Iranians Reel from Economic Mafia, Currency Collapse

Sellers wearing masks in an Iranian fruit market (File photo: Reuters)
Sellers wearing masks in an Iranian fruit market (File photo: Reuters)
TT
20

Iranians Reel from Economic Mafia, Currency Collapse

Sellers wearing masks in an Iranian fruit market (File photo: Reuters)
Sellers wearing masks in an Iranian fruit market (File photo: Reuters)

A soaring food inflation and growing prices of real estate and home appliances has struck Iran, raising fear among the people along with their concern on the coronavirus pandemic.

Purchasing power saw a significant decline as the prices of fruits and vegetables continued to increase by 30 to 40 percent.

Economic sources said inflation is caused mainly by the collapse of the currency, the impact of the coronavirus, lack of state monitoring, and the presence of an “economic mafia.”

However, the sources believe that western sanctions imposed on the country are directly to be blamed for Iran’s economic hardship.

Iranians have called on the government to take effective measures to solve the deteriorating economic crisis, which has forced them to limit their purchases to essentials goods.

Economic reports showed that the prices of household appliances rose 30 to 60 percent, causing a decline in sales, at a time when smuggled foreign goods saw a 100 percent increase.

The Statistics Center reported that 30 percent of Iranian families lost the ability to buy home appliances and resort to the flea market for their needs.

In addition, the housing market recorded a strong decline. Media reports indicated that some Iranians, who have failed to pay their mortgages or rent, are now living in tents.

The value of the Iranian rial also continued to drop against the dollar and euro.

Social media activists said the sudden imbalance in the market, deteriorating living conditions, and rising prices have increased suicide rates.

Recently, an employee of the Azadegan oil field in the southwest of the country, committed suicide, sparking widespread controversy and prompting the oil minister to open an investigation.

Earlier, the Iranian parliament summoned Minister of Economy Farhad Dejpasand for questioning on the economic situation. Lawmakers issued a constitutional warning to Iranian President Hassan Rouhani demanding measures to stop the increase in prices.

Donyae Eqtesad newspaper reported that Rouhani asked the Undersecretary of the Industry Ministry to ensure close supervision and urgent intervention to regulate and control prices of household appliances.

Last week, the President formed a taskforce that includes the ministers of economy and transportation, and the governor of the Central Bank. Rouhani tasked them along with his first deputy, Ezhag Jahangiri, with searching for solutions to the fast rise in home prices.

Economic observers believe that Rouhani should have acted even before the re-imposition of US sanctions on Iran to regulate the housing market.



Ethiopia Says Controversial Power Dam on the Nile that's Opposed by Egypt Has Been Completed

The Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam is pictured on 20 July 2020. (AFP)
The Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam is pictured on 20 July 2020. (AFP)
TT
20

Ethiopia Says Controversial Power Dam on the Nile that's Opposed by Egypt Has Been Completed

The Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam is pictured on 20 July 2020. (AFP)
The Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam is pictured on 20 July 2020. (AFP)

Ethiopia’s prime minister said Thursday that his country’s controversial power dam on the Nile has been completed.

Egypt has long opposed the dam because of concerns it would deplete its share of Nile River waters. Egypt has referred to the dam, known as the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam, as an existential threat because the Arab world’s most populous country relies almost entirely on the Nile to supply water for agriculture and its more than 100 million people.

Ethiopia disputes that suggestion.

Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed said his government is “preparing for its official inauguration."

“While there are those who believe it should be disrupted before that moment, we reaffirm our commitment: the dam will be inaugurated,” he said, The AP news reported.

Abiy said in his address that his country “remains committed to ensuring that our growth does not come at the expense of our Egyptian and Sudanese brothers and sisters.”