Economy

atlanticcouncil – Forty years have passed since the Iranian Revolution—a revolution that promised to usher in democracy, freedom, and prosperity for all. Ayatollah Mohammad Yazdi, an influential cleric, recently exclaimed that Iran has progressed more in the last “forty years than it had in the 400 years prior.” Has it?

Radiofarda – The U.S. dollar and other major currencies have witnessed a notable rise on the Tehran currency exchange market this week. The dollar’s gain has been about 10 percent. As a reaction the chief of Iran’s central bank sounded a warning, that this trend will not necessarily stay, and people should not take risks with their money.

VOA — Iranian crude oil imports by Asia’s top four buyers dropped to the lowest volume in three years in 2018 amid U.S. sanctions on Tehran, but China and India stepped up imports in December after getting waivers from Washington.

Al-Monitor There is no doubt that the reimposed US sanctions on Iran will compel Tehran to shift more proactively toward deeper political and economic ties with Eastern powers. Here, China stands out not only as Iran’s largest trading partner, but also as the top buyer of Iranian oil — and hence the key player in filling the vacuum left by a …

Al-Monitor – Europe has finally set up a Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV) to bypass US sanctions on Iran in order to keep alive the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), which the United States unilaterally exited in May 2018. INSTEX (Instrument in Support of Trade Exchanges) was established by Germany, France and the United Kingdom, and will be used initially to sell food, medicine …

Radiofarda – President Hassan Rouhani delivered a speech on Wednesday saying that Iran is facing its toughest economic situation in 40 years, but he added that U.S. sanctions are to blame; not the Islamic Republic or the current government.

RFL/RE – Germany, France, and Britain are set to launch a mechanism to allow financial flows to be sent to Iran that would not violate U.S. sanctions in an attempt to keep alive the landmark 2015 nuclear deal.

Al-Monitor – Iran’s theological seats of learning appear set to face major difficulties in the coming Iranian year (beginning March 21) as the government has significantly reduced their budget allocations.

Radiofarda – Iran’s ranking in Transparency International’s annual corruption report has dropped from 130 to 138 among 180 countries surveyed.

Radiofarda – Iran and Syria say they have struck economic and trade deals on Monday, as Tehran widens its role there after helping Syrian President Bashar al-Assad reclaim most of his country.