Trade Promotion Organization official says directive exchange rate pricing has locked up trade

The deputy for international business promotion at Iran's Trade Promotion Organization said on Monday 27 July 2026 that setting the exchange rate below the real market rate creates informal markets and widens currency gaps, in criticism of directive pricing policies in the foreign exchange market.

He described the situation by saying that a dollar worth 130,000 tomans in the market cannot be sold at a rate of 80,000 tomans, and stressed that the gap between rates has in practice locked up part of the country's trade.

The remarks come as Iran operates several official and unofficial exchange rates at once, with the spread between the Exchange Centre rate and the free market rate one of the main variables in the decisions of importers and exporters.