Page 37 - IRANRptJul22

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
Jun-20
Sep-20
Dec-20
Mar-21
Jun-21
Sep-21
Dec-21
Mar-22
May-22
Currency (units per EUR) (eop)
47,215
49,274
51,609
49,171
50,004
48,773
47,613
46,888
45,264
Currency (units per USD) (eop)
42,000
42,000
42,000
42,000
42,000
42,000
42,000
42,000
42,000
Iran’s central bank allows exchange bureau to resume FX trading as part of effort to stabilise rial
The Central Bank of Iran (CBI) is permitting licensed exchange offices to resume buying and selling foreign currency, state-run media reported on June 16.
The move comes days after traders in the Tehran Bazaar district protested over the country’s worsening economic situation and the Iranian rial (IRR) dropped to an all-time low against the USD.
All trading by individuals at private exchanges in Iran has been banned since 2018, the year ex-US president Donald Trump reinstated heavy economic sanctions against Iran. The bureaus have been restricted to working only with government-approved importers and exporters.
On June 12, dozens of shop owners in the bazaar district mounted street protests, saying they were incensed by another deterioration in the economy and a recent hike in business taxes. Separately, police arrested 31 currency and gold traders accused of creating “false demand” in the market, state TV reported on the same day.
The new CBI directive on the exchanges is targeted at injecting more hard currency into the market to assist in stabilising the IRR exchange rate. The rial traded at 319,000 to the dollar on June 16, an improvement from the 332,000 experienced on June 12.
Experts believe the directive may help reduce the 15% gap between the government-set rate and the real exchange rate on the market, The Associated Press noted.
The rial traded at 32,000 to the dollar in 2015, the year Iran and major powers signed the 2015 nuclear deal granting Tehran sanctions relief in exchange for curbs on its nuclear programme. Trump rendered the deal inoperable when he reimposed sanctions on Iran and unilaterally pulled the US out of it. Talks to revive the JCPOA with full participation by the US and
37 IRAN Country Report July 2022 www.intellinews.com