Iran’s currency at new low as sanctions squeeze economy
The Iranian rial fell to a new low of 1.2 million against the US dollar as nuclear sanctions squeezed Tehran’s struggling economy.
Investors bid for the new exchange rate on Wednesday as attempts to restart talks between America and Iran over its nuclear program appear to have stalled so far.
The record low means rising pressure on food prices and other costs is making daily life much more challenging for Iranians.
Prices of meat, rice and other staples have soared on the Iranian dining table.
Meanwhile, people are worried about a new wave of war between Iran and Israel, and potentially the United States, following the 12-day war in June.
Iran’s economy has been severely affected by international sanctions, especially after US President Donald Trump unilaterally withdrew America from Tehran’s nuclear deal with world powers in 2018.
The rial was trading at 32,000 to the dollar at the time of the 2015 deal, under which Iran greatly limited its enrichment and stockpiling of uranium in exchange for the lifting of international sanctions.
Trump restarted his so-called “maximum pressure” campaign against Tehran with sanctions after returning to the White House for a second term in January.
It went after companies trading Iranian crude oil, including those selling at a discount in China.
In late September, the United Nations reimposed nuclear sanctions on Iran through what diplomats called a “clawback” mechanism.
These sanctions once again freeze Iran’s assets abroad, halt arms deals with Tehran, and punish any development of Iran’s ballistic missile program, among other measures.
Australia’s Associated Press is the beating heart of Australian news. AAP is Australia’s only independent national news channel and has been providing accurate, reliable and fast-paced news content to the media industry, government and corporate sector for 85 years. We inform Australia.
