November 19, 2021
The rial has resumed losing value, though there is no dramatic collapse, just a gentle slide. The rial stood at 255,000 to the dollar, according to the Bonbast website, the day President Raisi was inaugurated, August 5. It then fell to 282,000 in late August, recovered somewhat, fell again to 285,000 at the end of September, recovered somewhat, and has now fallen again to 283,800 as of November 21. That is a decline of 11.3 percent since Raisi was inaugurated. The latest drop came as Iran announced it would return to the nuclear talks in late November, an announcement most thought would strengthen the rial. But Kamal Seyyed-Ali, a former director of the Central Bank’s foreign currency desk, says the public does not seem to believe the government is serious about the talks, prompting the currency to slide.
