ISFAHAN, Iran—As blasts of air conditioning filled an ice-cold auditorium in this centuries-old Persian city, a packed house of some two-hundred people rose for the national anthem. The German national anthem, that is.

On video screens framing the stage in the Isfahan Chamber of Commerce glowed the black, red and yellow colors of the German flag.

The tribute—quickly followed by Iran’s own national anthem and a collage of photos of the Islamic Republic’s founding father Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini and the current supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei—was part of Iran’s red-carpet reception last week, for dozens of German business leaders.

Iran hopes the Germans will bring not only money but technology and manufacturing savvy to its stagnant economy. The country has been hobbled in recent years by international economic sanctions over the government’s controversial nuclear program.

The group of German industrial firms—representing sectors including oil and gas, chemicals, automobiles, health and construction—were on the second official German business delegation to Iran in as many months.