0455 GMT: There is no doubt about today's lead story. Even international news outlets who think of "Iran" as the nuclear programme and possible war with Israel set these aside on Monday for the economic shock of the free fall of the currency.
By the end of Monday, currency websites such as Mesghal and Mazanex set the Iranian Rial at 34700:1 vs. the US dollar on the open market, a drop of 16% on the day and more than 40% on the week, with some Iranian media reporting the currency hitting the 35000:1 mark.
Already this morning there are indications beyond the numbers of the seriousness of the problem. Reports indicate that Tehran's major foreign exchange offices were closed early on Monday, and the opposition website Kalemeh is claiming that parts of the Bazaar were shut. One of Mesghal's currency websites has been "Account Suspended" since Monday morning; the other cannot be contacted this morning. Mazanex has suspended the posting of a dollar rate for the Rial.
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