April 02, 2018
The Iranian rial fell to a record low on March 26 of 50,610 to a dollar. When currency markets opened on March 25, the exchange rate was 40,921 rials to a dollar, but by the afternoon it had broken through the 50,000 mark.
Tehran’s gold market also experienced a price increase. An Iranian Bahar Azadi coin (weight: 8.13 grams, pure gold content: 7.317 grams) fetched $483, a $12 increase from the previous year.
An Emami gold coin was being traded at $433.22, showing an increase of almost $4 compared to the exchange rate before the start of the Nowrouz holidays.
The Iranian rial did no better against other currencies on March 26. On the trading floor, it traded at 61,710 rials to a euro, 69,400 rials to a British pound, 11,350 rials to a Turkish lira and 13,800 rials to a UAE dirham.
The poor performance of the rial against major foreign currencies has alarmed many Iranian politicians. “I tried to contact officials at the Central Bank to find out if they had any plans to stabilize the currency market. They’re apparently still on holiday,” Mahmoud Sadeqi, a Majlis (Iranian Parliament) deputy from Tehran, wrote in a tweet. Sadeqi posted his message before the rial hit 50,610 against the dollar.
Many Tweetter users commented on the sharp drop in the value of the rial.
“We shut down 100,000 centrifuges, halted our nuclear program and made many other concessions. And in return, the dollar didn’t double in value! The West lifted all the sanctions! The Iranian economy is booming! And we’ve humiliated the U.S. and Europe!” read a sarcastic tweet by @AadamEbne.
Commenting on oil prices during the presidencies of Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and Hassan Rouhani, @Sniper tweeted: “During Ahmadinejad’s presidency, the price of the dollar went up. At the time, Iran was selling 800,000 barrels of crude oil a day. Mr. Rouhani’s government is currently selling 2.2 million barrels of oil a day. He says that Iran has access to foreign currency. So why is the dollar so strong against the rial?”
“You might not believe this, but reformists used to criticize Ahmadinejad for failing to control the currency market,” a tweet by @Nima said.
Many people tweeted Rouhani’s comments during a televised interview in January, in which he tried to alleviate fears around exchange-rate fluctuations. “The fluctuations in the currency rate will not last long,” Rouhani said at the time.
Hard, painful, sucks! It means , i used to go and visit London, by Homa with25 cents when Mr. Shah was called the greatest bloody dictator on the face of the earth.( America can not do a damned thing!)Remember when the evil Khomeini declared the world? Well ,he is turning over in his hell hole and still believes he was right. What an IDIOT