- The currency of Turkey, the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, and the Islamic Republic of Iran have been on a nosedive.
- The value of the Turkish Lira has consistently declined for the last month.
- Pakistan is going through a torrid time on the economic front.
The last few weeks have not been good for Islamic nations – Shia or Sunni. The currency of Turkey, the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, and the Islamic Republic of Iran have been on a nosedive.
The value of the Turkish Lira has consistently declined for the last month. Currently, 1 US Dollar is equivalent to 12.72 Turkish Lira. Its value has declined in double digits in the last one month, from around 10 Lira per USD to 12.72.
The major source of foreign currency and one of the significant parts of the Turkish economy was tourism, which collapsed with the onslaught of the Chinese virus. Exports to Arab countries, the next big source of American dollars, are also set to collapse amid the calls of the boycott of Turkish goods, and this is giving sleepless nights to Turkish.
Similarly, the value of the Pakistani rupee has consistently declined over the last few weeks. IMF is not releasing the next tranche of loans to the Islamic country because it is yet to deliver on promised reforms. The forex situation has been dismal for the last few months and declined from 19.2 billion dollars to 17.2 billion dollars in the last month.
Pakistan is going through a torrid time on the economic front. The sky-high inflation, owing to depreciation in the value of the Pakistani rupee and the new tax policies implemented by the government has led to inflation rates crossing the 9 percent mark in September.
The Wholesale Price Index (WPI), which captures prices in the wholesale market, also rose sharply by 19.6 percent in September compared to 4.3 percent in the same month a year ago. According to the Pakistan Institute of Development Economics, about 39 percent of Pakistanis live in poverty and the rising inflation could have a catastrophic effect on them.
Iran’s Rial has also declined by another 2.8 percent, bringing its 6-month loss to 31.5 percent. After former President Donald Trump’s administration left the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), Iran’s economy has suffered. Iran is now cozying with China in order to improve the economic conditions but that has been of little help so far. Most of the countries around the world, including India, have stopped purchasing oil from the Islamic Republic of Iran, so the recent surge in oil prices is of little help to the country.
The Islamization policies of leaders in countries like Iran, Turkey, and Pakistan are pushing their economy into the medieval world. Erdogan‘s dreams are bringing back the Ottoman Empire’s glory of the medieval world, that too through medieval practices.
His promotion of Ottoman-inspired Turkish TV series and aggressive export of these soap operas in countries like Pakistan shows that he wants to establish Turkey as the center of the Islamic world and designate himself as caliph. But, the modern world runs on sound economy and technology, and Turkey as well Pakistan is losing on both fronts as they involve themselves in conflict with the Western world and rapidly modernizing countries like India.
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Iran, too, is descending into chaos. Although, Iran’s problems are the result of American sanctions than its own doing but overall, the post-Covid world does not seem kind to the Islamic countries.