President Masoud Pezeshkian urged officials to engage with protest representatives and address "legitimate demands" after shopkeepers in central Tehran demonstrated over soaring import costs and currency volatility. The US dollar traded near 1.42 million rials compared with about 820,000 a year earlier, and official inflation stood at 52% in December. The government named Abdolnasser Hemmati as the new central bank governor and announced temporary closures of schools and businesses to conserve energy amid severe cold. Senior officials, including the parliamentary speaker and the chief justice, called for measures to protect purchasing power and hold those responsible for currency swings to account.
Iran President Urges Officials To Heed Protesters' Economic Grievances As Currency Plummets
A shopkeeper tidies his stall in Tajrish Bazaar in the Iranian capital. Some traders have protested the rising price of imports as the rial falls against the dollar (ATTA KENARE)(ATTA KENARE/AFP/AFP)
Iran's president, Masoud Pezeshkian, has urged government officials to listen to the "legitimate demands" of protesters and open dialogue with their representatives, state media reported on Tuesday. The appeal came a day after shopkeepers staged demonstrations in central Tehran to protest soaring import costs, sharp currency swings and falling purchasing power.
The unrest on Monday was concentrated in Tehran's commercial districts, particularly along Vali-Asr Avenue, which runs roughly 18 kilometres from the city's north to south. By Tuesday morning most shops and cafés along the avenue had reopened, AFP reporters said, though riot police remained deployed around major squares to monitor the situation.
When the protests erupted on Sunday the US dollar was trading at about 1.42 million rials — up from roughly 820,000 rials a year earlier — and the rial had only recovered marginally by Tuesday. Reporters said currency volatility and rapid price swings have paralysed sales of some imported goods as both sellers and buyers delay transactions until the market stabilises.
Government response
In a social media post, President Pezeshkian wrote: "I have asked the interior minister to listen to the legitimate demands of the protesters by engaging in dialogue with their representatives so that the government can do everything in its power to resolve the problems and act responsibly." State television quoted parliamentary speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf calling for measures to boost purchasing power and for officials to address citizens' livelihood concerns through dialogue.
An unnamed trader told the Etemad newspaper that authorities had offered little help to storekeepers facing soaring import costs: "They didn't even follow up on how the dollar price affected our lives. With this dollar price, we can't even sell a phone case."
The judiciary also weighed in: Iranian Chief Justice Gholamhossein Mohseni Ejei urged "the swift punishment of those responsible for currency fluctuations," according to the justice ministry's Mizan agency. The government announced a change at the central bank, with presidency communications official Mehdi Tabatabaei posting that Abdolnasser Hemmati would be appointed governor of the Central Bank. Hemmati is a former economy and finance minister who was dismissed by parliament in March amid the rial's sharp depreciation.
Official statistics put December inflation at 52 percent year-on-year, though many basic goods have risen faster. Iran's economy has long been strained by decades of Western sanctions and was further hit when the United Nations in late September reinstated international sanctions linked to the country's nuclear programme that had been lifted ten years earlier. Western powers and Israel accuse Iran of seeking nuclear weapons; Tehran denies the allegations.
Authorities also announced that schools, banks and many businesses would be closed on Wednesday in Tehran and several northern and central provinces to conserve energy amid severe winter cold, a move likely to affect commerce and daily life while officials attempt to stabilise the economy.
