Speaking to IRNA, Ergezen who arrived here on Friday said that the volume of Tehran-Ankara trade exchanges will reach five billion dollars by the end of the current year.

The Iran-Turkey trade balance is in favor of Iran due to the purchase of Iranian natural gas by Ankara, said the Turkish minister.

In the past several years, he further noted, Ankara's imports from Iran doubled while its exports to the country only showed a 60 percent increase.

Meanwhile, Ergezen toured the quake-stricken ancient city of Bam in the southeastern Kerman province which was by 70 percent destroyed due to a 6.3 magnitude earthquake last December.

The killer earthquake of December 26 left more than 41,000 dead and tens of thousands injured.

Bam's earthquake, said the Turkish minister, was a huge natural disaster for Iranians.

Ergezen has so far met with a number of Iranian officials including First Vice-President Mohammad-Reza Aref.