Page 22 - IRANRptAug18

Foreign investors “assessing impact” of possible US sanctions on Iran
Several sizeable European companies have announced they are either already winding down their operations in Iran or will after the late August cut-off date for sanctions exposure which the US set in place following Donald Trump’s announcement of Washington's exit from the deal. Others are taking a wait-and-see approach to the situation following an announcement by the EU that they are to reactivate a so-called blocking statute for trade with Iran , protecting companies who choose stay commercially involved with the country.
Swiss Reinsurance Co. said it was “assessing the impact” of the US decision on its business with Iran, but has not formally said it will pull out from its current deals with Iranian insurers. Several other global insurers are taking stock of how the US withdrawal will affect their plans in Iran. US-based insurance broker Arthur J, Gallagher & Co. said on May 18 that it would monitor developments following Trump’s decision. It has dealt with Iranian clients since starting to operate in the country through subsidiaries based in Europe.
Energy majors such as BP, Russia’s LukeOil, Poland’s PGNiG and French Total, among many others, look set to avoid irking Washington. They seem unlikely at this point to keep their current business ties with Iran.
6.0 Public Sector 6.1 Budget
Iranian MPs waste no time in rejecting 2018/2019 budget
Draft budget with restrained public spending handed to Iranian parliament
Iranian MPs have rejected the draft budget framework for the 2018/2019 Persian year at the first hurdle, an Iran Front Page (IFP) report said on January 28. Several problems with the draft were apparently identified by parliamentarians but media were yet to discover what those were exactly. In terms of public spending the draft is quite austere and there is some discussion among analysts as to whether, given the nationwide protests which were largely blamed on mounting economic hardship , the Rouhani administration might be under some pressure to be more generous.
Iranian President Hassan Rouhani on December 10 proposed to parliament a conservative state budget of around 3,681 trillion rials ($103.9bn at the official exchange rate) for non-state enterprise expenditures. The budget is to cover the Persian year starting next March 21.
22 IRAN Country Report August 2018 www.intellinews.com