Sunday midday, 28 Khordad 1405 (19 July 2026): the market is pulling in two directions. The free dollar sits at a record near 194,500 toman and a gram of 18-karat gold holds in the 19-million-toman channel, yet the Tehran bourse index is trading about 0.6 percent lower by 11 a.m. and, if it holds, heads for a 9th straight losing session. The divergence between the bourse and the parallel market is today's main story.
