A Foretaste of New Forex Plan: Iran Stocks Rise to Notch New High

EghtesadOnline: Stocks posted solid gains on Sunday to extend their 10-day winning streak and reach a new high, defying correction expectations following a slow start to the trading week.

News ID: ۷۴۵۸۰۳

06 August 2018

At both Tehran Stock Exchange and Iran Fara Bourse, petrochemical and metal stocks were all the rage as positive news of an expanding secondary foreign exchange market attracted investors in droves.

TSE's main index TEDPIX surged 4,094.31 points or 3.29% to end trading at 128,448. The index has yet again pushed its historical high in a rally that seems more resilient to the previous one in early June.

Iran Fara Bourse’s main index, IFX, gained 54.87 points or 3.87% to close at 1,473.9. The smaller exchange's index is also at its highest ever, according to Financial Tribune.

Trade at TSE stood at 2.85 billion shares valued at $220.7 million and IFB saw about 1.04 billion securities valued at $135.9 million being traded on Sunday.

Trading at TSE and Iran Fara Bourse starts on Saturday and ends on Wednesday.

> New Forex Policy on Monday

Investors' long wait is expected to end soon, as First Vice President Es'haq Jahangiri said on Saturday that the "new foreign exchange plan" is set to be unveiled on Monday.

The plan is in line with preparatory measures ahead of the first batch of US sanctions on Iran that are set to return on August 6.

Details are not out yet, but as previously reported, the new measures are expected to expand the secondary forex market by hosting petrochemical and steel export earnings and allow bureaux de change to trade in currencies again.

Chairman of Majlis Economic Commission Mohammad Reza Pour-Ebrahimi said on Saturday the parliament will only support the measures if they conform to 12 conditions set forth by lawmakers.

The most important of the condition for stocks include offering petrochemical and steel export revenues in the Secondary Forex Market and calculating their feedstock prices using open market rates.

Another MP, Fatemeh Zolqadr, also told Bourse Press that USD at official rates will only be allocated to the import of essential goods, which implies that non-oil exporters can flock to the secondary market and transact at open market rates.

The Central Bank of Iran decided to pin US dollar's exchange rate at 42,000 rials on April 9 in response to a currency shock that saw the rial sink to all-time lows against the greenback. Bureaux de changes were also banned from the physical trading of hard currency.

The rial has lost half its value against the dollar in a matter of just four months, having broken through the 50,000-mark for the first time in March.

The currency collapse intensified after the US announced its pullout from the 2015 nuclear deal in May, which lifted certain sanctions in exchange for curbs to Iran’s nuclear program.

The US is set to reimpose its full range of sanctions in two stages, first on August 6 and then November 4, forcing many foreign firms to cut off business ties with Iran.

> Daily Trade in Detail

Sepahan Industrial Group was the biggest riser at TSE on Sunday, going up 9.3% to 2,280 rials per share. Electric Khodro Shargh, on the other hand, incurred the biggest loss among all TSE-listed companies and went down 4.97% to 2,218 rials per share.

Persian Gulf Petrochemical Industrial Company gave the biggest boost to TEDPIX, followed by Mobarakeh Steel Company and National Iranian Copper Industries Company.

Yet Tamin Pharmaceutical Investment Company was the biggest laggard behind the benchmark's fall, followed by Asan Pardakht Persian and Middle East Bank.

The Price Index gained 1,200.49 points to close at 37,661.6.

The First Market Index surged 2,996.68 points to post 93,247.

The Second Market Index jumped 8,249 points to reach 262,414.4.

The Industry Index gathered 4,052 points to register 117,871.3.

The Free Float Index won 4,031 points to hit 136,977.9.

The TSE 30 was up 253.4 point to settle at 6,396 and the TSE 50 ended 204.56 points higher to finish at 5,589.2.

As for IFB, Esfahan Steel Company had the highest number of traded shares, as 296.9 million of its shares changed hands. Zagros Petrochemical Company accounted for the highest trade value, with the trading of shares worth $12.09 million.

Shiraz Oil Refinery, Alvand Housing Investment Company and Rishmac Company registered the highest value increase. On the other hand, Kosar Insurance, Caspian Tamin Pharmaceutical Company and Amin Reinsurance suffered the biggest decline.

Marun Petrochemical Company, Zagros Petrochemical Company and Middle East Mines and Mining Industries Development Holding Company had the most positive impact on IFX.