Continued Currency Fluctuations in the Free Market; Rial Value Decreased by '30 Percent' More

Reports from Iran indicate that the free currency market was turbulent on Wednesday, September 14, with the price of each US dollar fluctuating between 14,000 to 15,000 tomans. However, by the end of the day, each dollar was stabilized at 14,000 tomans. Each euro was traded up to 16,000 tomans, and the price of the pound reached 18,000 tomans. ISNA reported that each US dollar was traded between 15,200 to 15,500 tomans on Wednesday. However, according to this news agency, 'currency exchanges buy currency from the public and sell it to brokers, and it is the brokers who determine the currency prices, not the exchanges and the government.' ISNA added that 'the chaotic currency market was such that price increases no longer mattered to the people; they just wanted to buy currency as quickly as possible.' Each coin was also bought and sold for about 4,650,000 tomans on Wednesday. The prices of various foreign currencies in the free market have seen severe fluctuations in recent days, with the dollar increasing by more than 3,000 tomans in the past five days, rising from about 11,000 tomans to 14,000 tomans. This upward trend indicates that the value of the Iranian rial has dropped by 30 percent during this period. The Associated Press reported on Wednesday that since the US withdrawal from the JCPOA on May 8 of this year, the value of Iran's national currency has decreased by more than 140 percent. The news agency adds: 'Signs of a currency crisis are visible throughout Tehran, with travel agencies only offering their tours in foreign currency, and diapers have become scarce in stores.' 'Many exchanges in central Tehran have turned off their electronic boards, and some only sell dollars to buyers at a price of 15,000 tomans.' Mustafa Shahryar, a 40-year-old dollar buyer, told the Associated Press that 'everyone is worried.' Currently, there are several rates for the dollar. While the Iranian government claims the dollar rate for importing essential goods is 4,200 tomans, the dollar price in the NIMA system, related to the sale of currency from non-oil exports, is below 10,000 tomans. ISNA notes that an interesting point observed on Wednesday was the significant gap in the official prices displayed by exchanges, as for example, the selling price of the dollar varied from 13,700 tomans to 14,600 tomans, and the euro ranged from 15,700 tomans to 17,050 tomans. Recent fluctuations in the currency market began last Esfand following rumors of the United States' exit from the nuclear agreement with six world powers and prices jumped after the Nowruz holidays. In addition to the rising rates of foreign currencies, the prices of essential goods, cars, and coins have also seen a sharp increase. The government of Hassan Rouhani has repeatedly tried to control the market by introducing new currency policies in recent months, but due to excessive liquidity in society, the US exit from the JCPOA and the re-imposition of sanctions in mid-Mordad, and the Central Bank's refusal to inject dollars into the market, none of these policies have been successful.