Recent free-market USD/IRR readings near 2.65 million reflect sustained pressure on the rial from elevated domestic inflation and surging global gold prices, which have lifted local coin values and encouraged dollar demand in Tehran trading. The Central Bank of Iran has signaled readiness for liquidity support, yet street rates have edged higher in recent sessions amid thin supply channels and ongoing sanctions constraints on foreign currency access. With end-of-month resolution approaching, trader positioning clusters around 2.6–2.8 million as these factors point to continued range-bound movement rather than abrupt shifts, consistent with the market’s consensus distribution across those brackets.