- Iranians holding Ashura mourning for Imam Hussein
- Third step: Iran officially informs EU of plan to expand nuclear R&D
- Iran expands nuclear R&D program: Rouhani
- Iran goes ahead in space tech, despite US sanctions: ISA
- Resistance Front undermining Israeli regime power: Top commander
- Iran: 7 crew members of detained UK ship freed
- US addiction to sanction threaten its power: Iran’s Zarif
- Dutch role in 2007 Stuxnet attack on Iran’s nuclear site under scrutiny: Iraian FM Spox.
- Iran: ‘Sustainable Security 2019’ kicks off in Caspian Sea
- Iran’s Zarif leaves Tehran for Moscow
- Shiraz University ranked 1st in liver transplantation: Iranian health official
- Japan’s Abe to meet Iran’s president to discuss easing tension in region
- Downing of US spy drone shattered war threats against Iran: Top IRGC commander
- IAEO head reports development of first ion-therapy hospital in west of Asia
- Iranian Taekwondo team wins 2019 World Cup championship
- US sanctions failed to force Iran to buckle: Report
- Crew fixing Iran oil tanker broken down in Red Sea
- As Iranians hold nerves, US seeks to scare off trade
- Leader expresses concern about Kashmir, urges India to follow fair policy toward Muslim-majority region
- Iran saffron exports down due to smuggling, government restrictions: Exporter
- Iran FM warns US against ‘serious miscalculation’ in Persian Gulf
- Iran’s resistance policy led to release of oil tanker: MP
- Iran in reverse brain drain as top students come home in rising numbers
- Iran official calls for compensation for tanker seizure
- Iran hails N Korea for standing against ‘unilateral’ US demands
- Shia Muslims celebrate Eid Al-Ghadir
- North Korea praises Iran’s anti-US struggle
- Zarif says to meet French president Friday
- Iranian court hearing case of UK oil tanker
- Over half of Japanese voters oppose joining US-led anti-Iran coalition in Persian Gulf: Poll
- IME trade ups by 21 percent in July
- Finland backs INSTEX in defiance of US
- US anti-Iran policy in high seas harms Europeans: LA Times
- Iran, China confer on Syria
- Iran, Finland share views on Persian Gulf dialogue forum: Zarif
- Iran warns US against seizure of oil tanker
- Iraq eager to benefit from Iranian Police’s experience
- Iran planning 3rd step to reduce nuclear commitments: Spokesman
- Leader grants clemency to over 1,000 Iranian inmates
- Registration for Arbaeen Pilgrimage to begin in Iran on Friday
- Iran, Iraq agree to reopen Khosravi border crossing
- Iran deplores suicide attack at Kabul wedding hall
- Iran to hold int'l hand-woven carpets expo
- Zarif meets with Iran-Kuwait Friendship Group members
- Adrian Darya oil tanker not under any sanctions, says Iran envoy
- ‘Iran to stay in nuclear deal as long as its interests are met’
- India envoy happy with positive trend of trade with Iran
- Iran’s annual export of white meat tops 2.5m tons: Minister
- Iranian scientist discovers new state of matter
- Iran, Japan diplomats discuss bilateral ties
- Iran, Ansarullah, European representatives Yemen developments
- ‘Iran to become self-sufficient in producing aircraft engines'
- US issues seizure warrant for Iranian supertanker 'Grace 1'
- Neanderthal tooth unearthed near Iran’s Zagros mountain
- Iran’s Zarif due in Kuwait on Saturday
- US faces humiliating defeat after Gibraltar releases Iranian tanker: Envoy
- Spokesman rejects claim on Iran’s commitment in exchange for tanker release
- Zarif reacts to release of Iranian tanker in Gibraltar
- Israel, UAE engaged in secret talks on Iran arranged by US: Report
- US threatens visa ban as Iranian-operated tanker sets to sail from Gibraltar
- Enemies must factor Iran's global power in their calculations: IRGC's chief commander
- Trump’s administration conflicting messages to Iran baffle go-betweens: Report
- Gibraltar releases Iran-operated tanker despite US pressure
TEHRAN, July 31 -Iran’s rial bounced back on Tuesday from a record low which has seen the national currency lose nearly two-thirds of its value since the start of the year.
TEHRAN, Young Journalists Club (YJC) - It strengthened 13.72% against the dollar at 109,000 after hitting the record low of more than 120,000 on the unofficial market on Monday.
The euro was trading at 117,900 rials, shedding about 20,000 rials from the day before.
It came after the government pledged to unveil a new package to regulate the forex market which has seen choppy trading since May when US President Donald Trump announced plans for new sanctions on the Islamic Republic.
The new governor of the Central Bank of Iran, Abdolnaser Hemmati, on Monday attributed the currency market volatility to the enemies, saying they were out to destroy the country’s assets and instill disappointment among the public.
Tehran police chief General Hossein Rahimi said 35 people had been arrested in recent days for disrupting the forex and gold coins market.
Earlier this month, Rahimi said police had arrested a man and his accomplices for collecting two tonnes of gold coins over several months in order to manipulate the market.
“The forces of the three branches of power and the law enforcement are determined to deal with the disrupters of the currency and coin market,” he said on Tuesday.
He said dealers are considered among the main agents of the turmoil, who are exacerbating the market volatility through fixing prices. “They have been served the final warning to stop their fraudulent maneuvers on the market,” Rahimi said.
Rial’s devaluation has presented the government of President Hassan Rouhani with possibly the most serious quandary.
In April, the government lowered the official value of the rial versus the dollar in order to stamp out the free currency market, unifying official and free-market rates at a single value of 42,000 to the dollar.
In doing so, the government sought to engineer a controlled depreciation of the rial in order to prop up the export sector and attract hard currency into the country to offset the fallout from Trump’s reimposition of sanctions.
As the plan went into effect, police were deployed to monitor money exchange shops and arrest anyone trading foreign currencies at higher prices.
However, the strategy badly backfired as it generated an underground network of forex sellers who stoked further depreciation of the national currency.
That came to pass as an internet platform which the government had launched to allow eligible importers to apply for hard currency at the lower official rate did not work.
According to Mohammad Hossein Barkhordar, a member of the Iran Chamber of Commerce, Industries, Mines and Agriculture, no importer has been able to register a single order at the rate of 42,000 rials to the US dollar so far.
As a result, many Iranian businesses and those hoping to travel or study abroad who were desperate for foreign currencies had to go back to the black market which the government ban had created and the result was an incredible depreciation of the rial.
A sharp rial drop resulted in a jump in inflation rates as consumer prices grew. It also prompted a registration flurry of new companies which had access to government dollars at concessionary prices.
Those new companies started importing high-demand commodities with dollars at a rate of 42,000 rials and selling them at inflated prices for profit.
The situation touched off a wave of panic buying by ordinary Iranians, who fearful of further devaluation of the rial amid the market chaos, began converting their money to more reliable assets.
Last Wednesday, Hemmati replaced Valiollah Seif as the top Iranian banker as pressure grew on the government to prevent the situation from spiraling out of control.
The government also launched a secondary forex market where importers and exporters are supposed to reach a consensus over the rate of the dollar.
That is possibly an antidote to further shady businesses, especially after a media report on Wednesday that petrochemical companies which provide a steady supply of foreign currencies had colluded with private exchange bureaus and fixed prices.
Source: Press TV
Your Comment