Iran’s rial recouping losses as government collects more export cash
The Iranian national currency rial keeps recouping losses suffered because of the coronavirus pandemic and the continued pressure of US sanctions on the economy.
The rial rose to 220,000 against the US dollar on Tuesday, up more than 12 percent compared to the weekend trade in the unofficial market in Tehran when the currency fell to its lowest ever against the greenback.
A government spokesman said the surge was mainly due to efforts by the Central Bank of Iran (CBI) and the Foreign Ministry to return funds frozen because of the American sanctions in “at least two countries”.
Ali Rabiei said a decision adopted last week to raise the deposit interest rate had also played a role in declining foreign currency prices.
However, experts said a main reason for rial’s rebound was CBI’s continued pressure on businesses to bring the hard currency they have earned from exports back to a government-run forex system, known as NIMA.
The CBI said in a Tuesday statement that NIMA had received $342 million worth of various currencies a day earlier, adding that the figure had shown 131 percent of increase compared to the previous trade session.
Prices in NIMA are slightly lower than those seen in the unofficial forex market. The integrated system is aimed at supplying hard currency to businesses involved in imports.
Tajmohammad Qojavand, a senior banking expert, told the official IRNA news agency that the rial could regain 40 percent of its lost ground and rise to 150,000 against the US dollar if an estimated $27 billion in currencies earned from exports return to NIMA.
The Iranian government currently maintains an official price of 42,000 rials per dollar for imports of staples and medicines.
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