\u201cWe have virtually given up on many things,\u201d said Ahmad Karimi, 52, a taxi driver and father of two who has been working 15-hour days to make ends meet. \u201cWe\u2019re cutting out fruit, we\u2019re cutting out protein, we\u2019ve given up leisure, we even work on weekends.\u201d<\/p>\n
Nearly six months into the war<\/a> with the United States and Israel, the Iranian economy is taking a beating under the force of sanctions and a naval blockade<\/a> that is making it extremely difficult for the country to export oil, its most valuable product.<\/p>\n Whether this intensifying economic pressure will translate anytime soon into military or political concessions from Iran remains to be seen \u2014 but some experts are skeptical. Since the war began, Iran has been attacking oil-rich neighbors and U.S. bases in the region, and disrupting shipping in the Strait of Hormuz<\/a>, its biggest strategic advantage.<\/p>\n Iran is trying to use this retaliatory pressure<\/a> \u2014 which is driving up energy prices globally \u2014 to bring the war to an end on the best terms possible. It is pressing for sanctions relief, and seeking enough control over the strait<\/a> to demand payment from ships passing through to deliver energy and other goods.<\/p>\n The Trump administration \u2014 which is stuck fighting over a waterway in a war that was launched to curb Iran\u2019s nuclear program<\/a> \u2014 is now promising to deliver even tougher sanctions<\/a> to try to squeeze the Islamic Republic into submission. But experts say U.S. President Donald Trump<\/a> may be underestimating how long Iran can hold out.<\/p>\n Iran has been subject to Western sanctions for years and has become deft at partially circumventing them. It has expanded domestic production, used informal cross-border trade networks, bought restricted goods through third countries, and used a shadow fleet to transport its oil.<\/p>\n \u201cIran\u2019s resistance capacity not only avoids collapse, it also prevents the economic pain from translating into the political pressure and changes that the U.S. expects,\u201d said Hadi Kahalzadeh, an expert on Iran\u2019s economy at Brandeis University.<\/p>\n A shopkeeper arranges nuts at his shop at Tajrish traditional bazaar in northern Tehran, Iran, Sunday, Aug. 2, 2026. (AP Photo\/Vahid Salemi)\n<\/p>\n Workers prepare sangak, a traditional Iranian flatbread, at a bakery in Tehran, Iran, Tuesday, Aug. 18, 2026. (AP Photo\/Vahid Salemi)\n<\/p>\n Women walk through the Iran Mall shopping center in Tehran, Iran, Thursday, July 30, 2026. (AP Photo\/Vahid Salemi)\n<\/p>\n Small boats line the shore as cargo ships and other commercial vessels appear anchored in the Strait of Hormuz off Bandar Abbas, Iran, Monday, July 27, 2026. (Razieh Poudat\/ISNA via AP)\n<\/p>\n People walk in Tehran\u2019s traditional main bazaar, Iran, Saturday, Aug. 8, 2026. (AP Photo\/Vahid Salemi)\n<\/p>\n Show Caption<\/p>\n 1 of 5<\/p>\n A shopkeeper arranges nuts at his shop at Tajrish traditional bazaar in northern Tehran, Iran, Sunday, Aug. 2, 2026. (AP Photo\/Vahid Salemi)\n<\/p>\n Expand<\/a> Tehran\u2019s sprawling Grand Bazaar is regularly packed with shoppers hoping to find more affordable staples than at the country\u2019s grocery stores, where rice is 60% more expensive and beef is 150% more expensive than before the war.<\/p>\n A mother of two from northern Iran posted a photo on X this week after purchasing milk, eggs, toilet paper and a few other items, but no meat. She complained that it cost 89 million rials (about $65).<\/p>\n \u201cBuying basic necessities has become our main priority, and our shopping basket has gotten smaller and more limited,\u201d the 41-year-old told The Associated Press on condition of anonymity for fear of retribution.<\/p>\n \u201cThe emotional toll and the pressure we\u2019re under are another story,\u201d she said. \u201cEvery time we have to say no to our children, every time we have to go back and forth over a decision, whether it\u2019s a class you\u2019d love your children to take or something they really want you to buy for them, it\u2019s genuinely exhausting.\u201d<\/p>\n By the end of the year, inflation in Iran is expected to rise nearly 70%, according to the International Monetary Fund, and the country\u2019s economy<\/a> \u2014 devastated by a decade of sanctions before the war \u2014 is forecast to shrink by more than 5%.<\/p>\n While gasoline has remained cheap thanks to government subsidies, even that might not last forever as supplies get tighter. A presidential aide told Iranian state television last week that the country is now using more gasoline each day than it produces and may need to raise prices \u2014 something that in the past has led to widespread protests.<\/p>\n Iranians turn some anger toward countries behind sanctions<\/p>\n Iran\u2019s theocratic leaders were already facing economic discontent before the U.S. and Israel<\/a> started the war on Feb. 28. Protests had spread across the country<\/a> at the beginning of the year before they were violently put down, with thousands killed and tens of thousands believed to have been arrested.<\/p>\n Many Iranians have now turned at least some of their economic frustrations toward the countries behind the sanctions and the attacks that have destroyed factories and critical infrastructure and killed scores of civilians, said Hassan Golmoradi, a Tehran-based economist.<\/p>\n \u201cDespite the hardships and difficulties, they have shown considerable patience in putting up with the resulting economic pressures,\u201d Golmoradi said.<\/p>\n Iran\u2019s leaders have said it is a treasonous offense \u2014 punishable by death \u2014 to take part in anti-government protests.<\/p>\n \u201cThey do suffer, but they do not think that by joining violent protests they can achieve something for themselves and their families,\u201d said Mohammad Farzanegan, a professor of Middle Eastern economics at the University of Marburg in Germany.<\/p>\n Trump is threatening tougher sanctions<\/p>\n On Wednesday, Trump vowed on social media to unleash against Iran the \u201cmost crushing economic operation ever taken against any country.\u201d He also threatened secondary sanctions on nations and companies that continue to do business with Iran.<\/p>\n The United Arab Emirates, which for years had enabled Iran to circumvent sanctions and receive goods from other countries, announced this week it was suspending all trade<\/a> with Tehran. Trump had called the leader of the UAE, Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, the day before the announcement.<\/p>\n With the economic struggles, the elected government of Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian has said it favors a negotiated end to the war. \u201cWhat concerns us is people\u2019s livelihoods and their economic situation, and we are doing everything we can to deal with it,\u201d he told reporters last week.<\/p>\n But the most powerful force in Iran remains the paramilitary Revolutionary Guard, which has only become stronger after withstanding U.S. and Israeli airstrikes that killed Iran\u2019s top leaders during the war\u2019s opening salvos. The Guard is pressing for greater concessions from the U.S., including Iranian control over the Strait of Hormuz and financial compensation for the war.<\/p>\n![\"A](\"https:\/\/www.bostonherald.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/Iran_Daily_Life_56818.jpg?w=620\")
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\nIran\u2019s economic strains carry an \u2018emotional toll\u2019<\/p>\n