Country Report - Includes Iran real Gross Domestic Product growth rate, with latest forecasts and historical data, GDP per capita, GDP composition and breakdown by sector.
Browse additional economic indicators and data sets, selected by Global Finance editors, to learn more about Iran economic outlook, debt to GDP ratio, international trade performance and population trends. Rankings of Iran best banks and safest banks are also available.
Government Type: Theocratic republic
Capital City: Tehran
GDP & Economic Information
Macroeconomy & Sovereign Data
| Central Bank |
The Central Bank of the Islamic Republic of Iran |
|---|---|
| Currency |
Iranian rials (IRR) |
| International Reserves | N/A |
| Gross Domestic Product – GDP |
USD 452.3 billion (2018, estimate) |
| GDP (Purchasing Power Parity) |
Intl$ 1,610.7 billion (2018, estimate) |
GDP Data
| Real GDP growth |
2007 6.7% 2008 -0.1% 2009 0% 2010 5.7% 2011 3.1% 2012 -7.7% 2013 -0.3% 2014 3.2% 2015 -1.6% 2016 12.5% 2017 3.7% 2018* -3.9% *Estimate |
|---|---|
| GDP per capita – current prices |
USD 5,491.1 (2018, estimate) |
| GDP per capita – PPP |
Intl$ 19,556.6 (2018, estimate) |
| GDP (PPP) – share of world total |
1980 1.28% 1990 1.32% 2000 1.27% 2010 1.42% 2019* 1.1% *Estimate |
| GDP – composition by sector |
agriculture: 9.5% industry: 34.9% services: 54.4% (2017 estimate) |
| Gross domestic expenditure on R&D; (% of GDP) | N/A |
| Inflation |
2015 11.9% 2016 9.1% 2017 9.6% 2018* 30.5% 2019* 35.7% *Estimate |
Iran
Economics, Policy & Regulation
Six New Members Join BRICS
Emerging & Frontier Markets
Saudi Arabia Restoring Ties With Iran
Capital Raising & Corporate Finance
Iran To Pilot Central Bank Digital Currency
Inflation & Debt
| Inflation |
2015 11.9% 2016 9.1% 2017 9.6% 2018* 30.5% 2019* 35.7% *Estimate |
|---|---|
| Government Bond Ratings |
Standard & Poor’s: N/A Moody’s: N/A Standard & Poor’s / Moody’s (no data provided) |
| Unemployment rate |
2017 13.7% 2018 12.3% 2019 11.5% 2020* 11.7% 2021* 12% *Estimate |
| Household saving rates | N/A |
| Public debt (General government gross debt as a % of GDP) |
2015 38.4% 2016 47.5% 2017 39.5% 2018* 32.2% 2019* 30.7% *Estimate |
| Public deficit (General government net lending/borrowing as a % of GDP) |
2015 -1.8% 2016 -2.3% 2017 -1.8% 2018* -2.5% 2019* -4.4% *Estimate |
| Market value of publicly traded shares |
2016 USD 111.4 billion 2017 USD 108.6 billion 2018 USD 143.5 billion |
| Largest Companies | N/A |
Import/Export
| Exports as percent of GDP (Exports of goods and services) |
5.9% (2017) |
|---|---|
| Shares in world total merchandising export |
0.004% (2018) |
| Shares in world total commercial services export |
0.008% (2018) |
| Total exports |
USD 1.6 billion (2018 estimate) |
| Export commodities |
Opium, fruits and nuts, handwoven carpets, wool, cotton, hides and pelts, precious and semi-precious gems, and medical herbs |
| Total imports |
USD 8.3 billion (2018 estimate) |
| Import commodities |
Machinery and other capital goods, food, textiles, petroleum products |
| Exports – major partners |
India 56.5%, Pakistan 29.6% (2017) |
| Imports – major partners |
China 21%, Iran 20.5%, Pakistan 11.8%, Kazakhstan 11%, Uzbekistan 6.8%, Malaysia 5.3%(2017) |
Competitiveness & Trade
| Current account balance |
USD 18.3 billion (2018 estimate) |
|---|---|
| Current account balance by percentage of GDP |
4.1 % (2018 estimate) |
| FDI inflows |
2016 USD 3,372 million 2017 USD 5,019 million 2018 USD 3,480 million |
| FDI Outflows |
2016 USD 104 million 2017 USD 76 million 2018 USD 75 million |
| Value of cross-border M&A, by country of purchaser |
