More than two years after a currency crisis threatened to break the economy, Iran’s officials are facing another shock following the failure to reach a comprehensive nuclear agreement with the 5+1 Powers.
Since November 24, when the talks in Vienna ended, the Iranian Rial has lost about 15% of its value versus the US dollar, trading at about 35000:1.
The official Central Bank rate, established in 2012 in an attempt to stabilize the Rial, is about 26000:1.
Economy Minister Ali Tayyebnia insisted on Monday that stability would be restored:
Changes in the recent days mainly originate from some excitement and psychological factors in the market. We expect the trend to end soon and we can witness a positive and stable trend in the market again.
Tayyebnia said the rate changes were “transient” and “positive measures had been taken” to boost the Iranian market.
During 2012, as US-led sanctions crippled its oil exports and amid Government mismanagement, the Iranian Rial plummeted almost 75 percent — reaching a level of about 45000:1 — before Central Bank intervention was able to pull back the slide.
