Iran Confronts an 'Economic Evolution'

Gasoline? It's 36 cents a gallon. Laundry detergent? Fifty cents for a standard-size box. Milk? About 20 cents a quart. These prices are so low because Iran's government spends half its national budget to subsidize many of life's necessities. Not for long. ....

....In October, when oil was selling for $70 a barrel, Central Bank governor Mahmoud Bahmani warned of a huge budget deficit if the price did not rise. "If this rate continues until the end of the year, $54 billion of expected oil income won't materialize," he told the official Islamic Republic News Agency. On Wednesday, Iranian oil was selling for $42.....