Iran: 80% decrease in workers’ purchasing power

Iran: 80% decrease in workers’ purchasing power

Iranian people are losing their purchasing power day by day

Analysis by PMOI/MEK

Iran, Nov. 2, 2018 - Davoud Mirzaie, an economic expert close to the Iranian regime, recently said Iran’s workers have lost 80 percent of their purchasing power as the country’s currency, the rial, continues to plummet.

“The 19.5 percent wage increase has not shown itself in the workers’ lives, meaning the value of their wages in March 2018 is far below its value in March 2016. In other words, the workers’ purchasing power has decreased between 50 to 80 percent. This is causing numerous problems for the families of the country’s workers,” he said in an interview with the state-run ISNA news agency on Wednesday.

“Such conditions have left the workers unable in providing for their basic needs. Therefore, labor unions have time and again called on the Ministry of Labor to see into this issue. Unfortunately, this remained unresolved,” he added.

It is worth noting that Mohammad Reza Pour-Ibrahimi, head of the Majlis (parliament) Economy Commission has made interesting remarks over skyrocketing prices of essential goods.

“The average price of essential goods, despite providing currency at 42,000 rials/U.S. dollar, has increased 30 to 50 percent in comparison to last year. It shouldn’t be this way,” he said recently.

The price of most goods in Iran, in comparison to last year, have increased. The price hike in meat, dairy products and fruits have has been over 20 percent, meaning these goods are no longer even seen at the tables of workers’ families, or will eradicate as this trend continues. Furthermore, the price of imported tea has also increased by nearly 20 percent.

According to the latest Central Bank report focusing on developments in Iran’s home market for this summer, mortgages have increased by 13.6 percent in Tehran in comparison to last year, and 11.1 percent other cities.

To add to the Iranian regime’s concerns, Assadollah Asgar Oladi, head of the Iran-China Chamber of Commerce, said recently no Chinese bank is willing to work with Iranian merchants. As a result, Iran’s exports to China have come to a standstill, he added in an interview with the state-run Tasnim news agency, affiliated to the Revolutionary Guards Quds Force.

Negotiations between the mullahs’ Central Bank to gain the cooperation of Chinese banks have failed to this day, he added. U.S. secondary sanctions have resulted in many banks and companies ending their cooperation with Iranian regime entities.

Read more:

An open-door session of the Iranian regime’s Majlis (parliament) back in September shed new light on the country’s economy and poor living condition of  ordinary Iranians.

“To those government officials who are trying comfort themselves with unreal statistics, our workers and employees, young and old, are all living in conditions with inflation reaching 60 or 70 percent,” said Majlis member Mohsen Bigleri. “Mr. Rouhani, we have five million unemployed people and most of them are college educated, and yet they’re struggling to procure their next meal… The prices of people’s basic necessities, such as meat, poultry, dried goods and fruits have increased more than 70 percent…”

Sedif Badri, another member of the Iranian regime’s Majlis (parliament) expressed concerns about the inflation and skyrocketing prices.

“The government’s weak and indefensible economic practices… unbridled inflation increase and skyrocketing prices, are imposing pressures on the lower class of our society and has completely disappointed our middle class… the people are truly being crushed under these conditions…” she added.

Alaedin Borujerdi, a member of the Majlis (parliament) National Security and Foreign Affairs Commission, cited foul practices in Iran’s petrochemical industry.

“The petrochemical industry presents its own products in the stock market. Informed dealers purchase the products instantly… and these products are then sold to needy factories at extremely higher prices. The factories are forced to either not purchase the raw material or as a result increase the prices of their own goods to an extreme extent. This results in inflation; people lack purchasing power and finally workers are fired from factories,” he explained.

Hossein-Ali Shahriari of the Iranian regime’s Majlis (parliament):

“Are you aware that people have no income? Are you aware that the people’s drinking water has serious problems? Are you informed that people are leaving their ancestral homes and resorting to living in city slums…? What crime have these people committed to be punished like this?”

As explained by another Majlis member by the name of Gholamreza Sharafi, social issues in Iran are evolving into security matters.

“People in parts of Abadan (in southwest Iran) haven’t had decent drinking water for 17 years… These innocent people rarely see a blue sky due to air contamination. These people have the sea, yet non-standard laws have made fishing difficult for them. These people once had the best dates production in the region. Today, however, their share of agriculture water is stolen and they are witnessing their date trees being destroyed,” he said. “4.3 million date trees have been lost.”

This is only the tip of the iceberg of the corruption, crimes and theft taking place by Iranian regime officials. It’s strange how various European countries continue to seek appeasement deals with this regime that is engulfed in theft and corruption.

The Iranian people, and the resistance units associated to the Iranian opposition People's Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI/MEK), are seeking to bringing an end to this regime. This regime’s days are numbered and those companies continuing to seek economic incentives should better plan for the future.