A senior Iranian business official said that the exports of Iranian carpet reached $400 million in the first 11 months of the current Iranian calendar year (started March 20, 2012), Press TV reported on Thursday.

The Islamic republic exported the carpets to 70 countries despite the obstacles that the US-engineered sanctions have created on the country.

Mohammad-Baqer Aqa-Alikhani, the chairman of Iran's National Carpet Center, was quoted as saying on Wednesday.

"Forty-five percent of Iran's carpet is exported to Asian countries, 43 percent to European countries," and the rest to other states, he said according to the report.

Iran's hand-woven rugs are one of its main non-oil export items. The country produces about 5 million square meters of carpets annually, 80 percent of which is sold in international markets.