Today, contrary to the view that a weaker rial is always good news for export-heavy shares, it was the stock market that made the headline. Saturday midday, 27 Tir 1405 (18 July 2026), on the first trading session of the week after a two-day weekend, the Tehran Stock Exchange came under heavy selling pressure: by around 11 a.m. the main index (TEDPIX) had fallen about 2.5% (near 117,000 points) to roughly 4,776,000 points, its eighth consecutive losing session. In the same hours, in the parallel market the agreed dollar (the official "toafoghi" rate) entered the 150,000-toman channel for the first time, and spot gold held above the 4,000-dollar line, precisely as Iran's delegation sat at the Oman table over the management of shipping through the Strait of Hormuz. The picture of the day is a clear divergence: the parallel market sets records while the bourse falls.
Today at a glance
A quick look at the key numbers (the reference time for each figure is in the last column):
| Market | Value | Change | Reference time |
|---|
| TEDPIX (main index) | about 4,776,178 pts | −2.46% (~117,600 pts) | Sat ~11 a.m. |
| IFX (Farabourse index) | 37,490 pts | −2.08% | Sat ~11 a.m. |
| Agreed dollar (Exchange Center remittance) | 150,237 toman | +252 (record) | Sat ~11 a.m. |
| Toman Tether | 194,581 toman | tracks free dollar | Sat ~11 a.m. |
| 18-karat gold (per gram) | about 18,479,700 toman | ~+1.3% | Sat 27 Tir |
| Emami coin | about 185,500,000 toman | rising | Sat 27 Tir |
| Spot gold (XAU) | about 4,015 dollars | above 4,000 | Sat |
| Brent crude | about 88.1 dollars | near one-month high | Fri 26 Tir |
| Bitcoin | about 64,017 dollars | −0.07% | Sat ~11 a.m. |
| Ethereum | about 1,845 dollars | +0.28% | Sat ~11 a.m. |
Today's headlines
- Bourse's eighth losing day: the main index fell about 2.2% in the opening minutes of today's session, and by around 11 a.m. the drop reached nearly 2.5%; per field reports, selling pressure was concentrated in the index-heavyweight banking, auto, base-metals, chemical and refining names (Sat 27 Tir, per market news agencies).
- Agreed dollar enters the 150,000-toman channel: the remittance dollar at the Currency and Gold Exchange Center rose about 252 toman to 150,237 toman, conquering the 150,000-toman peak for the first time (Sat ~11 a.m.).
- The Oman table over the Strait of Hormuz: per news reports, a fresh round of consultations is under way in Muscat centered on managing traffic through the strait; the plan on the table proposes two separately controlled routes (a southern corridor in Omani waters and a northern corridor in Iranian waters), with the passage terms still under discussion (Sat 27 Tir).
- Global gold held above 4,000 dollars: spot gold, which had slipped below that line on Thursday and Friday, stabilized today around 4,015 dollars, its swings mirroring expectations about the talks' outcome (Sat).
- Oil near a one-month high: Brent closed the global trading week around 88 dollars, and vessel transits through the Strait of Hormuz have fallen to multi-month lows; the energy market continues to price the Hormuz risk (Fri 26 Tir).
Stocks
The day's center of gravity is the equity market. The last session before the weekend (Wednesday 24 Tir) closed with the main index down 0.63% at 4,893,834 points, below the 4.9-million channel; today the market reopened along that same trend and the decline accelerated. By around 11 a.m. the main index had fallen about 2.46% (near 117,600 points) to roughly 4,776,178 points, and the Farabourse index (IFX) was down about 2.08% at 37,490 points. This is the market's eighth consecutive negative session; in the prior week alone the main index shed roughly 350,000 points. Per the trading board, selling pressure was concentrated in the large, index-heavyweight names (banking, auto, base-metals, chemical and refining groups), and real-money (retail) flow remains an outflow.
Why the divergence? At first glance, a fresh dollar record should be positive for export-heavy shares (higher rial revenue); but today two opposing forces prevailed: first, the geopolitical risk from the Hormuz tension, which is negative for the whole market and dampens risk appetite; second, the outflow of real money and the absence of a positive domestic catalyst, which pushes capital toward the parallel markets (dollar, gold and Tether). This is "what has happened"; whether the market builds a floor after the Oman table or the decline continues belongs to the realm of conjecture. For a live view of the index and symbols, the Sahmino bourse index page is available.
