Iran under sanctions: no money for medicine but luxury cars aplenty

Custom documents show that Iran spent subsidised dollars on luxury goods as the ministry of health scrambled for supplies

In 2012, the United States and European Union introduced new financial and energy sanctions designed in part to curb Iran's oil exports. The US threatened foreign financial institutions dealing with Iran's Central Bank, making it hard for Iranian companies to acquire the dollars needed to buy imports.

In any case foreign currency dried up, because the sanctions halved Iran's oil exports - its main source of foreign exchange - and cut oil revenue from $95bn in 2011 to $69bn in 2012. Even when dollars were available, the cost of imports became prohibitive as the rial fell on the open market from 19,000 in 2011 to 32,000 in 2012.