INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
Iranian Rial has lost half its value against the United States dollar in just 4 months.Tehran: Iran's currency struck a record low on Sunday
of 100,000 rials to the dollar in the middle of a deepening economic crisis and the imminent return of full US sanctions.The informal rate
stood at 102,000 rials by midday, according to Bonbast, one of the most trustworthy sites for tracking the Iranian currency.The rate was
verified by a trader who spoke on condition of privacy to AFP.The rial has lost half its worth against the dollar in just 4 months, having
broken through the 50,000-mark for the very first time in March.The government tried to fix the rate at 42,000 in April, and threatened to
crackdown on black market traders.But the trade continued with Iranians fretted about a prolonged financial recession turning to dollars as
a safe method to keep their cost savings, or as a financial investment in the hope the rial will continue to drop.With banks frequently
refusing to sell their dollars at the synthetically low rate, the government was required to soften its line in June, permitting more
flexibility for particular groups of importers.The handling of the crisis was among the factors behind last week's decision by President
Hassan Rouhani to replace reserve bank chief, Valiollah Seif.The currency collapse was motivated by the United States statement in May that
it was pulling out of the 2015 nuclear deal, that raised specific sanctions in exchange for curbs to Iran's atomic programme.The US is set
to reimpose its full range of sanctions in 2 stages on August 6 and November 4, requiring numerous foreign firms to cut off service with
