Gold and Dollar Pause
EghtesadOnline: Gold and dollar prices declined on Sunday after posting new highs a day earlier. The half Azadi coin lost 5.82% or 5 million rials to be sold for 86 million rials. The quarter Azadi coin also lost 3.38% and was quoted at 59 million rials, Eghtesadnews reported.
However, the Emami gold coin gained three million rials or 1.87% and fetched 161 million rials.
In sum, the greenback was the only currency that ended Sunday’s trade lower and lost 0.3% or 1,000 rials to be tagged at 319,000 rials.
The euro gained 1.23% to finish the day at 379,890 rials, recording a new all-time high and the UK pound gained 1.23% to be sold at 418,250 rials in Tehran's free market.
Emirati dirham, a highly influential currency in Iran’s market, gained 0.5% to be offered at 87,700 rials and the Turkish lira was slightly up by 0.3% to finish Sunday at 40,830 rials.
Bank-based moneychangers quoted the dollar at 318,500 rials, down more than 500 rials. The euro fetched 374,000 rials at bank-affiliated exchange shops on Thursday, down 500 rials compared to the previous day.
Following weeks of steep rise in exchange rates, the Central Bank of Iran announced two measures to control the market. Earlier in the week it said it was pumping $50 million in the chaotic market every day to stabilize rates. As such, $230 million has been injected into the market since last Monday.
As has often been seen in the past, CBI interventions have had little or no meaningful effect on the market. The CBI also raised the ceiling for purchasing foreign currency by exchange shops and banks in the regulated market to half a million dollars a day.