attributed to the fact that these provinces were more affected by eight-year long Iran-Iraq war, immigration of refuges from neighbours countries and drought. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]