Iranian Leader Unveils ‘Anti-sanctions’ Draft Budget

Iranian President Hassan Rouhani appeared in parliament on Sunday to present a draft budget for the coming fiscal year that is 10 percent higher than the current budget. “This is a budget to resist [US] sanctions… with the least possible dependence on oil,” he told lawmakers during an appearance broadcast on state television. “This budget shows the world that despite sanctions, we can manage the country.” Income shortages from crude oil could be made up by the sale of public properties and the issuance of bonds. Sanctions are believed to have led to a drop in crude oil sales from over 2.5 million barrels per day to under 400,000 bpd, although according to the Reuters news agency, reporting from within Iran shows the draft budget to be reliant on up to 1 million bpd. At least some of this might be accounted for by the sale of processed petroleum products, which are harder to trace back to Iran than its crude, whose markers are easy to identify through chemical testing.