Tehran, Iran – Iran’s currency has been registering new lows amid ongoing economic turmoil that is also reflected in a planned budget for next year that effectively shrinks public spending.Each United States dollar was priced at about 1.36 million rials in the open market on Wednesday in Tehran, its highest rate ever, before the Iranian currency slightly regained ground on Thursday.Recommended Stories list of 3 itemsend of listThe embattled national currency has been rapidly declining over recent weeks as the US and its Western allies pile on their sanctions and diplomatic pressure, and the threat of another war with Israel lingers.President Masoud Pezeshkian this week sent his administration’s finalised proposed budget to the hardline-dominated parliament for the upcoming Iranian calendar year, which starts in late March. The budget will then have to be greenlit by the 12-member Guardian Council before being ratified into law in the coming weeks.The presented budget nominally grew by just over 5 percent compared with last year, but inflation currently stands at about 50 percent – indicating that the government envisions lower spending while managing a so-called “resistance economy” as it faces a massive budget crunch yet again.But minimum wages are to be raised far below the inflation rate, too, at only 20 percent, meaning that Iranians are once more guaranteed to have far less spending power next year as the embattled national currency sinks. Iranians view decorations as they prepare to celebrate the Yalda feast, an ancient tradition marking the onset of winter and the longest night of the year, in Tehran, Iran, on December 20, 2025 [Abedin Taherkenareh/EPA]At the same time, th …
