DUBAI: Iran’s currency has dropped to a record low of more than 2,000,000 rials per U.S. dollar, two websites tracking the free market rate showed on Monday.
The rial dropped to 2.02 million to the U.S. dollar as trading opened on informal currency markets. Iran’s official Central Bank rate stood at around 1.5 million rial to the dollar, but the informal rate is what most Iranians pay.
The currency had already been under pressure before the U.S. and Israel attacked Iran on Feb. 28, with double-digit inflation and negative growth, but has been hitting new record lows as nearly six months of war have taken an even greater toll.
Eyes are also on US Treasury boss Scott Bessent, who said he would give more details in a news conference on Monday on a fresh push to pile economic pressure on Iran.
The United States warned allies and China on Thursday to join Trump’s new campaign, which comes as the unpopular war in the Middle East drags toward the six-month mark. US Vice President JD Vance acknowledged the plan was a “delicate dance” because Iran will “try to apply economic pressure to us”.
