Page 34 - IRANRptNov21

6.2 Debt
Iran - Gross external debt 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020
External debt (USD bn)
7.406 7.006 5.441 6.322 7.475 8.481 10.910 9.339 9.031
External debt (% GDP)
3.31 1.28 1.45 1.18 1.94 2.03 2.45 2.05 1.6
Source: World Bank, CEIC
Iran’s foreign debt at ‘nearly zero’
IMF forecasts Iran’s net debt at 44% of GDP
Iran’s total external debt at $9.03bn in March 2020
Iran’s deputy minister of economic affairs and finance has said the country’s foreign debts are currently very insignificant at nearly zero, Tasnim News Agency reported on January 20.
Utilising foreign debt could be a good opportunity for the government to meet investment needs inside Iran, Mohammad-Ali Dehqan Dehnavi added.
The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has estimated that the Iranian government's net debt will reach around $260bn by the end of 2020, equivalent to 44% of Iran's GDP.
Before the reimposition of heavy US sanctions on Tehran in 2018, the net debt stood at less than $118bn.
Muddying the picture, however, is the fact that estimates of how much crude oil Iran manages to sell on the grey market despite US sanctions vary rather widely.
The IMF, meanwhile, has also calculated that Iran's total budget deficit for the current fiscal year will be around $58bn.
Iran's total external debt decreased 3.3% to $9.03bn at the end of the Persian financial year ending March 20, according to the Central Bank of Iran (CBI).
Despite suffering from bad debt internally, Iran is in a remarkably strong position in terms of its international debt, most notably down to international lenders not being allowed to interact formally with the Islamic Republic.
7.0 FX
Iran - FX
Sep-19
Dec-19
Mar-20
Jun-20
Sep-20
Dec-20
Mar-21
Jun-21
Sep-21
Currency (units per EUR) (eop)
45,926
47,055
46,543
47,215
49,274
51,609
49,171
50,004
48,773
Currency (units per USD) (eop)
42,000
42,000
42,000
42,000
42,000
42,000
42,000
42,000
42,000
34 IRAN Country Report November 2021 www.intellinews.com