A month after the establishment of the commercial foreign exchange market, the exchange rate allocated for the import of non-essential goods has reached approximately 664,000 rials per dollar. These changes, due to the rising cost of imports, have caused a 5% to 20% increase in the prices of household appliances.
Meanwhile, the dollar’s price in the open market stands at approximately 840,000 rials.
According to the state-run Etemad Online newspaper, this change in the exchange rate over the past month has caused a roughly 22% increase in the cost of the dollar for importers. Producers and sellers of household appliances have also factored this increase into their product prices.
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According to this report, the household appliance market had previously experienced instability when the dollar exchange rate rose to 840,000 rials, leading sellers to set varying prices. Now, with factory prices of household appliances adjusted to the new exchange rate, the market has become active again, and prices have stabilized at roughly uniform levels.
However, as Etemad writes, many raw materials and components required for manufacturing household appliances were imported months ago at lower exchange rates. Therefore, price increases under the pretext of exchange rate changes are not economically justifiable.
The economic report states that while price increases in the household appliance market continue, market stagnation has slightly slowed the unregulated rise in prices.
In another report by the state-run ILNA news agency, the head of Iran’s “National Potato Association” attributed the increase in potato prices to 500,000–600,000 rials to heavy rainfall and frost in Kerman province.
Khosrow Talebi Rahiq added that “particularly” in the southern part of this province, unfavorable weather conditions have slowed the harvesting and transportation of potatoes to the market.
He claimed that these issues have significantly contributed to the shortage of this product, resulting in price hikes.
Talebi Rahiq emphasized that the association had warned the Ministry of Agriculture on April 20, 2024, about the need to stockpile potatoes for the winter season. However, due to negligence in funding, this stockpiling did not take place.
The head of the National Potato Association added: “If 50,000 to 60,000 tons had been stockpiled, the market would not be facing shortages and sharp price increases today.”
According to Talebi Rahiq, the rise in potato prices is not due to a decline in production but rather because of issues in market supply.
He further explained that while strategic stockpiling was carried out in 2023, these reserves were not utilized in the domestic market, and the Ministry of Agriculture also did not permit exports. This led to an oversupply of potatoes in the market and losses for producers.
This industry representative stressed that Iran’s potato exports have decreased due to rising prices, although exports to the Gulf countries, Caspian Sea nations, Afghanistan, and Iraq are ongoing.
