May 25, 2013
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The week's top five must-sees,
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Description
The economy of Iran is the seventeenth largest in the world by purchasing power parity (PPP) and twenty-sixth by market value. The economy of Iran is a mixed and transition economy with a large public sector and some 50% of the economy centrally planned. It is also a diversifed economy with over 40 industries directly involved in the Tehran Stock Exchange. Yet, most of the country's exports are oil and gas, accounting for a majority of government revenue in 2010. A unique feature of Iran's economy is the presence of large religious foundations, whose combined budgets make up more than 30% of central government spending. Iran is one of the few major economies that has maintained positive growth in the aftermath of the 2008 global financial crisis, despite sanctions imposed by the international community as a result of the country's nuclear program. Distortions resulting from a combination of price controls and subsidies, particularly on food and energy, continue to burden the economy. Contraband, administrative controls, corruption, and other restrictive factors undermine the potential for private sector-led growth. The legislature in late 2009 passed President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's bill to reduce subsidies. This is the most extensive economic reform since the government implemented gasoline rationing in 2007. High oil prices in recent years have enabled Iran to amass well over $100 billion in foreign exchange reserves. Whilst this has aided self-sufficiency and domestic investment, double-digit unemployment and inflation remain problematic. Iran's educated population, economic inefficiency, and insufficient foreign and domestic investment have prompted an increasing number of Iranians to seek employment overseas, resulting in a significant "brain drain".
(via DBpedia)
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![Iran slams new EU sanctions as illegal, unwise, inhuman [Al-Alam, Iran]](/images/image_cache/base-12348000/12348330/thumbnail.width=304,height=171,grow=1,crop=center.jpg?sig=bade7e5fb01acebdfb1c3469860269b9)
![Iran MPs seek to grill Ahmadinejad over currency tumble, economy [Press TV, Iran]](/images/image_cache/base-11855000/11855670/thumbnail.width=304,height=171,grow=1,crop=center.jpg?sig=3ce848546fa68f94bf139f2a3b436afa)
![Devaluation of Iranian rial takes toll on 'ordinary' citizens [Dubai TV, UAE]](/images/image_cache/base-11797000/11797139/thumbnail.width=304,height=171,grow=1,crop=center.jpg?sig=2198fce54a57abd9ab4e287a06193eeb)
![Iranian rial falls to all-time low as Western sanctions take hold [Future TV, Lebanon]](/images/image_cache/base-11485000/11485431/thumbnail.width=304,height=171,grow=1,crop=center.jpg?sig=039981e6fd702869345842bcec430940)
![Iranian riot police clash with demonstrators during currency crisis protests in Tehran [BBC Arabic, UK]](/images/image_cache/base-11545000/11545252/thumbnail.width=304,height=171,grow=1,crop=center.jpg?sig=17ba038a33b25b6102cf5f4dbb353b9c)
![Iranian currency plummets to all-time low [IBA, Israel]](/images/image_cache/base-11429000/11429551/thumbnail.width=304,height=171,grow=1,crop=center.jpg?sig=16e777a0b55f0d820918a3d922e80bc8)
![Iran oil exports cut by 50 percent in the past year [IBA, Israel]](/images/image_cache/base-11213000/11213548/thumbnail.width=304,height=171,grow=1,crop=center.jpg?sig=8fe8e55f621f4f96239419b461aacd35)
