Economy

rferl.org – Iranian President Hassan Rohani has sent a bill to parliament that would cut four zeroes from the value of the country’s battered currency, the rial. Semiofficial news agencies reported the news on August 21, saying Rohani had sent the bill with urgency to the parliament to consider. Iran’s rial has sharply depreciated as a result of U.S. President …

radiofarda – Days after accusations of large-scale corruption in Iran’s car industry, the CEO of Iran Khodro was arrested in his office after being fired hours earlier. Iran Khodro is one of the biggest vehicle manufacturers in Iran partnering with the French conglomerate PSA Peugeot Citroen. The reason for Monday’s actions of firing and then arresting Mr. Hashen Yekke Zare’e …

rferl.org – An Iranian supertanker sought by the United States on suspicion of being tied to a sanctioned organization has set sail for Greece hours after Gibraltar rejected a U.S. request to detain the vessel further. Iranian authorities confirmed on August 19 that the Adrian Darya 1, formerly known as Grace 1, left anchorage off Gibraltar. Ship tracking data by …

rferl.org – Shipping and other international authorities continue to monitor an Iranian supertanker cleared for release after a month in custody in Gibraltar over possible breaching of EU sanctions, but the reportedly renamed vessel might be sailing into a showdown as U.S. authorities are still seeking its seizure. Officials in Gibraltar on August 18 rejected a renewed U.S. request that …

Al Arabiya : The US Justice Department unveiled a warrant on Friday for the seizure of the Iranian oil supertanker Grace 1, one day after a Gibraltar judge allowed the release of the detained vessel. The warrant says the vessel, all the oil aboard and $995,000 are subject to forfeiture based on violations of the International Emergency Economic Powers Act …

rferl.org : An Iranian supertanker seized six weeks ago by Gibraltar is being renamed and reflagged as it prepares to sail after the British overseas territory said it was free to leave. Jalil Eslami, deputy head of Iran’s Ports and Maritime Organization, said on state television on August 16 that the Grace 1, which has been held by Gibraltar since …

radiofarda – Gibraltar media is reporting that the government has decided to release the Grace 1 Iranian supertanker after receiving formal written assurances from the government in Tehran that it would not discharge its cargo in Syria. “On that basis, Gibraltar’s Chief Minister Fabian Picardo has decided to lift the detention order and allow the ship to sail,” the the …

RFL/RE – Falling trade between Germany and Iran indicate that stinging U.S. sanctions are affecting the commercial preferences of countries when deciding on whether to conduct business with Tehran.German exports to Iran fell by 48 percent to $759 million in the first six months of this year, Reuters reported, indicating that certain companies are trying not to vex the United …

Radiofarda – A top hardliner cleric in Iran has expressed concern over the decline in the budget allocated to religious institutions, as U.S. sanctions have affected the government’s ability to fund ideological centers meant to strengthen the regime’s influence in society. Ayatollah Nasser Makarem Shirazi said on Thursday August 8 that many seminaries had to fire some of the “scholars” …

Radiofarda – The Supreme Leader of the Islamic Republic, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has once again urged Iranians to have more babies amid economic and social crisis. Calling on government officials to render support to families to increase the population of the country, Khamenei reiterated that increasing the number of children should become “a cultural norm” in Iranian society. The 80-year-old …