Iran’s liquidity hits $314 bln

Baku, Azerbaijan, March 13

By Fatih Karimov - Trend:

Liquidity in Iran exceeded 9,494 trillion rials (about $314 billion based on official rate of 30.221 rials per each USD) by Jan. 20.

The figure indicates a rise by 27.2 percent compared to the same period last year, the Central Bank of Iran(CBI) reported March 13.

Iran's liquidity witnessed a rise by 21.3 percent while compared to the end of last fiscal year (March 21, 2015) which was 7,824 trillion rials.

The volume of banknotes and coins possessed by the population in Iran was worth 298 trillion rials by Jan. 20, indicating a rise by 5.9 percent year on year.

The figure registered a fall by 15.3 percent compared to 351.7 trillion rials by the end of last fiscal year.

The money volume decreased by 7.4 percent year on year and amounted to 1,181 trillion rials by Jan. 20, meanwhile the liquid liabilities (broad money) stood at 8,313 trillion rials.

The monetary base volume also stood at 1,480 trillion rials by Jan. 20, registering an increase by 11.9 percent in 10 months.

Following the removal of international sanctions, the Iranian administration planning to hit an eight percent economic growth in the post-sanctions era, announced that the country is seeking to annually lure up to $50 billion worth of foreign investment.

International Monetary Fund (IMF) released a report last December, saying that Iran's GDP growth is expected to be between 0.5 to -0.5 percent in current year.

While higher oil production, lower costs for trade and financial transactions, and restored access to foreign assets, are expected to lift real GDP to about 4-5.5 percent next year.