Question of the Day

 Here's the question of the day.  What do 273,000 Iranian rials equal?  

If you said one dollar, you were correct.  The Iranian economy is in such shambles that the exchange rate between the rial and the dollar is now 273,000 to one.  This makes it nearly impossible for Iran to import anything into the country except on the basis of barter or by using foreign currency.  This kind of the destruction of a currency has happened in other countries over the years.  It cannot go on for long.  

Right now, there is a battle over ongoing sanctions on Iran for its nuclear program.  The Iranians violated the terms of the JCPOA (the Iranian nuclear agreement negotiated by Obama/Biden administration that guaranteed nuclear weapons to the Iranians.)  The USA withdrew from that foolish agreement when President Trump took office and restored the sanctions on Iran.  Even so, the other five signatories to the agreement (UK, France, Germany, Russia and China) stayed in the agreement.  Iran, however, just ignored the promises it had made in the JCPOA.  A recent inspection by the nuclear scientists from the UN revealed that Iran had more than four times more material for nuclear weapons than it was allowed under the JCPOA.  The US wants full sanctions by the UN restored on Iran.  The Iranians rage that there will be terrible consequences if the full sanctions are put back.  America, however, can pretty much put the sanctions on itself.  If the President orders full sanctions on anyone trading with Iran -- including banks --then essentially no one else around the world will risk being hit by US sanctions so as to trade with the Iranians.

It will be tense in the region for the next few months.  The Iranians may lash out in anger over their being put back into a box.  On the other hand, the Iranians probably know that President Trump would strike back at Iran very forcefully, something they are unlikely to risk.  They already saw Trump take out general Sulemani, and none of the mullahs want to follow in his path to the grave.  Iran also knows that if Biden wins the election, he will restore the misguided policy of the past that allowed Iran to sponsor terrorism, build nukes and otherwise cause problems with impunity.  My guess is that there will be a lot of Iranian government eyes watching the returns in November and rooting for Biden.  Indeed, there's likely much more enthusiasm in Tehran for Biden than there is anywhere else on earth with the possible exception of Beijing.