Iran’s government has acknowledged mounting economic pressure and shortages facing ordinary people, while warning that US sanctions and the war with Washington are hampering infrastructure projects and intensifying turmoil in the currency market.
Fatemeh Mohajerani, the government spokeswoman, said officials did not deny the difficulties confronting Iranians as she attended the opening of a 64-bed hospital in Malekshahi, in the western province of Ilam.
“The government does not deny the economic pressure on the people and the shortages,” she said, adding that the public had co-operated with officials when the authorities had spoken “honestly and transparently”.
Ms Mohajerani said delays to infrastructure schemes should not automatically be blamed on managerial failures, arguing that severe sanctions had made it harder to secure resources and carry out construction work.
She said the government would continue efforts to complete unfinished projects, despite the restrictions. Iran’s state news agency reported that the hospital had been opened to improve access to healthcare in Malekshahi.
The admission came as the Iranian rial continued to slide. One US dollar was trading for about 2.2 million rials on the unofficial market on Friday, while the government-set rate stood at roughly 42,000 rials.
The vast difference between the official exchange rate and the rate used by most Iranians has heightened concerns over the cost of imported goods and further currency volatility. The rial has lost about half its value over the past year, according to Reuters, while annual inflation reached 66 per cent in July.
Abdolnaser Hemmati, governor of Iran’s Central Bank, said the authorities would intervene in the foreign exchange market “in a timely and forceful manner” if necessary. He attributed the sharp movements in the rial to “abnormal fluctuations” caused by the conflict.
“Whenever rates move away from economic realities, intervention will take place so that market traders do not regard the fluctuations as one-way,” Mr Hemmati was quoted as saying on Iranian state television.
Earlier this week, Mr Hemmati said the central bank was prepared to inject up to $2 billion into the currency market to calm volatility. He also insisted that Iran had sufficient foreign currency reserves, despite the sanctions and the economic consequences of the war.