N/A United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) – World Investment Report |
| Cross-border M&A deals worth over $3 billion completed in 2014 | N/A |
| Cross-border M&A deals worth over $3 billion completed in 2015 | N/A |
| Best countries for doing business |
Economies are ranked on their ease of doing business. A high ease of doing business ranking means the regulatory environment is more conducive to the starting and operation of a local firm. Overall ranking: 120 out of 190 countries (2017) Subcategories: Overall ranking: 127 out of 190 countries Starting a Business: 178 out of 190 countries Dealing with Construction Permits: 73 out of 190 countries Getting Electricity: 113 out of 190 countries Registering Property: 70 out of 190 countries Getting Credit: 104 out of 190 countries Protecting Minority Investors: 128 out of 190 countries Paying Taxes: 144 out of 190 countries Trading across Borders: 123 out of 190 countries Enforcing Contracts: 90 out of 190 countries Resolving Insolvency: 133 out of 190 countries World Bank – Doing Business 2019 |
| Global competitiveness ranking |
99 out of 141 countries (2019) |
| Index of Economic Freedom |
Ranking: 155 / Score: 51.1 (Mostly unfree) (2019) (100=totally free 0=totally repressed) |
Population & Geographic Data
| Total Area |
1,648,195 sq km |
|---|---|
| Total Population |
1990 54.5 million 2000 64.22 million 2010 74.16 million 2015* 79.48 million 2020* 84.15 million *Estimate |
| Urban population as % of total population |
1960 33.7% 1980 49.7% 2000 64% 2018 74.9% |
| Population median age |
30.8 years CIA World Factbook / Population median age |
| Population growth rate |
1.19% (2018 estimate) |
| Life expectancy |
74.2 years (2018 estimate) CIA World Factbook / Life expectancy |
| % of population living on less than $3.10 a day |
2.5% (last available estimate, 2016) |
| Inequality of wealth distribution (Gini index) |
40 (last available estimate, 2016) (0=perfect equality, 100=absolute inequality) |
| Freedom House rating |
Not Free Political Rights: 6 Civil Liberties: 6 (2019) |
| Total telephone subscribers as % of population |
FFixed: 37.3% Mobile: 108.5% (2018) (fixed-telephone subscribers and mobile-cellular subscribers) |
| Internet users as % of total population |
70% (2018) |
Language & Religon
| Languages | Persian (official), Azeri Turkic and Turkic dialects, Kurdish, Gilaki and Mazandarani, Luri, Balochi, Arabic |
|---|---|
| Literacy |
Total population: 85.5% Male: 90.4% Female: 80.8% Definition: age 15 and over can read and write (2016 est.) |
| Religions | Muslim (official) 99.4% (Shia 90-95%, Sunni 5-10%), other (includes Zoroastrian, Jewish, and Christian) 0.3%, unspecified 0.4% (2011 est.) |
World Rankings
| Population | 2.8 M |
|---|---|
| Mercer Cost of living index | N/A |
| C02 Emissions per capita |
1.9 metric tons per capita (2018) |
Global Finance Rankings & Awards: Iran
Global Finance Magazine holds several conferences and awards ceremonies throughout the year to recognize the winning financial institutions and companies in a host of categories including World’s Best Trade Finance Banks, World's Biggest Banks, World's Safest Banks, World's Best Developed & Emerging Markets Banks, World's Best Internet Banks, and World’s Best Investment Banks.
Data Sources:
IMF World Economic Outlook
UN World Population Prospects
World Inequality Report
S&P Global Ratings
Moody’s
Fitch Ratings
IMF Direction of Trade Statistics (DOTS)
UN Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD)
CIA The World Factbook
World Bank’s World Integrated Trade Solution
Forbes Global 2000