Iran, Islamic Rep.: Lending interest rate (%)

Key figures

What the numbers say

In 2016, Iran, Islamic Rep.'s lending interest rate (%) rose 3.79 percentage points on 2015 (from 14.21% to 18%).

Across the 11 yearly changes before that (2005 to 2015), the average change was −0.22 percentage points and a typical year strayed about 1.34 percentage points from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 3.0 standard deviations above that average, so it was unusually large compared with the rest of the record.

On record, the biggest yearly rise was 3.79 percentage points in 2016 and the biggest yearly fall was 2 percentage points in 2006. The numbers show how large and when, not why; for the cause, look at what happened in that country in those years.

From 2007 to 2016 the straight-line trend is upward, about 0.46 percentage points a year. A straight line explains 42% of the movement over 10 observed years.

Worked out from the yearly values above. How the checks work: standard deviation, z-scores and straight-line trends.

Closest to Iran, Islamic Rep. in the 2016 ranking

• Côte d'Ivoire — 2nd of 7: 5.3%
• Guinea-Bissau — 3rd of 7: 5.3%
• Mali — 4th of 7: 5.3%

What this measures

Lending rate is the bank rate that usually meets the short- and medium-term financing needs of the private sector. This rate is normally differentiated according to creditworthiness of borrowers and objectives of financing. The terms and conditions attached to these rates differ by country, however, limiting their comparability.

Limitations: Countries use a variety of reporting formats, sample designs, interest compounding formulas, averaging methods, and data presentations for indices and other data series on interest rates. The IMF's Monetary and Financial Statistics Manual does not provide guidelines beyond the general recommendation that such data should reflect market prices and effective (rather than nominal) interest rates and should be representative of the financial assets and markets to be covered. For more information, please see http://www.imf.org/external/pubs/ft/mfs/manual/index.htm.

All 13 values

Lending interest rate (%) in nearby economies

• Afghanistan — 14.84% (2017)
• Algeria — 8% (2025)
• Bahrain — 5.16% (2015)
• Egypt, Arab Rep. — 24.29% (2024)
• Iraq — 12.29% (2015)
• Israel — 2.96% (2022)
• Jordan — 8.1% (2025)
• Kuwait — 5.03% (2025)
• Lebanon — 10.51% (2019)
• Oman — 5.5% (2021)
• Pakistan — 8.67% (2021)
• Qatar

More financial sector data for Iran, Islamic Rep.

• Consumer price index (2010 = 100) — 4,030 (2025)
• Inflation, consumer prices (annual % growth) — 42.17% (2025)
• GDP deflator (base year varies by country) — 342.89 (2025)
• DEC alternative conversion factor (LCU per US$) — US$742,604 (2025)
• Inflation, GDP deflator (annual % growth) — 28.78% (2025)
• Official exchange rate (LCU per US$, period average) — US$42,000 (2023)
• Monetary sector credit to private sector (% of GDP) — 57.83% (2016)
• Domestic credit to private sector (% of GDP) — 57.83% (2016)
• Domestic credit to private sector by banks (% of GDP)

Reading data like this

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Questions people ask

What is Iran, Islamic Rep.'s lending interest rate (%)?

18% in 2016, according to the World Bank (World Development Indicators).

How has it changed since 2004?

It is up 1.35 percentage points from 16.65% in 2004. The highest value was 18% in 2016 and the lowest 11% in 2011.

Is the latest change in lending interest rate (%) unusual for Iran, Islamic Rep.?

In 2016, Iran, Islamic Rep.'s lending interest rate (%) rose 3.79 percentage points on 2015 (from 14.21% to 18%). Across the 11 yearly changes before that (2005 to 2015), the average change was −0.22 percentage points and a typical year strayed about 1.34 percentage points from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 3.0 standard deviations above that average, so it was unusually large compared with the rest of the record.

Where does this data come from?

The World Bank's World Development Indicators, licensed CC BY 4.0. Original source: International Financial Statistics database, International Monetary Fund (IMF).

Source

World Bank, World Development Indicators, indicator FR.INR.LEND, licensed CC BY 4.0. Original source: International Financial Statistics database, International Monetary Fund (IMF) Figures are fetched from the World Bank API and refreshed monthly; see the series on data.worldbank.org. The full definition and method are in the World Bank's metadata glossary. Comparisons use the same World Bank release.

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