Iran on economic decline as US sanctions near

ERBIL (Kurdistan 24) – Thousands of shops closed their doors on Monday as part of the Iranian people’s protest of the Islamic Republic after the country’s currency hit a record low value.

Hundreds of shop-owners joined protesters and encouraged others to shut their stores and join the demonstrations against the “incompetence” of the country’s leadership.

Videos of participants posted on social media show thousands of people in the streets around the Bazaar, while Iran’s news agency reported that the protests were due to the weakening of the Iranian currency, the rial.

Some videos show security forces firing tear gas into a crowd who appeared to be marching on Parliament, and some claimed officers had beaten them, according to the BBC.

Last month, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo warned Iran that the US would be imposing “the strongest sanctions in history” if it fails to comply with the demands to end its nuclear program and deter its aggression across the Middle East which has an impact around the world.

The US withdrawal from the Iran nuclear deal instantly caused unease among businesses and investors with uncertainty around the extent and strength of the sanctions, leading to rising commodity prices and high inflation.

Iranian news agency Tasnim reported that the value of the dollar and gold rose after the governor of Iran Central Bank announced they would create a secondary market to deal with foreign exchange “at agreed-upon prices [price fixing]” to help the private sector with the import of non-essential goods.

The dollar value is currently 90,000 rials, compared with 65,000 just before US President Donald Trump announced the end of the deal.

Members of the Iranian Parliament threatened to start questioning Iran’s President Hassan Rouhani if the currency continues to decline and have called upon the government to take immediate action.

Editing by Karzan Sulaivany