Treasury report says Iran's inflation hit 90% as U.S. pressure campaign bites

A Treasury Department report says the Trump administration's economic pressure campaign is crippling Iran's economy. Annual inflation in Iran reached 90% in September, up from roughly 35% in early 2025, according to a summary of the report ¹.

The report covers "Operation Economic Outcast," a campaign led by Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent that launched in late August. It combines a U.S. naval blockade, sanctions and pressure on Iran's overland trade routes, and it aims to cut Tehran's funding for the Houthis, Hamas and Hezbollah ¹.

What the report says

Iran's currency, the rial, has lost about a quarter of its value since the campaign began. In October the unofficial rate hit a record low of 2.687 million rials per U.S. dollar ¹.

Iran has loaded no oil onto tankers since Aug. 25, the report says. The maritime tracker Kpler says Iran has sold off its remaining oil that was stranded at sea ¹.

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Trade is also snarled. Thousands of trucks are reportedly stranded at the Turkish border, with delays of up to 20 days, and hundreds more are waiting at the Pakistani border ¹. Several countries have barred Iranian airlines or canceled flights, and Türkiye suspended all Mahan Air flights ¹.

Iran's own numbers

Iran's official figures point the same way. The Jerusalem Post, citing Iran's statistics, reported year-on-year inflation of 89.8% in September 2026 ².

Official figures show about 700,000 jobs lost during the war, while unofficial reports suggest nearly two million ². An Iranian labor official said up to 1.4 million people could leave the labor market by the end of the Iranian calendar year if the contraction continues ².

What Bessent says

Bessent has been upbeat about the results. He told Iran International that Iran's economy would shrink by an additional 25% by next March ². Of the Iranian government, he said:

We are seeing the regime go bankrupt.

The report is more cautious than that. It "does not argue that the Iranian government is close to collapsing," according to the Kurdistan24 account ¹.

What happens next

On Oct. 29, President Trump met national security and foreign policy aides. Adm. Brad Cooper, who leads U.S. Central Command, briefed him on the blockade, and Bessent briefed him on the economic campaign ¹.

Trump is weighing a deal with Iran against possibly resuming major combat after the midterm elections, alongside the Treasury's economic campaign, according to the report ¹.

That matters because the pressure campaign sits alongside a war. The sources we reviewed measure the damage to Iran, not the cost to Americans. They do not say whether pressure on Iran will bring a deal, or how long it would take.

Voters will weigh that on Tuesday. The administration points to Iran's hardship as evidence the campaign is working, while the war's price at home and its end date remain open questions.

The Record

1. Aug 25, 2026Treasury says Iran has loaded no oil onto tankers since this date ¹.
2. Oct 29, 2026Trump meets national security aides; Adm. Brad Cooper briefs him on the blockade and Bessent on the economic campaign ¹.
3. Oct 30, 2026Treasury report says Iran's annual inflation reached 90% in September and that the rial hit a record low in October ¹.

Sources

1. Kurdistan24, “Treasury Says Iran's Economy Is Crippled” (2026-10-30). kurdistan24.net/en/story/949577/treasury-says-irans-economy-
2. The Jerusalem Post, “Iran economy faces deeper contraction as inflation hits 89.8%, job losses mount” (2026-10-28). jpost.com/middle-east/iran-news/article-913117

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