Iranian Rial Collapses to Unprecedented Low Against U.S. Dollar

(MENAFN) The Iranian rial collapsed to an unprecedented low against the U.S. dollar on Wednesday, deepening a currency crisis that has accelerated sharply over the past 48 hours, an Iranian news agency reported.

The dollar surged past 1,810,000 rials on the domestic free market — a staggering rise of more than 230,000 rials in just two days, according to the news agency. The euro simultaneously climbed above 2,080,000 rials, while the United Arab Emirates' dirham was priced at 500,000 rials.

The dramatic slide came despite relative calm in domestic market conditions, with analysts pointing instead to a surge in local demand for major foreign currencies as the primary driver of the rial's freefall.

The currency's vulnerability stretches back to 2018, when Washington withdrew from the landmark 2015 nuclear agreement and reimposed sweeping sanctions on Tehran — a turning point that set the rial on a prolonged downward trajectory.

The latest depreciation, however, has been heavily compounded by the devastating military conflict that erupted earlier this year. On February 28, Israel and the United States launched coordinated strikes on Tehran and other Iranian cities, killing then-Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, senior military commanders, and civilians, while inflicting widespread damage on civilian infrastructure.

Iran retaliated with successive waves of missile and drone attacks directed at Israel and U.S. military installations and assets across the Middle East. A ceasefire between the warring parties was ultimately reached on April 8 — but the economic wounds continue to bleed.

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