Iranian President Hassan Rouhani has already been dealing with a restless population, after years of disappointing economic performance following incredibly high expectations of rewards from the 2015 nuclear deal. The sudden loss of value to the rial threatens to undermine him even further. Iran’s currency, the rial, traded at 40,000 to the dollar last year, but this week plunged to 60,000 rials per dollar, sparking panic buying. Just a few days ago, the government announced a plan to implement a currency peg at 42,000 rials, although that surprise move caused confusion. The central bank is trying to limit the amount that people can sell in exchange for foreign currency in an effort to halt the pressure. The currency crisis comes just a few months after protests erupted across a wide swathe of the country, although, notably, less so in Tehran. The fragile nature of the rial could add to […]