Baku, Azerbaijan, April 15
By Khalid Kazimov – Trend:
The Central Bank of Iran (CBI) has resumed presale of gold coins as part of its efforts to deal with currency fluctuation in the country.
The gold coins are offered with the maturity dates of one, three, six, nine, 12, 18 and 24 months, the state media reported.
CBI had launched the scheme during the final months of the previous fiscal year that rolled out on March 20 with the aim of curbing unruly gold coin prices and defusing their bubble.
The rial lost close to half its value on the free market since September, driven in part by concerns over a possible return of sanctions in case of US exit from the 2015 nuclear deal with Tehran.
First Vice President Eshaq Jahangiri on Monday evening announced the authorities’ latest decision on unifying official and free-market exchange rates for the rial in favor of a single rate set at 42,000 against the US dollar.
The CBI is apparently looking to control the rate of plunging rial through offering gold prices at lower prices in the market.