The Wall Street Journal has said in a report that several US corporate giants including Apple, HP and Lenovo are actively exploring a market entry into Iran.
It said HP had last month circulated draft agreements with Iranian distributors to resell its consumer products, such as tablets and laptops, in Tehran.
Non-US HP staffers met the potential distributors in Dubai and Tehran, and last month held an internal meeting to discuss the opportunity, the Journal added.
Other American IT majors including Apple and Lenovo are already actively involved in serious business talks to enter the Iranian market.
Lenovo, the world’s largest PC maker by volume, last year hosted a key business meeting in the Iranian capital last year to introduce its latest products to Iranian traders. The company has strong American connections, but its Chinese ownership has made the Iranian entry easier, reported the Journal.
Last year, Apple started contacts with Iranian distributors about possibly entering the country with the full gamut of its business activities, including selling its iPhones, desktop computers, laptops and even opening Apple stores, should Western sanctions ease sufficiently.
Another US IT leader which has been reported to have already started to book its presence in the Iranian market is Microsoft. Iran’s media reported in September that the company has opened a shop in downtown Tehran to sell a variety of its products including mobile phones and tablets.
Other major American businesses that are looking into the prospects of investing in the Iranian market include General Electric and aerospace giant Boeing.
Last October, Boeing announced its first sales to Iran since the 1979 Islamic Revolution.
GE has also started talks with Iranian officials through one of its Italian subsidiaries to take up projects in the country’s oil and gas projects.