Iran inflation up to 25% and is the fifth highest in world

The US Central Intelligence Agency has announced record Iranian inflation, quoting the Iranian government’s official estimate, Iran’s inflation rate is the fifth annual highest in the world last year at 28 percent, which is also the highest in the middle east.

Zimbabwe had the highest rate in the world at 11,200,000%.

The Central Bank of Iran had placed inflation at 26.4 percent in the year leading to December 2008 and at present the government led by President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad is hoping to bring through action to cut government subsidies for fuel, natural gas and electricity.

In an alternative measure the government will provide cash for low-income families to compensate for the increase in prices as a result of the plan.

The latest figure, although exceptionally high, is still lower than the peak of 29 percent in September 2008.

The end of the current Iranian financial year falls on March 20 and the central bank chief, Mahmoud Bahmani, has indicated that he plans to cut inflation to about 22 percent by a way of increasing production and goods in order to reach demand.

Conversely analysts are arguing that if the government is to inject oil money into the economy this will have the adverse effect of keeping inflation high for many years.

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