Iran’s central bank officials delivered a sobering assessment to President Masoud Pezeshkian’s government: the Islamic Republic faces 180% inflation, two million additional unemployed citizens, and a 12-year road to economic recovery – even without the US sanctions regime. The report came on Monday from Iran International, a news network operated by Iranian exiles.
According to information presented to the network, the central bank told the government that the country’s economic situation following the war was “very difficult” and that “even if conditions return to normal,” rebuilding Iran’s economy would take 12 years.
Central bank governor Abdolnasser Hemmati stressed to Islamic Republic President Masoud Pezeshkian that reaching a deal with the United States and lifting internet restrictions were essential steps toward improving the country’s economic position, the report said.
The central bank also warned of the risk of two million people losing their jobs due to damage to production infrastructure during the war, according to the report. Hemmati was a member of the Islamic Republic’s delegation at the most recent talks with the United States in Islamabad, Pakistan. That round of negotiations ended after 21 hours without a breakthrough.
Informed sources told Iran International, “Pezeshkian’s associates are deeply worried about Iran’s economic situation and fear that if the country goes bankrupt, the authorities will hold his administration responsible.”
Earlier, on April 28, Iran International reported an unprecedented widening of the rift at the top of the Islamic Republic’s power structure, saying the issue had sparked an open confrontation among senior IRGC commanders, including Ahmad Vahidi and Ali Abdollahi.
Although escalating tensions in the Strait of Hormuz drove oil prices higher in global markets and increased pressure on the international economy, the fallout has also weighed heavily on the Iranian economy.
