Iran's currency dips to all-time low, basic prices skyrocket
Recently launched government plans to restore stability to the troubled foreign exchange market proved no remedy, as ordinary Iranians continue to see their pockets shrink.
TEHRAN — At the closure of Iran's foreign exchange market on Thursday, the country's national currency, the rial, nosedived to a new record low. A US dollar was traded for 52,650 rials, according to the currency monitor website Bonbast.
The sharp decline occurred despite the latest government measure announced earlier this week to contain the depreciation that has been increasingly worsening since September.
Under the country's command economy, the Central Bank of Iran (CBI) inaugurated on Tuesday what it called a currency and gold exchange center with the stated aim of managing the retail market for foreign currencies. The plan allows the state to no longer provide currency to "sarrafis," or private exchangers, leaving currency buyers with the sole option of the government-controlled market.
The measure was the latest introduced by the CBI's new governor, Mohammad Reza Farzin, who took the helm in December to bring calm back to the market. His tenure has already seen the rial plummet by more than 15%.