Currency
In the parallel market, the day's clear story is the agreed dollar: the remittance dollar at the Currency and Gold Exchange Center rose about 252 toman to 150,237 toman, entering the 150,000-toman channel for the first time. In the free market, the dollar has stayed in record territory above 191,000 toman (the level of late last week and this morning), while the toman Tether rate, which usually moves in step with the free dollar, stood at 194,581 toman at midday. The gap between the free channel and the exchange-center channel therefore remains more than 40,000 toman (about 27%), a spread that reflects the geopolitical backdrop and expectations around the Oman table more than any fresh domestic monetary factor. Live rates are available on the Sahmino currency market page.
Gold & Coin
The domestic gold and coin market rose today. A gram of 18-karat gold traded around 18,480,000 toman (up about 1.3% from Thursday) and the Emami coin around 185,500,000 toman; the half coin was near 95 million, the quarter coin near 53.5 million, and the gram coin around 28 million toman. The main drivers are two variables: the domestic dollar rate and global spot. Spot gold held above 4,000 dollars today (around 4,015), after slipping below that line on Thursday and Friday in response to hopes for a deal. Because the domestic gold price is tied to both the dollar and spot at once, the return of both variables to an upward phase has reinforced upward pressure in the local market. More detail on the Sahmino gold price page.
Crypto
The global crypto market was calm and near flat today: Bitcoin was around 64,000 dollars (about 64,017, roughly unchanged) and Ethereum around 1,845 dollars (up 0.28%), both slightly above Friday's floor when Bitcoin had pulled back to 63,000 dollars. Domestically, the toman Tether rate stood at 194,581 toman; recall that global crypto prices are in dollars and the toman price embeds the free-dollar rate, so much of the move in toman Tether simply reflects the dollar record, not a change in the global crypto price.
Iron & Steel
In the steel market, the ex-factory rebar price in the latest updates has been quoted around 66,000 to 68,000 toman per kilogram (depending on size and grade). The drivers ahead are two external factors: the exchange rate, which lifts production cost and the export price floor, and global steel and energy prices. With the fresh dollar record, the rial price floor in the domestic market is expected to firm; but real construction demand, the other side of the equation, remains weak.
Cars
The auto market in this environment is more in wait mode than active. The market margin (the gap between the factory price and the market price) in heavily traded models is sensitive to the dollar rate and inflation expectations; a fresh currency record is usually reflected with a lag, as higher asking prices from sellers in the open market, but until real buyers step in these increases mostly stay on paper. Ex-factory pricing policy (the Competition Council and the Ministry of Industry, Mine and Trade) is the decisive factor on the supply side.
Building Materials
In the materials market, cement and related products are sensitive to energy costs and the seasonal construction cycle more than to daily currency swings. In the warm half of the year and with periodic energy constraints, the supply side is cautious; but weak project demand in recent months has capped any meaningful price jump. This market should be followed alongside overall construction cost and the exchange rate.
Regional & global backdrop
The global market's center of gravity remains the Hormuz risk premium. Brent crude closed the global trading week around 88.1 dollars (near a one-month high) and WTI was near 81 dollars; vessel transits through the Strait of Hormuz have fallen to multi-month lows and the energy market is pricing the risk of a supply disruption. Spot gold held above 4,000 dollars (around 4,015). The US dollar index was roughly unchanged near 100.7 on Friday. On Wall Street, indices closed lower on Friday: the S&P 500 fell 1.01% to 7,457 and the Nasdaq lost 1.4%, as a chip-stock selloff and geopolitical worries dragged US equities down. In the neighborhood, the Turkish lira traded near 47 to the dollar and China's yuan around 6.77. The channel through which these variables reach Tehran is mainly the oil price (foreign-currency revenue) and the global gold price (the floor for the domestic gold price). For the economic events ahead, see the Sahmino market calendar.
What to watch today
- Outcome of the Oman meeting: any news on the draft for managing the Strait of Hormuz will be the most direct driver of the dollar, gold and oil in the hours ahead.
- The Tehran bourse's close: whether the main index ends the session near the day's low or recovers somewhat in the final hour, and the behavior of real vs. legal-entity flow in the large names.
- Free-market dollar and toman Tether: whether today's record holds or corrects on talks-related news.
- Spot gold and Brent: gold's durability above 4,000 dollars and oil's behavior around the 88-dollar line.
- Events calendar: follow the economic events ahead on the Sahmino market calendar.
This report is a snapshot of "what has happened by midday today"; buy and sell decisions are your own, and this text offers no trading advice.
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