Currency, Gold Drop in Tehran

EghtesadOnline: Foreign exchange rates dropped on the last day of trading week Thursday, distressing prices in the domestic bullion market.

News ID: ۷۸۶۳۰۴

10 April 2021

The dollar lost close to 1.5% against the national currency to fetch 247,500 rials in the open market down 3,700 rials in one day.

Similarly the euro and pound sterling fell 1.2% and were quoted at 297,260 rials and 347,390 rials, respectively while the UAE dirham lost 1.47% or 1,000 rials to buy 68,300 rials.

The greenback also lost 1.5% or 3,590, rials in the regulated forex market and was tagged at 240,470 rials. The market is operated by exchange bureaus dealing only in wholesale currency trade.

The prospect of United States returning to the Iran nuclear deal has reportedly weakened sentiments in the forex market perturbing avaricious currency dealers who expect a weaker dollar if and when the US under President Joe Biden rejoins the historic nuclear agreement and banking and economic sanctions are eased.

Talks have been in progress since last week among parties to the nuclear deal officially known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) to restore the deal abandoned in 2018 by the controversial former president Donald Trump who reimposed new economic sanctions on Iran.

Gold Defiant

Taking influence from forex rates, the domestic bullion market again defied upbeat mode in the global markets and dropped on Thursday.

The Emami gold coin lost 1.9% slipping to 105.8 million rials losing 2 million rials compared to the earlier session. Half Bahar Azadi gold lost 1.6% and was worth 63 million rials, 1 million rials lower compared to the session earlier, according to Tehran Gold and Jewelry Union website.

In the international markets gold on Friday held near a more than one-month peak scaled in the previous session, with bullion set for a weekly gain of over 1%, as a weakness in the dollar and US Treasury yields offered support along with a surprise jump in US jobless claims, Reuters reported.

Spot gold was steady at $1,755.91 per ounce on Friday. The metal has gained nearly 1.5% for the week so far, after posting losses in the previous two weeks. However, US gold futures fell 0.1% on Friday to $1,756.20 per ounce.