Shoppers have largely deserted Tajrish Bazaar in northern Tehran, where traders say higher prices since the war began have sharply cut demand, according to Agence France-Presse.
The bazaar would usually be abuzz with customers, Agence France-Presse (AFP) reported. AFP described most shops as empty, with only small numbers of people walking the narrow paths.
Nasir, 61, who sells fruit and nuts, told AFP that customers now buy far less. He said some who once bought two to five kilograms now buy one kilogram or half a kilogram.
He said prices were high. "Prices are truly high. We all know it, and it would be a lie to say otherwise," he told AFP. He said the authorities needed to stabilise the dollar exchange rate.
Ali Nowruzi, 36, who runs a sportswear shop in the bazaar, told AFP his warehouse was empty because of weak demand. He said he now orders only a few display items.
He said manufacturers were going bankrupt, laying off staff and closing shops, and that the impact inevitably reached traders like him. AFP also quoted a 57-year-old shopkeeper, who was not named, who said he felt embarrassed telling customers prices because people ask and then leave.
AFP said inflation was nearly 90% year-on-year in September, according to official figures. It also reported erratic currency swings. No response from Iranian officials had been reported.
AFP attributed the price rises to the war between the United States and Iran. The accounts come from interviews with a few traders and are not a measured count of shoppers or sales.
Iran's economy had been hit by years of sanctions before the conflict, AFP said. It said the conflict began in February with US-Israeli attacks and an American blockade of the country's ports, which added strain.
Iran's economy contracted by 10.1% year-on-year between late March and late June, according to official figures cited by Daily Sabah, which carried the AFP report.
In August, The National reported that bazaar merchants were under pressure after the rial fell to a record low of more than two million to the US dollar, from 1.53 million in March.
Photo: Kamyar Adl from Oxford, UK / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY 2.0)
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