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RFL/RE – President Hassan Rohani says that the exchange rates of the rial against foreign currencies “will not remain at current levels.” President Hassan Rohani has told Iranians the government will work to protect the country’s market stability amid a downfall in the Iranian currency to record lows.
“I am optimistic about the country’s economic situation and…I want to reassure our people that foreign currencies will not keep going up,” Rohani said during an interview on state television on January 1.
The Iranian rial hit a record low against the dollar on December 26, officially being traded at 41,000 rials to $1.
Rohani’s comments came ahead of the January 20 inauguration of U.S. President-elect Donald Trump and amid worries that Trump’s administration may take a stricter tone in relations with Tehran.
Trump has often stated his disapproval of the nuclear deal between Iran and six world powers in 2015 that curbed Tehran’s atomic program in exchange for relief from international economic sanctions and has threatened to scrap it.
Rohani told viewers that the exchange rates of the rial against foreign currencies “will not remain at current levels.”
cartoon by Mohsen Zarifian, Iranian daily Ghanoon
The rial made some gains after Central Bank Governor Valiollah Seif told state television on December 31 that he sees 36,000 rials per $1 as a “realistic” rate.
Rohani’s administration has stabilized the currency after years of volatility and helped lower inflation to single-digit rates.
Rohani, who took office in 2013, is expected to seek reelection in May.
Based on reporting by Reuters and Channel News Asia
