Inflation Rate in Iran Dropped Below 15% Last Year

The head of the Statistical Center of Iran announced that the inflation rate in the country decreased to 14.8% in the twelve months ending in Esfand 1393. The inflation rate for Esfand compared to the same month in the previous year also dropped to 14.2%. According to Nasim News Agency, Adel Azar, the head of the Statistical Center, stated on Saturday, Farvardin 1, 1394, that the inflation rate in Esfand 1393 compared to the same month last year, known as 'point-to-point inflation,' was also 14.2%. Comparing the inflation rate announced by the Statistical Center in Bahman this year with the same period last year indicates a decrease of over 50% in this rate over the past year. The Statistical Center had previously reported the inflation rate for the twelve months ending in Esfand 1392 as 32.1% and the 'point-to-point inflation' for that month as 19.6%. Reports from the Central Bank and the Statistical Center of Iran regarding changes in the inflation index in the final months of 1393 show that the trend of decreasing inflation rate, which began after the inauguration of Hassan Rouhani's government, continues. The Statistical Center of Iran had previously reported the inflation rate in Bahman as 15.2%. Meanwhile, the Central Bank of Iran also reported that the inflation rate in the twelve months ending in Bahman 1393 decreased to 15.8%. Previously, the inflation rate in the months following Mehr of the current year had decreased by about 50% compared to the same period last year. Despite the decrease in the twelve-month inflation rate in the final months of 1393, the monthly inflation rate did not show a uniform decrease and increased in some months. For instance, the monthly inflation rate, which was at 0.3% last month in Dey, rose to 0.8% in Bahman. Meanwhile, the head of the Statistical Center of Iran announced the monthly inflation rate in Esfand 1393 as 0.6%, indicating a decrease compared to Bahman. The monthly inflation rate is the percentage change in the inflation rate over the 30 days of Esfand 1393 compared to Bahman. Iran faced severe inflation and negative economic growth during the last two years of Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's presidency. World Bank statistics also indicate that Iran's inflation rate in 2013 was the highest in the world after Venezuela. Hassan Rouhani, the President of Iran, had previously promised that his government would strive to reduce the inflation rate to below 20% by the end of the current year.