Iran’s rial fell to a fresh record low on Tuesday, with traders in Tehran exchanging more than 2.5 million rials for one US dollar, as the economic fallout from the ongoing Middle East war intensifies.
The latest decline came just 27 days after the currency crossed its previous record low of 2.2 million rials per dollar on September 2. The rial has repeatedly hit new lows since the war began in February, according to The Associated Press.
Iran’s economy was already under sustained pressure from years of international sanctions. The situation has worsened with new US sanctions and a naval blockade targeting Iranian oil exports, which has restricted Tehran’s access to crucial foreign-currency revenues.
The currency’s latest fall highlights the mounting economic strain on Iran as the conflict continues. Washington has sought to use sanctions and restrictions on Iranian oil sales to limit the funds available to Tehran.
US officials have argued that the pressure is intended to weaken Iran’s ability to finance the war and other activities.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said on Monday that Iran was heading toward an economic “cataclysm”, arguing that sanctions and the blockade were denying Tehran access to money from oil sales.
Rubio said the measures were aimed at preventing Iran from using those revenues to support military activities, develop weapons and advance its nuclear programme.
The Trump administration has maintained that Iran’s economy cannot sustain the conflict indefinitely. President Donald Trump initially predicted the war would last only weeks but has more recently suggested it could continue until after the November US elections.
The economic deterioration comes as Tehran signals that indirect negotiations with Washington over the Strait of Hormuz may be gaining momentum.
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said the “current focus is solely on the Strait of Hormuz” after meetings with Pakistani and Qatari mediators.
Araghchi said Qatari intermediaries were expected to approach Washington again and convey the US response to Tehran.
“If there is a response, the Qataris will convey it to us and a decision will be made in Tehran on that basis,” he said.
According to AP, US and Iranian officials have confirmed that mediators are working to broker an arrangement aimed at ending the fighting and reopening the strategic waterway.
The diplomatic efforts continue despite Trump rejecting an Iranian proposal that would have involved reopening the strait within seven days in exchange for measures including lifting the US blockade, releasing frozen Iranian assets and waiving sanctions on Iranian oil sales.
Meanwhile, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps has sought to take its message directly to the US public.
IRGC spokesman Gen. Hossein Mohebbi appealed to Americans to protest the war and pressure their government to end the conflict. He said Washington would ultimately have to acknowledge defeat and leave the region.
Mohebbi also accused the US of using Iran’s nuclear programme as a pretext to target the country’s wealth.
His remarks come ahead of the November US midterm elections, with AP reporting that the war and higher gasoline prices have affected the political environment in the United States.
