Iran inflation nears 90% as rial falls 25% in two months, Bloomberg says
Bloomberg estimates no crude left Iran by tanker in September, as sanctions and a naval blockade squeeze the economy.
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Chart: USO, a fund that tracks crude, one-minute prices, three sessions
Iran's inflation rate is approaching 90% and the rial has lost about 25% of its value against the dollar over the past two months, Bloomberg reported. Bloomberg also estimated that no crude was shipped by tanker out of Iran in September, suggesting enforcement at sea has cut off the country's main seaborne export route.
The pressure comes against a backdrop of rising tension in the Gulf. On Thursday, Iran's Revolutionary Guard said it was ready to respond to any threat or attack, after the United States reinforced forces near the Strait of Hormuz. Iran's Persian Gulf and Sea of Oman Command said tankers had been struck in the strait that day, blaming the last three attacks on UAE-linked vessels.
The halt in tanker shipments has not meant a total export collapse. Bloomberg reported on Sep 28 that increased flows from Saudi Arabia and Iraq have offset part of the shortfall from Iran.
The inflation and currency figures, taken together with the tanker standstill, point to sanctions and the naval blockade biting on the ground rather than only in rhetoric. Economic strain on this scale raises the odds that Tehran either hardens its negotiating position to win concessions or moves toward further confrontation, a pattern already visible in the tanker strikes and threats against US forces in the region. For anyone pricing crude, it keeps the Hormuz-linked risk premium intact as mediation remains stalled.