A sanction-free Iran is about to go on a world-wide shopping spree

Iran's shopping list is long - and it's starting with planes.

Tehran hosted the country's first major post-sanctions business gathering on Sunday, announcing the government is looking to buy more than 160 European-made Airbus planes, including eight superjumbos, Reuters reports.

A spokesperson also said there are plans to buy around 100 jets from American manufacturer Boeing, and Iran will be open to international bids on the contract to expand Tehran's airport.

World powers last week lifted crippling sanctions against Iran in return for Tehran complying with a deal to curb its nuclear ambitions - which also released billions of dollars worth of frozen Iranian assets, and opened the door for global companies that have been barred from doing business there.

The aviation deals are expected to be in the $20billion ballpark, and several other countries are itching to earn a bit of Iran's newly-liberated cash.

Bloomberg reports an unnamed German company has already agreed to build Iran's first solar power plant, and China plans to build a high-speed Silk Road railway to the country by an as-of-yet unspecified date.

Beijing and Tehran agreed last week to expand bilateral trade to $600bn over the next 10 years.