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Iran’s rial currency hits record low as shaky ceasefire with US and Israel still holds

Apr 29, 2026, 3:15 AM | Updated: 11:54 am

FILE - A thick plume of smoke rises from an oil storage facility hit by a U.S.-Israeli strike in Te...

FILE - A thick plume of smoke rises from an oil storage facility hit by a U.S.-Israeli strike in Tehran, Iran, March 8, 2026. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi, File)
Credit: ASSOCIATED PRESS

(AP Photo/Vahid Salemi, File)

TEHRAN, Iran (AP) — Iran’s national rial currency hit a record hit Wednesday of 1.8 million to $1 as a shaky ceasefire with the U.S. and Israel still holds.

The rial had remained stable for weeks during the war, which began Feb. 28, in part because there was little trading or imports coming into the country.

The rial began to slide two days ago, hitting the record low Wednesday.

Experts warn the fall of the rial is likely to further fuel inflation in a country where many imported goods, from food and medicine to electronics and raw materials, are affected by the dollar rate.

The war is now in a ceasefire, but a U.S. blockade has continued to increase pressure on Iran’s already-battered economy, cutting into a key source of government revenue and hard currency by stopping or intercepting oil shipments.

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Iran’s rial currency hits record low as shaky ceasefire with US and Israel still holds