CBI: Foreign Debt Down 0.8% to $9.067bn

Date: 02 February 2022 - 21:27

News ID: ۹۹۶۰۶

TEHRAN - Central Bank of Iran (CBI) has reported a slight decrease in Iran’s foreign debt as the country insists on a policy of avoiding borrowing from abroad despite economic hardships caused by the U.S. sanctions and the spread of the coronavirus pandemic.
Figures published by the Central Bank of Iran showed that Iran’s foreign debt had declined by 0.8% against figures reported in late March to a total of $9.067 billion in late November.
The figures showed that long-term debts accounted for 73% of Iran’s total foreign indebtedness in late November.
However, CBI’s November figures showed that Iran’s foreign debt had risen by 2.5% against August and by 3.7% against June.
Iran’s debt to GDP ratio is considered among the lowest compared to similar economies in the world. That comes as the country has largely avoided borrowing from other governments or international institutions over the past decades.
The policy has persisted in recent years despite the fact that Iran has been struggling under the economic impacts of American sanctions and the spread of the coronavirus pandemic.
Iran’s request for a multibillion dollar loan from the International Monetary Fund to battle the pandemic has stalled since 2020 apparently under American pressure.
However, the country has managed to withstand the pressure thanks to a series of policies meant to diversify the Iranian economy away from crude export revenues.