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networks who are now at the centre of the battles for freely- reported news and information and for political change in Iran. The regime has extended its fight against media freedom beyond the country’s borders and also targets the international media.”
3.0 Macro Economy
3.1 Macroeconomic overview
Iran moves to ease additional financial strain on citizens as COVID-19 crisis continues
Sanctions hammered Iran saw GDP shrink 8.7% in 2019 and can’t expect growth in 2020 says World Bank
Iranian President Hassan Rouhani has announced further plans to ease financial strains on citizens amid the coronavirus (COVID-19) crisis, ISNA reported.
The Central Bank of Iran (CBI) previously announced that it would offer a commercial loan repayment holiday of three months for businesses in the country.
But as part of wider efforts, employees can now defer health insurance, income tax payments and utility bills for up to the next three months starting from March 17.
In addition, the monthly stipend sent to the poorest deciles of Iran will be increased during the continuing Covid-19 outbreak in the country.
Banks have, meanwhile, been instructed to remove restrictions and limits on cheque payments for businesses.
The virus by the end of March 17 had claimed 853 lives in Iran with 14,991 affected, according to official figures cited by Johns Hopkins University global measuring system.
The World Health Organisation’s (WHO's) emergencies head Michael Ryan said on March 11 that the COVID-19 situation in Iran was "very serious". The WHO had sent 40,000 testing kits to Iran but there was still a shortage of ventilators and oxygen, he added. "Iran and Italy are suffering now but I guarantee you other countries will be in that situation very soon," he commented.
The “economic war” waged by the US against Iran has exacted an even worse toll on the Islamic Republic’s economy than was anticipated if the latest World Bank assessment is correct.
In the January 2020 edition of its Global Economic Prospects report released on January 9, the World Bank estimates that Iranian GDP contracted by as much as 8.7% in 2019, a year that saw the Trump administration gradually introduce tougher and tougher sanctions against Tehran including a drive to squeeze all Iranian oil off world export markets. In the June 2019 edition of the report, the international financial institution only foresaw a contraction of 4.5%.
In further bad news for Iran, while the World Bank six months ago was counting with a resumption of Iranian growth in 2020 to 0.9%, it now sees stagnation of 0.0%. And that figure, it added, “assumes that the impact of sanctions tapers somewhat”. Whether that tapering occurs may well depend on whether US President Donald Trump regards it as in his interests as his
11 IRAN Country Report April 2020 www.intellinews.com
