Latest IMF forecasts cited in a Wednesday report by the Fars news agency showed that Iran’s economy would expand by 0.6% in 2025, up from a 0.3% forecast announced in April.

The figure was lower than a regional average growth rate of 3.5%, the data showed.

IMF forecast showed that the inflation rate in Iran would reach 42.4% this year, up from 32.5% reported in 2024.

The global lender expected that Iran’s jobless rate would also increase by 1.6% year on year to reach 9.2% in 2025.

Iran has reported positive economic growth rates since the second half of 2020, two years after the United States announced sweeping sanctions on the country.

However, Iran’s official statistics agency (SCI) reported a negative growth rate for the country’s economy for the first time in four years in the quarter to June 21.

SCI’s data released in late September showed that Iran’s gross domestic product (GDP) had reached 24,270 trillion rials (over $22.26 billion on free market prices) in the June quarter, down 0.1% from the same period last year.

IMF’s projections on Iran are mostly based on economic data released by the SCI and the Central Bank of Iran (CBI).

SCI had reported an economic growth rate of 3% for the Iranian economy in the calendar year to late March, while the CBI had put the rate at 3.1%.